Scarlet Letter
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“Truly, friends; and methinks it must gladden your heart, after your troubles and sojourn in the wilderness,” said the townsman, “to find yourself,at length, in a land where iniquity is searched out, and punished in sight of rulers and people; as here in our godly New England”(Hawthorne p 59). Imagine a town where no privacy of personal business excludes. Nathaniel Hawthornes novel The Scarlet Letter uses symbolism to reveal mans inherent sinful nature.
Pearl symbolizes sin as well as passion in adultery but more clearly a living scarlet letter of her own. “I am my mothers child,” answered the scarlet vision.” and my name is Pearl.” ( Hawthorne p 57). The reader infers from this quotation that Pearls a sort of living version of her mothers scarlet letter. Created of the physical solution of sin and that of loves passion. Also the ” Scarlet Letter” of Father Dimmesdale which every time he sees her, he feels shameful and guilt that he, the priest, made this “sin” and not punished like his partner. Pearl represents not only “sin” but also and important spirit and passion that created this sin. Also, Pearls existence gives her mother reason to live, supports her spirits when shes ready to give up. “But. In truth. Pearl was the one, as well as the other; and only in consequence of that identity had Hester continued
so perfectly to represent the Scarlet letter in her appearance.” (Hawthorne p 145).Even her mother some times sees her as her living punishment of her sin. Hesters daughter symbolize many things but one thing that for sure is that shes the scarlet letter to both her parent and the towns people.
No matter what, the symbolism behind the scarlet letter A changes throughout this novel. Though the letter A first symbolized sin of adultery and its eternal pain and punishment, Hester
modifies it through her pain and kind ship to the towns weak ones. “the effect of the cross on a nuns bosom. It imparted to the wearer a kind of sacredness, which enabled her to walk security amid all peril. Had she fallen among thieves, it would have kept her safe” ( Hawthorne ch 13) Described in this quote shows that scarlet letter describes more than her punishment, it keeps her safe from any harm because nobody will go close to her because if they do people will think were her partner in crime. Hester takes control of her own punishment. She lives it daily with pain and sorrow. Though the letter causes her to live a lonely life of exile and criticism, it seems
almost immediately to become a symbol for something far powerful and moral than ” adultery.” as the scarlet letter changes be Hesters action impacts on it. People may questioned that reality of it really symbolizes. Others could guess that the forest may have had an impact on it.
The forest