Character Analysis: "Pearl" from Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter

Pearl is the symbolic character of the novel, The Scarlet Letter, by Nathaniel Hawthorne. Pearl is the daughter of Hester Prynne and Arthur Dimmesdale, the result of their secret sin. As a result of the sin Pearl's mother is forced to wear the letter "A", embroidered in scarlet upon her chest, so all will know of her adultery. Pearl is mainly described through other characters in the novel, though Pearl's actions also play an important part in determining her character. Pearl like most people has to grow to realize that along with life comes death and with joy there is sorrow. Pearl's growth toward this realization is seen through her attitude toward her mother, her fascination with the scarlet letter, her attitude toward the town's children, her actions towards Dimmesdale, and her first encounter with death and sorrow.

Pearl's mother was her only playmate, since both were considered outcast, she and her mother were extremely close. Because Pearl's mother was busy much of the time, she was left alone a great deal. Many town folk called her a wild and impish creature who may have been the offspring of a demon. Her mother tried to teach her and take control but these efforts most often failed. Meanwhile, Pearl was growing up in her own little world away from the world of reality. She, therefore, was not growing up among companions of her own age experiencing all of the feelings that go along with it.

Pearl's fascination with the scarlet letter first began when she was a baby. It had been her first point of interest. When her mother bent over the cradle, Pearl's had reached up and grasped the letter upon her bosom. When she grew older, Pearl would pick flowers and throw them at her mother's bosom, if she hit the letter she would dance up and down. As Pearl grows so does her fascination with the letter. While waiting for her mother one day she made a green "A' out of seaweed on her bosom. Her mother was horrified by this, and Pearl does not seem to realize the pain she inflicts upon her mother each time she does such things. This shows how Pearl's lack of emotion prevents her from seeing strong emotion in others.

Pearl's attitude toward the towns-children is hostile almost hateful. Pearl, from the very first, seems to realize that she is not to associate with the towns-children. If the children gathered in a circle about her Pearl would show her wrath. She would clench her fists, throw stones, and scream in a loud most horrible voice. Even at home Pearl's unspoken wrath was shown as she savagely attacked the weeds in the garden and pretended the ugliest ones were the Puritan elders and their children. This anger shows how apart she feels from the real world. It is this distance from the real world which keeps Pearl away from the effects of death and sorrow.

Pearl seemed to have a special insight toward Arthur Dimmesdale, as though she knew his secret. From the beginning there seemed to be a link between the two, for one of the first times Pearl makes any sign of intense emotion it is toward Dimmesdale. After Dimmesdale made his plea for Hester to keep Pearl, Pearl stole over to him and rubbed her cheek against his hand. Pearl always questioned Dimmesdale. During the second scaffold scene and again in the forest Pearl asked Dimmesdale if he would not come with she and her mother into down. Dimmesdale is the one person other than her mother to whom Pearl shows any emotion.

Pearl's first encounter with death and sorrow comes during the third scaffold scene when Dimmesdale dies. It is here for the first time that Pearl leaves her small world to enter the world of death and therefore the world of reality. Pearl sheds tears of sorrow for the first time in her life after she gave Dimmesdale one last kiss - a kiss of love; " 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" (p. 222). Pearl will now become a part of the real world where along with life comes death and with joy comes sorrow.

In Pearl, Hawthorne shows the development that we all must go through in our life - the realization of life and death. Pearl is the symbol of her parents' sin and though she herself committed no sin she was punished. She was forced to live apart from the real world. This caused Pearl to become aware of death more slowly than most. The realization does eventually come, after she is forced to leave her little world and go into a broader more realistic world. The story of Pearl has implications for all people as we all will eventually leave our childhood worlds to enter the adult world where death, joy, and sorrow are accepted as part of life.