Preview

What Is Pearl's Role In The Scarlet Letter

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
609 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
What Is Pearl's Role In The Scarlet Letter
The Scarlet Letter talks about a story of a woman called Hester wears an “A” which means “Adultery” in a strict society, through whole story, we can see how this “A” affect not only her but also the people around her. Pearl as Hester’s daughter, the youngest main role in the Scarlet Letter, author Nathaniel Hawthorne uses her to show us the most comprehensive analysis about different characters in this book. Because of how innocent and pure Pearl is, we also can see reactions of the society and people at that time as well as a little girl who grows up in a special environment how she deals with those treatments. Pearl as a treasure of Hester but also as an “A” P51 If the children gathered about her, Pearl would grow positively terrible in her puny wrath, snatching up stones to fling at them, with shrill, incoherent exclamations, that made her mother tremble. Children always imitate their parents, thus they don’t know what Hester did though, they just do what they see from their …show more content…
Pearl does not know Dimmesdale is her father, but when I read this book, I can see that he is not a qualified farther. Actually, I can’t tell what would happen if Dimmesdale stand out at the beginning of the story, but when Hester accept her punishment in public, he didn’t responsible for what he have done. There was one time, Pearl asked him if he would stand with Hester and her, he refused. From Pearl’s perspective, Dimmesdale is afraid to show his offense and admit it. Pearl also notices there is an “A” on Dimmesdale’s chest, the punishment to Dimmesdale shows on his body and mental. Instead, Hester as a strong and independent woman, she raises Pearl by doing sewing, she helps poor even they treat her like other people do. The great personality after 7 years changed the thoughts of people in the town, the “A” became

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    Scarlet Letter Sin Quotes

    • 1162 Words
    • 5 Pages

    She is the result of Dimmesdale and Hester's love for each other. Because of Hester's crime, Pearl is also discriminated because of her mother. "Behold, verily, there is the woman of the scarlet letter; and of a truth, moreover, there is the likeness of the scarlet letter running along her side! Come, therefore, and let us fling mud at them!"(Hawthorne 112). This quote explains how the Puritan children felt about Hester and Pearl. They wanted to fling mud at them because these children were probably told to hate them, and also of the crime Hester committed. Pearl is also considered a wild child, and very untamed and very unlike Puritan children."The child shall be well cared for!–far better than tho canst do for it."(Hawthorne 124). And "The discipline of the family in those days, was of a far more rigid kind than now....Hester Prynne, nevertheless, the loving mother of this one child, ran little risk of erring on the side of undue severity. Mindful, however, of her own errors and misfortunes, she early sought to impose a tender, but strict control over the infant immortality that was committed to her charge. But the task was beyond her skill. After testing both smiles and frowns, and proving that neither mode of treatment possessed any calculable influence, Hester was ultimately compelled to stand aside and permit the child to be swayed by her own impulses." (Hawthorne 100). This quote explains how unlike Puritan child Pearl is, and how's she's offended. Pearl is considered wild and has no rules to follow, because Hester hasn't disciplined her. Because of this, the Townspeople want to give Pearl away to someone who's a better parent. Hester's sin has affected Pearl because she isn't treated with respect and she's considered the result of Hester's sin. Pearl is also considered a wild child that must be…

    • 1162 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne one of the main characters in Hester Prynne. She is a convicted adulterer, and the story follows her starting in 1642 in a Puritan town. She and her illegitimate daughter, Pearl, along with her lover, Dimmesdale, and husband, Chillingworth, are the main focus of this dramatic tale. Through her actions and words, Pearl is a “device” to move the consciences of her parents to end their sinful situation. Pearl’s physical obsession with the scarlet A torments her mother, at one point making her physically put it back on, all while forcing her to confront her sins. Pearl also pressures Dimmesdale into acknowledging her as his daughter, and admitting his sins. Pearl is an important aspect of this tragic…

    • 801 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    1. Hawthorne uses the quote, “Man had marked this woman’s sin by a scarlet letter, which has such potent and disastrous efficacy that no human sympathy could reach her, save it were sinful like herself. God, as a direct consequence of sin which man thus punished, had given her a lovely child, whose place was on that same dishonored bosom, to connect her parent forever with the peace and descent of mortals, and to be finally a blessed soul in heaven.” (86), to contrast how man views Hester’s sin as an unforgiveable act that she deserves to be punished for infintely, and God saw the sin and sent her aid in the form of baby Pearl. Pearl’s purpose on Earth is to show her mother happiness and beauty and lead her to heaven.…

    • 1042 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    She was a Pearl that didn’t want to hide; she wanted to shine brightly. Nathaniel Hawthorne, the author of The Scarlet Letter, introduces Pearl as a wise child who’s always striving to learn more. In Hester’s life, Pearl is given to her as a symbol of Hester’s past. Although Hester and Dimmesdale could have committed adultery without having Pearl, Hawthorne made Pearl a character to symbolize Hester and Dimmesdale’s actions. Pearl serves as a living example of Hester and Dimmesdale’s actions to Hester herself, Dimmesdale, the townspeople, and the reader.…

    • 723 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Nathaniel Hawthorne beautifully crafts his story by using symbolism to reveal details about the story and its characters. In The Scarlet Letter one of the most obvious and prominent symbols is the scarlet "A" placed on Hester. But many readers do not realize that to accompany the letter is Hester's daughter Pearl. Although they have the one similarity of having manifested themselves in a physical form they do evolve through the story into two completely different things. In the beginning the scarlet letter "A" represents Hester's adulterous sin. It is used against her to humiliate her and to persecute her. Through the story it slowly starts to become something more. The letter…

    • 868 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The Scarlet Letter is a novel written by Nathaniel Hawthorne. This essay discusses how Hester is a victim of her social pressure. She was punished for something she did to achieve her dream of having someone that loves her. Hester committed adultery with minister Dimmesdale and had a child with him, Pearl. Her punishment was to stand on the scaffold with her child and wear the letter A on her breast as a sign of her “crime”. Due to the strictures of the puritan society, Hester Prynne suffers from public shaming. She almost lost her only child, and was not able to openly love who she wanted.…

    • 812 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    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…

    • 1036 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    6) In The Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne employs figurative language to explain the symbolic character of Pearl before she becomes a woman. To Hester, her child who is often associated with sin is, “Her Pearl! ...she named the infant “Pearl”, as being of great price, --purchased with all she had, her mother’s only treasure!”(6,1). This allusion of the Gospel of Matthew, the merchant man seeking goodly pearls gave up everything to get that one pearl, similarly connects to how Hester gave up everything such as her home, friends, and dignity just to obtain her daughter, Pearl. Hester sustains the pain of abandonment and wrath from the Puritans just to keep Pearl; Pearl gives Hester a reason to strengthen herself and survive in this community…

    • 302 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    One of the prime examples of Hester’s independence in thought is shown in the affair between Hester and Mr. Dimmesdale. In the Puritan society in which Hester lives, it is society’s standard for women to stay in union with their husband no matter if they have problems or temptations. Despite this, Hester goes against society and does what she thinks is right and falls for Mr. Dimmesdale. Fully knowing the penalty and possible outcomes, Hester does what she believes is right and disregards the societal expectations to be with Mr. Dimmesdale. Hester’s love for Mr. Dimmesdale is pure and doesn’t come from lust or greed. This is reflected through the love Hester has for her daughter, Pearl. Hester shows her great love for Pearl when she is defending her right to be Pearl’s guardian. Hawthorne writes, ““God gave her into my keeping,” repeated Hester Prynne, raising her voice almost to a shriek. “I will not give her up!”” (101) In this scene, Hester is showing how she truly loves Pearl unconditionally. Hester’s love for Dimmesdale and her love for Pearl show her independent thinking. Another reason why Hester is socially independent is her financial autonomy. After she is shunned from the community and is forced to wear the scarlet letter, Hester is able to provide for her and Pearl by being a seamstress; she…

    • 1271 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Strangely, Hester sees her own daughter as an irregular character and surprisingly calls her an imp. On the contrary, this could be seen as not strange at all and instead taken as Hester not wanting to accept her daughter. This thought greatly affects Pearls character because it gives her a reason to rebel against her mother. But, no one really knows or understands Pearl, many just assume or think who they want to think she is. Certain townspeople get a glance on Pearls unknown side when she, “resembled, in her fierce pursuit of them, an infant pestilence, --the scarlet fever, or some such half-fledged angel of judgment,--whose mission was to punish the sins of the rising generation” (83). When Pearl unveils the protective side of her personality, everyone might assume that she is wild or an unobedient child when in reality Pearl knows she should not be treated like a minority and sticks up for herself. This shows how Pearl is a unusual child for her time because many obedient children would not imagine to act like this. Due to a lack of socialism, Pearl is transformed into her true potential which is unusual because more townspeople would expect Pearl to become unsuccessful and dimwitted. This fact alone emphasizes how Pearl chooses to be different and how she uses her intelligence for her own advantage. She is cunning and able to inspect complex observations. This helps her later in life as a…

    • 788 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The main character in The Scarlet Letter is Hester Prynne. The novel is about her crime of adultery which resulted in a daughter named Pearl. Because of this crime, there were many conflicts and issues that happened. The main struggle that occurred with Hester’s crime was how the public viewed her. As soon as the village found out about her, they shunned her from society. They put her in jail until she could be sentenced properly. She was a single mother with no one to turn to for help. She had to be strong for her child but she also had to of felt alone. Just her and her child alone in a dark jail cell. That was only the beginning of her struggles. She was sentenced to stand on the platform in front of everybody. People that she was once close to were judging her and saying cruel things where she could easily hear them. She couldn’t do anything except stand there and face humiliation. Also, the fact that she has to wear a red ‘A’ on her outfit is a constant reminder of what she did. When everybody sees that ‘A’…

    • 1811 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In the passage Hester went to find the governor to keep little Pearl next to her, she doesn’t want Pearl to been taken away from her. But when the Governor and Mr. Wilson asked Pearl who made her, Pearl’s attitude towards the Governor and Mr. Wilsons was so not respectful and she was never like that before, so they have decide she was going to be taken away from Hester. Hester saw Mr. Dimmesdale and begged him to speak for. She has to keep Pearl by her side, because Pearl is the only hope for her. Mr. Dimmesdale spoke up that god have a reason to send Pearl down here, so Hester will…

    • 501 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Nathaniel Hawthorne"s, The Scarlet Letter is a book about a woman, Hester, who moves to Boston from England during the Puritan times. She has a husband, and tells the colonists of Boston he will be arriving to be with her soon. After years go by and he doesn"t arrive, Hester finds another man whom she becomes close to. She becomes pregnant and the town finds out she has committed adultery. She is forced to wear a letter "A," meaning "adulteress," on her bosom for the rest of her life. The book focuses mainly on the sin that was committed because it effected the whole community. The scarlet letter had one basic meaning, "adultery," but to the characters of Hester and Dimmesdale it was a constant reminder of the sin; and to Pearl it was a symbol…

    • 1592 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Pearl is a great contrast to the strictness of puritan society; she is a very wild and disobedient child and this comes from being raised in the forest. She is raised in the forest instead of in town, and her distance from society is greatened because of the absence of people around her during childhood. This leads her to not know how to behave as an honorable member of the puritan society. The few times Hester took her into town it is very obvious that she is uncomfortable and unaware of how to behave. "But Pearl, who was a…

    • 733 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    other, and from the rest of the town. Hester Prynne is the only one who knows the secrets that Dimmesdale and Chillingworth are hiding from the townsfolk. When she will not reveal the father of Pearl, Reverend Dimmesdale says, "She…

    • 928 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays