Letter Essay, Research Paper
Pearl as a Powerful Symbol
Pearls have always held a great price to mankind, but no pearl had ever been earned at as high a cost to a person as Nathaniel Hawthorne?s powerful heroine Hester Prynne. Her daughter Pearl, born into a Puritan prison in more ways than one, is an enigmatic character serving entirely as a vehicle for symbolism. From her introduction as an infant on her mother?s scaffold of shame to the stormy zenith of the story, Pearl is an empathetic and intelligent child.
Throughout the story she absorbs the hidden emotions of her mother and magnifies them for all to see, and asks questions nothing but a child?s innocence permit her to ask, allowing Hawthorne to weave rich detail into The Scarlet Letter without making the story overly narrative. Pearl is the purest embodiment of literary symbolism. She is, at times, a vehicle for Hawthorne to express the irrational and translucent qualities of Hester and Dimmesdale?s illicit bond, and at others a forceful reminder of her mother?s sin. Pearl Prynne is her mother?s most precious possession and her only reason to live, but also a priceless treasure purchased with her life. Pearl?s strange beauty and deeply enigmatic qualities make her an extremely powerful symbol.
The product of Hester?s sin and agony, Pearl was a painfully constant reminder of her mother?s violation of the Seventh Commandment: Thou shalt not commit adultery. Hester herself felt that Pearl was given to her not only as a blessing, but also as a punishment worse than death or ignominy. She is tormented by her daughter?s childish teasing and endless questioning about the scarlet ?A? and it?s relation to Minister Dimmesdale. After Pearl had created a letter ?A? on her own breast out of seaweed, she asks her mother, ?But in good earnest, now, mother dear, what does this scarlet letter mean? ? and why dost thou wear it on thy bosom? ? and why does the minister keep his hand over his heart?? In saying this Pearl implies that she knows much, much more about the scarlet letter than she lets on. Throughout the conversation Pearl is impish and teasing, saying one thing and contradicting it soon after. She refuses to say just what she means, which makes it hard for Hester to give a straight reply. Hester is shocked that her playful daughter has led their conversation to the topic of the scarlet letter, and even more disturbed that she has assumed Hester?s letter and Dimmesdale?s habit of pressing his hand to his heart branch from the same issue. Pearl, in bringing this forbidden and painful subject about, unwittingly inflicts agony upon her hapless mother. Hester cannot tell her daughter what has passed between the minister and herself. Pearl symbolizes a hidden part of her mother that has not, and will never be exposed and therefore washed free of sin. Pearl was always drawn to the ?A?, and seemed to twist the symbolic knife in Hester?s bosom every time she thought she was free of her weighty burden of sin by flippantly reminding her of the letter and the meaning it bore.
Pearl is the only happiness in Hester Prynne?s lonely life. Without a child to care for, teach, and love, Hester would have long ago given her soul and life over to evil. When town authorities, shocked at Pearl?s apparent belief that she was plucked from a rose bush and not created by God, recommend she be taken from Hester and placed in a school, Hester responds
?God gave me this child!…She is my happiness, she is my torture none the less! Pearl keeps me here in life!…Ye shall not take her! I will die first!? Hester understands that Pearl was God-given as a constant reminder of her sin, and that she is her only requited love and a friend that does not judge her by things past. Later, Hester comments that she would have ?signed my name in the Black Man?s book too, and that with mine own blood!? if they had taken Pearl from her. Her daughter is her only earthly salvation, as well as her only friend. Pearl is a blessing upon Hester in that her light-heartedness and seeming innocence allow her mother to forget about her troubles. To see Pearl playing on the beach and creating a fascinating world of her own is to allow Hester to momentarily throw off the shackles imposed on her by Puritan society and be truly happy.
Another important symbol that makes up Pearl is her significance as Hester?s only tie to Minister Dimmesdale, her partner in adultery. Pearl is imbued with an unearthly knowledge about the bond between her mother and the Minister. While this, in itself, frightens Hester, Pearl is all that she has of Dimmesdale and she treasures the girl for that. She is the one who repeatedly demands that he hold hands with Hester and herself in public and recognize them. Of course, this is the only thing that Dimmesdale can do to save himself from the misery of guilt, which only goes further to show that Pearl symbolizes the deep bond between Hester and the Minister.
The Scarlet Letter overflows with masterfully wrought symbolism and representation, but Pearl Prynne is the purest and deepest symbol in the story. She was born not only out of utter sin, but out of the deepest and most absolute love imaginable. She serves as a messenger of God?s salvation through pain, and as a symbol of all that is blissful and content in Hester Prynne?s life. In the end, it is Pearl who kisses Arthur Dimmesdale as he lies dying on the scaffold, having admitted his sin. She breaks a spell that had lain over them in adultery and herself, the product of their sin, completing her service as a symbol of pain and hardship, but more importantly a symbol of love, salvation, and the deep bond between two lovers condemned by the strict decorum of the Puritan days.
Другие работы по теме:
Scarlet Letter 2 Essay Research Paper Scarlet
Scarlet Letter 2 Essay, Research Paper Scarlet Letter – Punishment and Death Hawthornes The Scarlet Letter deals with many themes, among those including punishment and death. Utilizing the theme of punishment, the
Scarlet Letter Essay Research Paper The Letter
Scarlet Letter Essay, Research Paper The Letter A The novel The Scarlet Letter was set in the Massachusetts Bay colony in the 17th century. Hester Prynne, her illegitimate daughter Pearl, her ex-husband Roger, and the
Beautiful Disasters Pearl As Essay Research
Paper Sometimes beauty is found in places as unexpected as a rosebush growing outside of a prison in a puritan colonial village. Pearl Prynne is an unearthly beautiful child with a with spirit born under unimaginably sinful conditions, all of which are somehow related to the ideas, actions, and views of others on
The Manifestation Of Sin Essay Research Paper
The Scarlet Letter is a book of much symbolism. One of the most complex and misunderstood symbols in the book is Pearl, the daughter of Hester Prynne. Throughout the story Pearl develops into a prominent symbol of the “A”. In this essay the example of symbolism Pearl comes to represent will be explained.
The Scarlet Letter Essay Research Paper
“The Scarlet Letter” was written by Nathaniel Hawthorne in 1828. “The Scarlet Letter” portrayed the punishment suffered by two individuals who committed adultery in a Puritan society and their struggle to deal with their sins. Throughout the novel Hawthorne uses Pearl to serve as a constant reminder to Hester and Dimmesdale of their sin.
Scarlet Letter Essay Research Paper The story
Scarlet Letter Essay, Research Paper The story The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne this story takes place on puritan times, is about Hester Prynne who commits the act of adultery and has to b punished for her sin. Out of all the characters in the story, Hester suffers the most for one, she must wear the scarlet “A”.
Changing Views Of The Letter A Essay
, Research Paper The perception of Hester’s A has changed throughout the novel. In the beginning, the scarlet letter on her chest was a symbol of her sin. It was intended to be part of her punishment by providing her
Symbolisim The Scarlet Letter Essay Research Paper
In the Scarlet Letter, the author uses many different types of symbols. The different settings of the story are ways in which he describes his environment and how it has treated him as a child. One symbol he uses a lot was the scarlet letter. The scarlet letter takes on different meanings as the course of the story progresses.
A Character Analysis Of The Many Facets
Of Pearl In The Scarlett Letter Essay, Research Paper A Character Analysis of the Many Facets of Pearl The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne is a book of much symbolism. One of the most complex and misunderstood symbols in the book is Pearl, the illegitimate daughter of Hester Prynne and Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale.
The Symbolic Pearl Essay Research Paper Most
The Symbolic Pearl Essay, Research Paper Most novels usually have a main symbol, which teaches a character, or the reader, a very important lesson or moral. This is true in Nathaniel Hawthorne s classic The Scarlet Letter, where Hester Prynne s daughter Pearl serves as the most extensive living symbol in the entire novel.
Scarlet Letter Essay Research Paper Light and
Scarlet Letter Essay, Research Paper Light and Darkness in The Scarlet Letter Nathaniel Hawthorne, author of The Scarlet Letter, felt that the Puritans were people who believed that the world was a place where the battle between good and evil was a never-ending one. Throughout the novel, Hawthorne uses the symbols of light and dark to depict this battle among the characters Hester Prynne, Pearl, and Roger Chillingworth.
Hester Prynne In
‘the Scarlet Letter’ Essay, Research Paper In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter Hester Prynne and her daughter Pearl are isolated from society; this is shown by where they live, the action from people toward
Analysis Of Pearl In Hawthorne
’s “The Scarlet Letter” Essay, Research Paper Analysis of Pearl in Hawthorne’s “The Scarlet Letter” One of the most significant writers of the romantic period in American
The Scarlet Letter 4 Essay Research Paper
The Scarlet Letter Hyatt Waggoner, a noted Hawthorne scholar, says, “The Scarlet Letter is Hawthorne s most widely read and admired novel and is also the one that has inspired the most inconclusive debate . . .” (Waggoner 118). Much of the trouble in interpreting The
Symbolism Of Peal In The Scarlet Letter
Essay, Research Paper The Scarlet Letter is a book of much symbolism. One of the most complex and misunderstood symbols in the book is Peal, the daughter of Hester Prynne. Pearl, throughout the story, developes into a dynamic symbol- one that is always changing. As the novel progresses, Pearl grows older, and it’s easy for the reader to want to explore some of the symbolism which Pearl comes to represent throughout the novel.
The Symbol Of Pearl Essay Research Paper
In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s, The Scarlet Letter, Pearl, is the human symbol of the sin of adultery in the fact that she leads her mother, Hester Prynne, and Arthur Dimmesdale to accept and admit to their sin. Pearl is the beautiful daughter of Hester and Dimmesdale. She is the living symbol of the scarlet letter and has unique traits that make her sometimes appear as a demon.
Pearl As A Symbol Essay Research Paper
In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s the Scarlet Letter, Pearl, is a symbol of sin and adultery in the sense that she leads Dimmsdale and Hester to their confession and the acceptance of their sins. A beauitful daughter of the towns adulturist has somtimes demon like traits. She is also the only living symblol of the scarlet letter “A”.
Symbollism In The Scarlett Letter Essay Research
Paper British Literature Matt Gordon 9-22-96 Symbolism In The Scarlet Letter Symbolism in literature is the deepness and hidden meaning in a piece of work. It is often used to represent a moral or religious belief or value. Without symbolism literature is just a bunch of meaningless words on paper. The most symbolic piece of work in American Literature is Nathaniel Hawthorne?s The Scarlet Letter.
Changes In Hester Prynne Essay Research Paper
The child, Pearl, is “a blessing and as a reminder of her sin.” As if the scarlet A were not enough punishment there “was a brat of that hellish breed” which would remind Hester of what happened in the past. The “brat” could have been given away to Governor Bellingham yet Hester proclaimed that Pearl “is my happiness!…Ye shall not take her! I will die first!” Not a person in Boston, nor Hester herself thought highly of the little child and Hester refused to let Pearl go.
Theme Of The Scarlet Letter Essay Research
Paper In The Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne uses three scenes on the scaffold to emphasize suffering and torment in Hester Prynne and Arthur Dimmesdale. Throughout the book, the scaffold has been the symbol of puritan society?s harsh punishment for sinners. The three scaffold scenes in The Scarlet Letter convey the theme of sin not being tolerated whatsoever in Puritan Society.
Pearl Extension Of Scarlet Letter Essay Research
Paper No other Pearl can be worth more to a story than this Pearl, but no pearl had ever been earned at as high a cost to a person as in Hester Prynne, the powerful Main Character in Nathaniel
Pearl In The Scarlet Letter Essay Research
Paper Pearl in The Scarlet Letter What is the greatest sin that can be committed by a human being? Is it murder, robbery, or something else? There is no exact answer to this question, it depends on one’s own perception of sin. In The Scarlet Letter, by Nathaniel Hawthorne, a woman by the name of Hester Prynne is condemned for committing a sin, which is adultery.
The Symbolism Of The Scarlet Letter
’s Pearl Essay, Research Paper The Scarlet Letter is a book of much symbolism. One of the most complex and misunderstood symbols in the book is Pearl, the daughter of Hester Prynne. Pearl, throughout the story, develops into a dynamic symbol – one that is always changing. In the following essay, I will explore some of the symbolism which Pearl came to represent throughout the novel.
Pearl
’s Contribution To The Scarlet Letter Essay, Research Paper Pearl’s Contribution to the Scarlet Letter In Hawthorne’s epic novel, The Scarlet Letter he discusses Pearl, a
Scarlet Letter 2
Scarlet Letter – Dimmesdale Analysis Essay, Research Paper The Scarlet Letter – Dimmesdale Analysis Character Analysis : Dimmesdale Dimmesdale is one of the most intriguing characters in The Scarlet Letter. I think this because he demonstrates in this story that he is a coward, and that he is strong, yet not courageous.
Scarlet Letter Essay Research Paper Symbol of
Scarlet Letter Essay, Research Paper Symbol of Sin In The Scarlet Letter, by Nathaniel Hawthorne, the scarlet letter symbolizes many things. The literal meaning of symbol, is something that represents something else by association, resemblance, or convention. This paper will tell many of the ways in which this is true.
The Living Symbol Of The Scarlet Letter
Essay, Research Paper The Living Symbol of the Scarlet LetterThe Scarlet Letter A, worn by Hester Prynne, was a punishment for the immoral sin of adultery she had committed. Hester was forced to wear the letter upon her bosom for the rest of her life. Following Hester’s act of adultery, she became pregnant with a baby girl whom she named Pearl. “Pearl was a born outcast of the infantile world.
The Scarlet Letter Vice Or Virtue Essay
, Research Paper The Scarlet Letter, Vice or Virtue? Hawthorn’s Novel, The Scarlet Letter, is brimming with many vivid symbols, the most apparent of which is the scarlet letter “A”, that Hester Prynne is made to wear upon her chest. Throughout the novel, hawthorn presents the scarlet letter to the reader in a variety of ways.
Scarlet Letter As A Symbol Essay Research
Paper The Scarlet Letter As a Symbol Often throughout The Scarlet Letter there are symbolic references made. The story deals with a Puritan woman who commits adultery and raises an illegitimate child named Pearl. The author, Nathanial Hawthorne, uses many religious and natural images to symbolize different points.
Pearl Is The Scarlet Letter Essay Research
Paper Pearl is the living embodiment of the scarlet letter because she forces Hester and Dimmesdale to accept their sins. The Puritan society looks at Pearl as a child of the devil, and a black hearted girl because she is the result of sin. Hester and Dimmesdale are both in the same situation in Pearl?s eyes. Pearl wants Hester to realize that she is not the worst person in the world before she removes the scarlet letter.
Symbolism In HawthorneS
“The Scarlet Letter” Essay, Research Paper Hawthorne?s The Scarlet Letter is considered the first symbolic novel in American Literature. His use of symbolism in the novel presents a complex view of sin and its effects. Utilizing characters, colors, settings, and objects Hawthorne?s extended metaphors shape and develop throughout the plot.
The Scarlet Letter A Look At Pearl
Essay, Research Paper The Scarlet Letter The Scarlet Letter is a novel with much symbolism. Throughout the novel several characters represent other ideas. One of the most complex and misunderstood characters in the novel is Pearl, the daughter of Hester Prynne. Pearl, throughout the story, develops into a dynamic symbol ? one that is always changing.