Scarlet Letter Persuasive Essay

     As she stood on the scaffold, Hester held her newborn Pearl. pearl was the outcome of her unfaithfulness. Pearl had been adequately named, for she was of extreme value to her mother. Hester’s subjection to the crowd of Puritan onlookers is excruciating

It is no wonder that Hester is so confused by her sin and its implications, because her guilt is contradictory in and of itself. The scarlet letter she wears, the symbol of her sin, and her little daughter Pearl, the product of her sin, remind her every day of how she has done wrong. And yet, in some mysterious way, these marks of sin save her from other sins. Pearl, though looked upon by others as a devilish child, is perhaps a gift to Hester. Without Pearl,

Hester keeps this in mind all the time and when you, Governor Bellingham, try to take Pearl away from her, as a protective mother she reacted in an impressive way. “God gave her into my keeping! I will not give her up!” (Hawthorne… pg. 169). Hester is fully aware on her decisions as a mother, she will take bad decisions because of course she is a human like anyone else, but when she takes the right decisions, everyone can see clearly that she does care, and that she will do anything that is in her power, to make things right and to have the things she love not taken away from

Hester Prynne, the main character of the book "The Scarlet Letter” by Nathaniel Hawthorne, commits adultery, is considered a hussy, and has a child as the result of her sin. She cheats on her husband while he is absent from town and receives a harsh punishment for her behavior already. Hester is forced to wear a scarlet letter “A” on her bosom for the rest of her life. It is now on debate on whether or not Pearl should be taken away from her mother’s guidance. This is due to the fact that she is a sinner and might not be a qualified mother for her child.It is true, that no matter what you did in the past, a child is a blessing and parents change due to the love they have for their children. Therefore, Hester

Hester's ultimate consequence of sin is her daughter Pearl. With Pearl, Hester has to assume full responsibility because she is raising a child of her own. Hester loves Pearl because she is her

Hester was “alone in the world, cast off by it, and with this sole treasure to keep her heart alive, she felt that she possessed in defeasible rights against the world, and was ready to defend them to death”. (Hawthorne 100). Pearl was the only thing Hester had. No one would help her out, and now they thought she was not responsible enough to care for her. Hester cried “Go give me the child!” (Hawthorne 100). Hester says that Pearl was a reminder of the sin she committed but also a gift from God. When she was fighting for Pearl, she mentioned that “she is my happiness!” Hester loved Pearl and was not going to let the governors take her away. She was a strong woman that kept fighting for her daughter. Hester repeated over and over for her daughter. Hester repeated over and over “God gave me her keeping…“I will not give her up!” (Hawthorne 100). She fought for her as much as she could and did keep her little

The members of the community see Pearl as a strange, awkward little girl, born out of a despicable sin. However, characters with a closer and deeper relationship with Pearl, feel differently. “She is a strange child! I hardly comprehend her! But thou wilt love her dearly, as I do…” (Hawthorne 186). This exclamation shows that despite Pearl’s weirdness and strangeness, Hester sees them as the things that make Pearl so loving. The relationship between the two in important because bother are outcast for their abnormalities and for the sin that Hester wears. Hester, again, describes her relationship with Pearl when she is trying to convince Governor Bellingham to remain Pearl’s mother.

Pearl is a constant repercussion of the adultery Hester took part in. Pearl lives with Hester in the cottage. She often reminds Hester of the sin she committed. Pearl first notices the scarlet letter on Hester. ?One day, as her mother stooped over the cradle, the infant's eyes had been caught by the glimmering of the gold embroidery about the letter, and putting up her little hand she grasped at it, smiling, not doubtfully, but with a decided gleam, that gave her face the look of a much older child? (85-86). Even when Pearl grows older she does things which remind Hester of what she did. ?In the afternoon of a certain summer's day, after Pearl grew big enough to run about, she amused herself with gathering handfuls of wild flowers, and flinging them, one by one, at her mother's bosom, dancing up and down like a little elf whenever she hit the scarlet letter? (86). Pearl has a strong-willed nature just like her mom. Throughout the story she does things to Hester unintentionally that call attention to the adultery shared by Hester and Dimmesdale.

     Hester is admired because of her strong will, and her ability to ignore other's views of her. "In a moment, however, wisely judging that one token of her shame would but poorly serve to hide another, she took the baby on her

In his book, The Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne tells of a story where a young woman has had an adulterous relationship with a respected priest in a Puritan community. Typical of Hawthorne's writings is the use of imagery and symbolism. In Chapter 12, The Minister's Vigil, there are several uses of imagery when Dimmesdale, the priest, is battling with confessing his sin, which has plagued him for seven years. Three evident techniques used to personify symbolism in this chapter are the use of darkness versus light, the use of inner guilt versus confession, and lastly the use of colors (black versus white).

Hester experiences moments of misery as Pearl personifies the sin that haunts them. Viewed as the bane of Hester’s purity, Pearl is an “emblem and product of sin”. The “little Puritans” look down upon Hester and Pearl who meet their “intolerable”, “public gaze”(TSL 83). Similar to the scarlet letter itself, when they are seen the townspeople are expected to reflect on the consequences of sin. Instead, they utter callous remarks that forbid Hester from forgetting or moving on from her misdeed. Portraying the image of discontent, Hester and Pearl stand “together in the same circle of seclusion”(TSL 84). Hester is aware of her sin and accepts that she must live out her punishment in hopes of redemption. However, floating in “seclusion” with Pearl leaves room for the overcoming presence of guilt that continues to loom over Hester. As she witnesses not just herself but Pearl be frowned upon, the shame she feels is multiplied. Studying Pearl, and noticing that she “never created a friend” leads Hester to place the blame on only herself for the misfortune that she has caused Pearl. She is unable to shield the repercussions of her sin from “her sole treasure”(TSL 85,82). Moreover, Hester feels “inexplicable” sadness, she cries out in “agony” for the confusion she feels(TSL 84-85). Not making sense of Pearl’s hostile playing habits and her wild nature frustrates Hester. Pearl mimics “ a little elf” when she dances by herself, holding a “peculiar” look in her eyes(TSL 86). Hester observes the effect that the adverse society that they live in has on Pearl. She has been robbed of a normal childhood. With regards to the absence of sympathy and acceptance, Pearl is “only capable of being loved”(TSL 100). In

Do you understand what it’s like to understand your mother? Pearl understands hester, there's no doubt about that. Hester should be allowed to keep pearl because pearl is all Hester has. Although, Hester is all pearl has, and you wouldn’t want to separate mother and daughter, would you?

Pearl keeps me here in life!" This brief yet vital statement confirms the idea that with Hester's fall a new chance arrives, one for her daughter. And as time passes she receives one as well; for by laboring hard and keeping to her own Hester, who was once viewed as a blasphemous offender, is seen as the epitome of "a women's strength", her scarlet letter reading the word "Able". But even though she has become accepted, she cannot help but feel ever more isolated. Hester, as hard as she tries, cannot repent; her penance is an intangible illusion. She still lacks her former beauty, internal and external, and informs Pearl to, "Gather thine own sunshine. I have none to give thee." Her dearth, caused by her fortunate fall, causes her to question herself and her sex. Her heart, which had "lost it's regular and healthy throb", "wandered without a clew in the dark labyrinth of [her] mind." Her "individual existence" gave her a "tendency [for] speculation", allowing Hester Prynne to examine the "very nature of the opposite sex". But like too often occurs, "[the] persons who speculate the most boldly often conform with the most perfect quietude to the external regulations of society." Hester, although she benefits from her fall and rises above it, is unable to take the final step into the hostile world, the main difference between her

Pearl is Hester’s daughter, it’s easy to know or at least assume what her name means by how she’s described. Pearl is all Hester has now that she’s seen and treated as a sinner. Hester doesn’t seem to care about that, she only cares about Pearl. Pearl is her “...great price,-purchased with all she had- her mother’s only treasure!” (Hawthorne, 61). A pearl is a very precious and beautiful piece of jewelry, which is how Hester sees Pearl.

Being born into the world through the sin of Adultery, people regarded Pearl as a demon child. Her “innocent life had sprung, by the inscrutable decree of providence, a lovely and immortal flower, out of the rank luxuriance of a guilty passion” (81). Pearl was seen as the product of sin and no one wants to be related to sin, so people would often steer clear of Pearl. Also, upon setting sight on Pearl people will be reminded of their own upsetting transgressions. This is yet another reason people would not want to be around Pearl. To the surrounding community she is a walking reminder of sin. Despite this affliction, Pearl continues to act with her own unique personality, refusing to see herself as others see her and conform to the general public by mirroring the approved actions of society. Another in which Pearl is set to struggle is in the fact that she is raised by a single parent. When describing single mothers, it is said “For women in solitude, and with troubles hearts, are pestered with unaccountable delusions” (88). Hester Prynne has difficulty raising Pearl on her own, and this will show to Pearl as well as affect her. Seeing her mother struggle will raise the question in Pearl of where her father is. Becoming curious of this question will only leave Pearl with even more questions