Essay On The Symbolism Of Pearl In The Scarlet Letter
The Symbolism of Pearl In The Scarlet Letter, Hawthorne symbolizes Pearl as four main things. First, the chaos inside of Hester. Second, the hidden sin of her parents. Third, a last hope for Dimmesdale. Fourth, a chance to start a better life. Lastly, the scarlet letter itself. Pearl is often described as an elf-child because of her misbehavior. She often screams when spoken to by strangers or teased by other children. Pearl lashes out when something displeases her when she is the age of three, and also at the age of seven. Pearl is chaotic and always restless. This is how she is a symbol of the chaos inside of Hester. Hester feels an abundance of grief for her sin and Pearl is a constant reminder of how she feels inside. Pearl torments Hester by her obsession with the Scarlet Letter. Hester even asks her
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When Hester returns to Boston, she is still wearing the letter. People don’t believe their eyes. This is because Hester is not accompanied by Pearl. Pearl directly represents that letter and the end of the novel proves it. It has grown with Pearl and changed her too. As Wagenkenecht quotes John A. Andola in Characters in The Scarlet Letter, “‘Without her mother’s sin Pearl could not exist, nor could she exist without her mother’s love, both of which are symbolized in the scarlet A and in Pearl herself.’” (69) The ultimate symbolism in The Scarlet Letter is that Pearl is the scarlet A.
Hawthorne uses Pearl as a big source of symbolism in The Scarlet Letter. Pearl represents the unseen tumult that is inside of Hester, that even Hester herself cannot see. She symbolizes the secrecy of Hester and Dimmesdale’s love outside of the strict rules of the Puritan society. She represents how forbidden it was to love outside of a marriage or family. Pearl was a last hope for Dimmesdale to pass away peacefully and without regrets. She was her own hope for a better life and to fit in
When Hester returns to Boston, she is still wearing the letter. People don’t believe their eyes. This is because Hester is not accompanied by Pearl. Pearl directly represents that letter and the end of the novel proves it. It has grown with Pearl and changed her too. As Wagenkenecht quotes John A. Andola in Characters in The Scarlet Letter, “‘Without her mother’s sin Pearl could not exist, nor could she exist without her mother’s love, both of which are symbolized in the scarlet A and in Pearl herself.’” (69) The ultimate symbolism in The Scarlet Letter is that Pearl is the scarlet A.
Hawthorne uses Pearl as a big source of symbolism in The Scarlet Letter. Pearl represents the unseen tumult that is inside of Hester, that even Hester herself cannot see. She symbolizes the secrecy of Hester and Dimmesdale’s love outside of the strict rules of the Puritan society. She represents how forbidden it was to love outside of a marriage or family. Pearl was a last hope for Dimmesdale to pass away peacefully and without regrets. She was her own hope for a better life and to fit in