What Does Pearl Symbolize In The Scarlet Letter

In a surface examination of the work of Nathaniel Hawthorne, it is quickly evident that no good things come from the wilderness. Therein, the wilderness is often associated with the savages and the devil. In his work The Scarlet Letter, Hester Prynne finds herself exiled by society for having an adulterous affair with the town reverend which brought forth the child known as Pearl. Pearl is quickly established as the child of the wilderness: wild, capricious, and thought by the town to be a demon-child. She represents several entities in the novel just by her being, but when her morality is delved into, much more of the nature of the story can be revealed. Pearl’s role is often overlooked as a formative force in the novel. Some scholars have gone as far as to denounce her as unnecessary to the story’s makeup. Upon close examination, it can be determined that Pearl is indeed a necessary element. In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter, Pearl presents themes of morality, both personal and cultural, as well as the divide between society and nature, through her interactions with Hester, Reverend Dimmesdale, and the scarlet letter itself.

In the novel, The Scarlet Letter, Hawthorne characterizes Pearl with contrasting personalities and roles she plays in Hester’s life. Pearl’s conflicting personality components, innocence and defiance, both derive from her isolation from society, which transpired because of her mother’s sin. Pearl represents the conflict between everything good and dark, which reflects in the role she plays in Hester’s life, as the physical embodiment of the A. While Pearl serves as a savior to Hester, representing possible redemption, she is also Hester’s tormentor, a constant reminder of her sin, and the consequences of disobeying her Puritan nature and religion. Hawthorne’s intent is established in the novel through Pearl’s attachment to the A, the mirror

Children have always a sympathy in the agitations of those connected with them; always, especially, a sense of any trouble or impending revolution, of whatever kind, in domestic circumstances; and therefore Pearl, who was the gem on her mother's unquiet bosom, betrayed, by the very dance of her spirits, the emotions which none could detect in the marble passiveness of Hester's brow (

“Imagination is the key ingredient to overcoming fear and doubt.” Throughout “The Scarlet Letter”, Nathaniel Hawthorne tends to emphasize the intensity of Pearl’s imagination by describing the way Pearl saw the world around her and by talking about the way the people who noticed her vivid imagination, referred to her as a “witch-child”. In “The Scarlet Letter”, Pearl grows up secluded from the rest of the children in the New World. She learns to entertain herself and keep herself company by using her imagination. This is one big example of Pearl overcoming the hardships that she grew up with. As the book progresses, and as Pearl gets older, we see her overcome more hardships she is challenged with to create a strong, independent young girl. The poem provided written by Emily Dickinson comes to show how overcoming Pearl’s hardships led her to blossom from a strong, independent young girl, into an even stronger, successful woman.

McNamara wrote,”Although Pearl’s outburst at the brookside is directed towards her mother, it affects Dimmesdale traumatically. This hypersensitive man experiences almost simultaneously the extremes of exaltation and depression”(83). This author believes that Pearl’s actions around her father greatly affect his development as a character. In The Scarlet Letter, Hawthorne wrote,” The minister--painfully embarrassed, but hoping that a kiss might prove a talisman to admit him into the child’s kindlier regards…”(201). After watching Pearl’s tantrum over the letter, Dimmesdale feels even worse about not being there for Pearl, her actions get in his head because he can’t be there to raise and teach her. Pearl’s actions at the brookside change Dimmesdale’s views greatly, but it is at the scaffold of his last sermon, that she has the greatest impact on

Not but the meteor may have shown itself at that point, burning duskily through a veil of cloud; but with no such shape as his guilty imagination gave it; or, at least, with so little definiteness, that another's guilt might have seen another symbol in it” (Hawthorne pg. 141). This symbol was manifested to support the advancement of the characters and the plot. Another that assisted moving along the plot was the child, Pearl. Pearl was a central symbol throughout the novel and plot line.

Nathaniel Hawthorne is known for his heavy use of symbolism in his writings, The Scarlet Letter is no exception. In the novel, Pearl could be presumed to symbolize only the idea of sin that her mother committed, but upon further investigation, past the erratic behavior, we see that she holds a sense of light within herself and lashes out only when antagonized by those who look down on her. Society held a role in perceiving Pearl as a ‘Devil-Child’ and implicated her in the role of being such a symbol as opposed to viewing her in the light that they see other children in. Pearl being a symbol of purity contrasts each other character who hold ungodly intentions or secrets within them making her appear as odd but develops her to be seen more as

Perhaps one of the simplest ways to reveal a message is through symbols. Symbols, although only mere representations of concepts, objects, or ideas, are capable of grasping people’s attention in a memorable way. Many, if not all, recognize the infamous “S” to represent Superman, one of the most admirable superheroes of all time. In a similar way, authors use symbols in their writing to center their readers’ attention on a particular idea. This idea is generally one that the authors deem crucial to the understanding of the work of literature. Such a use of symbols is seen in Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter. In order to unlock the meaning of this work, readers must interpret two of his most prominent symbols, the scarlet letter and Pearl.

When Pearl is throwing flowers at Hester’s chest, trying to hit her “A,” Hester is reminded of her distressing past. Even though Pearl is a reminder of her past sin, Hester is unable to think of a life without her, even when her fellow townspeople are trying to take Pearl away from her. For Pearl separating from her mother would be strenuous, for Hester is the only thing she has ever known. To Pearl, Hester is more than her mother, she is her role model and icon. With such a powerful female figure, Pearl is set on claiming a strong male mentor to be her fatherly

In chapter 16 of the scarlet letter, Pearl is starting to question and make connections to

In Nathaniel Hawthorne's, The Scarlet Letter, his commentary on the raw, unreserved passion of a child is portrayed through his character Pearl. He shows a distinct view on Pearl and her role in the book and to her mother. He shows the great comparison in the actions and role of a child, exaggerated through Pearl. Her intense passion in the book also makes her a sort of conscience and punishment for her mother. This is because her passion makes her strongly against views when first introduced and when learned and accepted, are taken so literally and so strongly believed in.

Hester wishes to talk to Dimmesdale in the forest, a place where she feels like she can be honest. As she waits for Dimmesdale, Pearl asks to hear about the Black Man, which she is referring to the devil. Pearl says that not only he holds a book while haunting the book, he also marks a letter on his followers. Pearl’s fascination about the devil is drawn towards by the scarlet letter, she is constantly reminding Hester that the scarlet letter is a mark of sin, she is related to evil. Pearl claims that she heard the story from an old woman, who explained that this is why Hester has a scarlet letter, like Dimmesdale hiding his lies, Hester uses denies the story as true to hide her sin from Pearl. When Pearl sees Dimmesdale and his hand covering

Pearl is the love-child of sin between an adultress and a minister. Throughout the book she is expressive and individual. The novel shows Pearl as she grows up, being unaccepted and shunned from society because of how she came into the world. She copes with this by accepting it and embracing the edge from the disapproval that society gives her. Campbell’s article regarding The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne explains how the character Pearl represents femininity and women’s sexuality.

Hester’s battle with herself can only be understood by taking a glimpse into her daily life with her beloved daughter, Pearl. Pearl is the physical manifestation of her sin, of the adultery that Hester committed with her secret lover; with every waking hour, Pearl is always alongside Hester, constantly reminding Hester of her transgression. Whenever Hester sees Pearl, she sees a young and energetic girl, who also possesses the same attributes that she loathes about herself, the difficult and wild side of herself that would never give up. Hawthorne writes that Pearl, “lacked reference and adaptation to the world into which she was born. [Pearl] could not be made amenable to rules” (Hawthorne

The novel “The Scarlet Letter” by Nathaniel Hawthorne was published in the 1850s, and takes place in the Boston, Massachusetts area during the 17th Century when Puritans were the main population. Hester Prynne, is accused of committing adultery and is forced to wear a scarlet A against her chest and care for Pearl, Her daughter who is born from the tryst. In the beginning of the novel, both Pearl and the Letter are introduced at the same time aspressed against Hester’s chest. Though she chooses to hold the child close to her and the Letter is thrust upon her, Hawthorne shows the reader how determined she is to take these symbols of sin and integrate them into her life and create her own identity.