Scarlet Letter Pearl Symbolism

Pearl’s obsession is to annoy her mom and continue to tease Hester about the scarlet letter and asks about it. Hester gets Pearl to “shut

“Pearl kissed his lips. A spell was broken, The great scene of grief, in which the wild infant bore a part. Had developed all her sympathies; and as her tears fell upon her father’s cheek, they were the pledge that she would grow up amid human joy and sorrow, nor forever do battle with the world, but be a woman in it. Towards her mother, too, pearl’s errand as messenger of anguish was all fulfilled.”(267) She was the one bringing the grief of the scarlet letter on beth her mother and father, whee he died and she kissed him he was released and in that moment so was Hester. She was the reason the scarlet letter was significant in their lives because she was the one controlling it. She was the constant reminder and only when she let them be free were they free, through death or through

Pearl was born in the prison into darkness, she is an elf-like child. She is the result of sin but she is a consient reminder of her mother's guilt. Pearl cried “mother I see you here. Look! Look!” Hawthorne explains “hester looked by way of humoring the child; and she saw that, owing to the peculiar effect to convex mirror, the scarlet letter.” (hawthorne 97) The quote shows that paerl is there to remind her mother of her sin and guilt. When Hawthorne continuous Hester, Pearl, and Dimmesdale are out in the woods. Hester feels free so she took off the scarlet letter. Hester and Dimmesdale are talking about if Pearl would like Dimmesdale, then Heaster calls her over, when she come. She starts “pearl still pointed with her forefinger and frown gathered on her brow the more impressive from the childish the almost baby-like aspect of the features that conveyed it.” (Hawthorne 188) The quote proves that guilt is in Pearl because she has only seen hester with the scarlet letter. That she only knows Hester's guilt and that she has to remind her that it is not there anymore. The symbol of Pearl is a theme of guilt to her mother because she is always reminding her of her

In chapter six’s passage, Hawthorne emphasis Pearl’s beauty and her grandiose character, even though she was created out of sin and guilt. Hawthorne juxtaposes the town’s perspective of Pearl, as being a child of wrongdoing, to Hester’s view of her being an angelic figure, which a glowing spirit. The text presents the idea that although the town forced Hester to wear the scarlet letter to repent for her sin; however, its effect entirely contradicted its purpose. Not only did the scarlet make Hester realize the beautiful, self-fulfilling outcome of her actions, but it also altered her perception of the difference between wrong and right to one that negated society’s imposed beliefs.

In spite of that, what makes her the protagonist of the story is how she is able to overcome her punishment that was meant to give her shame. Throughout Chapter 13 of the book, Hawthorne shows how Hester’s confidence has developed in herself and in view of the town, most noticeably when considering the meaning of the scarlet letter, “Such helpfulness was found in her ... that many people refused to interpret the scarlet A by its original signification. They said that it meant Able; so strong was Hester Prynne, with a woman’s strength,” (Hawthorne 107). Instead of subjecting to the shame that was forced upon her, she grew above it, conveying a different aspect of the theme of guilt, which is redemption. This is not to say that Hester did not care about the sin she committed, as she is very much reminded of it every day of her life while living with the child of that sin. In fact, the author addresses this by saying, “In giving her existence a great law had been broken; and the result was a being whose elements were perhaps beautiful and brilliant, but all in disorder,” (Hawthorne 60). Hawthorne is implying how Pearl represents the outcome of a sin and arranged it so that Hester is always living with that sin, therefore, always being reminded of the shame she is supposed to

She touches the scarlet letter, but little does she know that she is the reason for the punishment. They are social outcasts, so they don’t leave their house much. Pearl plays alone and has best friends that are imaginary. She distrusts her own imaginary friends for the same reason that she distrusts all the Puritans in the colony. People treat Hester and Pearl differently than everyone else is treated. She only loves Hester, because Hester spends time with her and is a good mother. She plays with her and teaches her Bible stories. Pearl knows the whole catechism at the age of three, but refuses to say it to anyone. She is smarter than everyone thinks she is. Chillingworth speaks to Pearl about the scarlet letter. He asked her if she knew the reason why her mother must wear the scarlet letter all the time. She replies, “Yes, that is the same reason why the preacher holds his hand over his heart.” Pearl asks her mom all the time the reason why she wears the scarlet letter and why the preacher holds his hand over his heart. She knows that they both do, but she doesn’t know why. Hester tells her that she wears it because of the pretty gold thread, but she doesn’t know the minister’s reason. Later in the story, Dimmesdale, Hester, and Pearl meet in the forest, and Hester rips the scarlet letter off. Pearl gets mad then, because she knows that her mother is supposed to wear it. Dimmesdale kisses Pearl, but she washes the kiss off with

Pearl acts as a physical embodiment of the scarlet letter as she serves as a reminder to Hester regarding the shamefulness of her sin. Pearl also is clothed similar to it and follows her mother everywhere similar to the letter. The letter was put on Hester from the strict rules of Puritan society. Despite Pearl being made from sin rather than given to Hester by Puritan society, she still shares a similarity as she protects Hester from actions viewed as sinful by Puritan society. After Hester and Pearl’s visit to the Governor’s mansion Mistress Hibbins suggests that Hester go to the woods and take part in witchcraft.

In the beginning of the novel, the scarlet letter is seen as a symbol of Hester great sin of adultery and the child she has thence bared. Hester has always seen the scarlet letter as a shameful symbol of her sins she has made. Yet Pearl, Hester’s daughter, matures only knowing her mother with the scarlet letter and loving her for it. Pearl grows to love the A so much that she her self tries to duplicate it, “As the last touch to her mermaid’s garb, Pearl took some eelgrass, and imitated, as best she could, on her own bosom, the decoration with which she was so familiar on her mother’s A letter- the letter A- but freshly green, instead of scarlet” (Hawthorne 155). The scarlet letter has become a significant symbol in Pearl’s life and she cannot bare the thought of not having it. This deep attachment to the A leads Pearl to desiring one for herself. In one instance she had a fit about it by, “Stamping

Hester noted that “Pearl misses something which she has always seen me wear” (Hawthorne 252). Pearl grew up viewing the scarlet letter upon her mother’s bosom leading her to be confused when her mother no longer wore it. This single moment led Hester to wear the letter for her daughter’s protection for the rest of her life. Hester managed to look past the pain and suffering for her own daughter, leading her on the path of defeating her suffering. Due to her opinions and following of the scarlet letter, she led to her own suffering and

The scarlet letter represents Pearl's emotional attachment to Hester. For instance, Pearl is as deeply affectionate to the

In the Hawthorne’s novel, The Scarlet Letter, he introduces Pearl as a symbol of adultery committed by Hester and Dimmesdale. Not knowing who her father is, she has been raised solely by Hester throughout the course of this novel. Due to this, Pearl proves to be stubborn or inflexible when it comes to her family and would like to keep Hester’s motherly love to herself, rather than accepting Dimmesdale as her father. Unable to accept change in her family, she refuses to cross the brook and let go of the past for a new future. “Children will not abide any, the slightest, change in the accustomed aspect of things that we daily before their eyes” (165).

after frowning, stamping her foot, and shaking her little hand with a variety of threatening gestures, suddenly made a rush at the knot of her enemies, and put them all to flight” (Hawthorne 58). Little Pearl had a fire in her and was often referred to as an “imp” due to her mischievous ways and would cause her mother grief in the way she treated the scarlet letter. When Pearl was first born, Hester observed, “The very first thing which she had noticed in her life, was -what?- not the mother’s smile, . . . [instead] the infant’s eyes had been caught by the glimmering of the gold embroidery about the letter; and putting her little hand she grasped at it, smiling . . .” (55).

Hester shows the minister she can care for the child by showing her how nicely dressed she is, Hester had been making clothes for herself and her daughter to show her beauty in another way. This shows how much she cares for her child, even if she is the outcome of her sin. This progressively changes throughout the piece, changing the effects of the scarlet letter on Pearl as she gets older and more aware. Furthermore, at the beginning of the novel Pearl is seen as the scarlet letter reincarnated, “the scarlet letter in another form” (121) the Puritan society sees her as the living and breathing version of the scarlet letter “the scarlet letter endowed with life” (82). She is portrayed more as Hester's

First, Hester’s daughter Pearl is portrayed as representative of Hester’s sin in the flesh, or the truth of what she’s done walking around for all to see. She rings of the truth while also being Hester’s sole treasure in life. In the early stages of the novel, the moment in which Hester explains to the men at Governor Bellingham’s mansion that she must be allowed to keep Pearl as she says “‘[God] gave her in requital of all things else, which he had taken from me. She is my happiness!–she is my torture, none the less! Pearl keeps me here in life! Pearl punishes me too! See ye not, she is the scarlet letter, only capable of being loved, and o endowed with a million-fold power of retribution for my sin?’” (p.103), providing a very clear representation of what Pearl is to Hester, and what she represents in her life. She is the truth of the scarlet letter in flesh and blood, and her mother’s torture, reminding her of the sin in which she has partaken. This shows Hester’s feelings of living with the truth: it helps her and teaches her much about life while

Hawthorne implies that this causes Hester some discomfort because it reminded her of a sinful nature. Yet, perhaps she saw her true reflection in Pearl; she should have always kept her fiery passion. Through her child she expressed herself in ways the Puritan society categorized eccentric. Pearl was blithe and did not carry the burden of sin but instead embraced it.