I'm Stuck please help

Question

Analyze what this comment indicates: “Added a third autumnal matron, ‘At the very least, they should have put the brand of a hot iron on Hester Prynne’s forehead’” (The Scarlet Letter, II). Hints: autumnal means in the fall season of someone’s life such as late middle age; a matron is a married woman.  

Answer 1

Hester is described as physically attractive more than once; for example, the narrator states "her beauty shone out, and made a halo of the misfortune and ignominy in which she was enveloped"(Chapter 2).

The fact a middle-aged, married woman wants an attractive young woman to suffer a disfiguring punishment could go two ways. One, the matron wants Hester to be "ugly" so neither she nor the men in the village are tempted to sin (adultery). Two, more likely given the overall tone of the novel, the matron wants Hester to be punished harshly due to her own envy of Hester's youth/ beauty.

Answer 2

I'm not sure that this section, alone, in the paragraph gives you much insight to what is going on in the chapter. Nevertheless, this comment indicates a contrast between the older generation and the younger generation, but it also alludes to the departure in society from traditions of the past. So, the older woman wants her to be PERMANENTLY marked as a warning to all: not just a clothing sign that draws others to continue to look at her... youth.