Nature In The Minister's Black Veil, By Nathaniel Hawthorne

Dimmesdale. Ye have both been here before, but i was not with you. Come up, hither once again, and we will stand all three together!” She silently ascended the steps, and stood on the platform, holding little pearl by the hand. The minister felt for the child's other hand and took it “ (Hawthorne 143) From here they are starting to become closer and you notice the closeness that they have bythe way that they all stood together under the moon holding hands. Pearl feels liberated because even though it's night you are still able to see people around. It also implies that they are able to get through the struggles but does not affect them all that much because sooner than later Dimmesdale admits that he is the father of Pearl and Hester kisses Dimmesdale immediately “Partly supported by Hester Prynne, and holding one hand of little Pearl’s the Reverend Mr. Dimmesdale turned to dignified the venerable rulers; to the holy ministers, who were his brethren; to the people, whose great heart was thoroughly appalled yet overflowing with tearful sympathy” (Hawthorne 379) It’s able to explain how truthful he was to share out his family and how Pearl accepted to grab his hand in front of all the people. Since she’s been truthful the whole time she was blessed with good fortune after Dimmesdale had died. She met a man who she married and

Nature has always been a source of astonishment and fear for mankind. It is deeply rooted in the formation of all societies, religions, and cultures. In The Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne explores the interaction between nature and man. The Puritan society in which Hester Prynne’s story plays out is created in the Americas, in the middle of the woods. It is physically surrounded by nothing but nature, yet the Puritans renounce that part of their lives completely. The natural world serves to contrast the rigid and structured, yet often bizarre behavior of the Puritans. Although the nature is often described in peculiar and frightening ways in The Scarlet Letter, the reader realizes that they can find many of its aspects in themselves.

When Hester, Pearl, and Dimmesdale meet in the woods, Hester attempts to rid her own life of the A by tearing it off. Pearl perceives this act as Hester trying to get rid of her only daughter. Pearl does not accept her mother’s abandonment and demands Hester to put the letter back on her chest. Because Hester’s letter remains on her chest, Pearl will always dwell in her mother’s life. Pearl says, “Now thou art my mother indeed!”

Hawthorne describes a cold and gray day.  This description gives the reader a sense of isolation as well as slight depression.  However, the mention of a slight breeze that ruffles the canopy of the forest just enough to let in little flickers of sunshine conveys a fleeting ray of hope that seems to coexist with the gloominess in the scene.  In many scenes during the book, moods or prevailing feelings are established through descriptions of the natural surroundings of the characters.  This aspect of Hawthorne's writing makes the book deeper and more emotional.

From her initial introduction to the reader as the “yonder babe, (…) of some three or four months old”, Pearl represents the beauty of the truth (54). As she struggles to find answers about her mother’s scarlet A while simultaneously growing up, Pearl identifies as an innocent character, despite her creation. It is frequently noted that she looks similar to the scarlet letter that her mother so reluctantly bears, with her “bright complexion [and] eyes possessing intensity both of depth and glow, and hair already of a deep, glossy brown” (76). Her similar appearance to the scarlet letter furthers her permanent connection to the letter. Additionally, it highlights the notion that her mother will likely never be able to look at her without reminiscing upon her sin. As Pearl develops, her fire-like actions and dark appearance further molds her into the fleshly expression of Hester’s adultery. Furthermore, Hawthorne ensures to characterize Pearl throughout the novel as a friend to the sunlight, a friend to the truth. As she begins to pick determine that Dimmesdale is her father, the sunlight welcomes her. This is because she is the only innocent character who is not afraid to step into the sun’s rays. Pearl recognizes the light’s love for her and audibly notes, “the

Pearl is the constant reminder of Hester’s sin; however, Pearl also brings Hester extraordinary joy. She is the cause of Hester’s determination to try and create a better life for Pearl and herself. Pearl was also a boundless joy to her biological father, Revered Dimmesdale, in one scene, Pearl grabbed Dimmesdale by the hand and kissed it. This shocked Hester because this was one of the only times that Pearl showed affection to anyone, which brought immense joy to Dimmesdale (Lorcher, Trent). Dimmesdale is known to have committed the same crime as Hester when he clutches his chest constantly and is seen having the marking or the scarlet “A” engraved on his chest. Reverend Dimmesdale’s sin is more permanently proclaimed than Hester’s that is sewn on to her clothes, while his is a tattoo burned on his skin (Analysis: The Red Mark on Dimmesdale’s Chest). It is seen like an outward representation of the sin that is inside him that he is not fully open with (Lorcher, Trent). Pearl is always talking about the “Black Man” and she is referring to Satan and how Dimmesdale wrote his name in the Black Man’s book (Analysis: The Black Man). Hester’s husband, Roger Chillingworth is a symbol of evil and a sort of revenge for Hester (Lorcher, Trent). When Dimmesdale, Pearl and Hester meet on the scaffold one night a meteor streaks across the sky in the shape of a letter “A” and it seems to mean that God has

Chillingworth’s plot for vengeance continues when Arthur Dimmesdale falls ill and the doctor takes up residence with the priest. He has his suspicions of the true nature of Dimmesdale

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

He has violated, in cold blood, the sanctity of a human heart. Thou and I, Hester, never did so!”. Chillingworth was inflicting guilt on Dimmesdale by trying to find out the cause of his disease. He kept questioning Dimmesdale saying in order to heal Dimmesdale he would have to confess his sins. Dimmesdale ran out of the room in fear and was also feared by him when he saw him at night by the scaffold.

Chapter 11: Chillingworth goes full force with his revenge on Dimmesdale. Dimmesdale has now reached the point of where he sees visions of what an easier life could

Chillingworth views Dimmesdale as “Calm, gentle, passionless, as he appeared, there was yet, we fear, a quiet depth of malice, hitherto latent, but active now, in this unfortunate old man, which led him to imagine

The sin between Hester and Dimmesdale affected the whole town, but has affected Chillingworth more. Chillingworth in the beginning of the book has been pronounced dead, but he is, in reality not dead. He comes back to the town with Hester as she is getting punished for committing adultery. Chillingworth later talks to Hester in the prison to try and get the information of who Pearl’s father is. In this scene he asks Hester to not reveal that he, her husband, is alive. Chillingworth then swears to get revenge on whoever has committed the sin with Hester. We know that Chillingworth was not the best husband to Hester. He ignored his wife when they were together, as well as, he expected Hester to love him back even if he did nothing that

Throughout the Scarlet Letter, the sun only shined on Hester when she had revealed the truth. When Hester “prison door was thrown open and she came forth into the sunshine” the sun shined primarily on her scarlet letter (Hawthorne). The Scarlet letter was a symbol for what she had done and since she revealed the secret and the truth was out in the open about her adultery the sun shined down on her. But Hester was still

Research found by the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate indicates that only 2 percent of Catholics regularly partake in the sacrament of confession while three quarters go less than once a year or never attend. The reasoning behind this, aside from a changing generation, could very well be the difficulty in confessing a sin. It is human nature to feel guilt and to seek forgiveness, yet confession can often be too difficult to confront. In the novel The Scarlet Letter, by Nathaniel Hawthorne, Hester Prynne and Arthur Dimmesdale committ adultery and struggle as they seek repentance. Hawthorne incorporates the motif of light versus dark to act as a guide and to demonstrate the path to repentance.

Pearl immediately realizes Dimmesdale’s part in her life. Furthermore, Pearl sees how her mother suffers everyday compared to Dimmesdale living a lie. All the child wants is an acknowledgement from her father. She wishes for him to stand on the scaffold, like her and her mother holding their hand showing what he has