Prompt 1

Choose a symbol used in a novel or play of your choice and discuss its function in the world of the work. Be sure to give the title of the work and its author in the Introduction paragraph. You should strive for 4 - 5 paragraphs. Good Luck! After posting, read and comment on 4 other postings. Your comments should be helpful to the writer and may be things you noticed, something for them to think about, and some words of encouragement. You must complete your essay and your comments by Tuesday, January 12th!

In his book, The Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne employs many objects and even people as symbols. The most obvious of these symbols is the real “scarlet letter” which Hester wears. However, in this book, there is another “scarlet letter”: a living scarlet letter, who goes by the name of Pearl. Throughout the book, Hawthorne uses Pearl to symbolize the scarlet letter in another form.

The real scarlet letter that Hester wears is to show that she is an adulterer, her punishment for having an illegitimate child. As a baby, Pearl would dress up in the finest of clothes made by her own mother. When she grew older, around the age of five or so, she began to wear bright red clothing with gold embroidery. Because of the color and embroidery, Pearl physically resembled the scarlet letter. The physical correlation between the two is the least important reason for why she is the “living scarlet letter.”

If the scarlet letter on Hester’s breast did not suffice, Pearl would have done well to be the “punishment” and source for ignominy. Although the scarlet letter commanded attention, Pearl was the “loudest” thing about Hester. Wherever they went, Pearl danced along her mother’s side in bright clothing and she was noted (by Hawthorne) as beautiful while doing it. Pearl was the most important thing to Hester – she was the main attraction to Hester if viewed by outsiders; if Hester viewed her own life, Pearl was the most dominant thing in her life. Pearl is Hester’s constant reminder of sin as well as happiness.

What truly made the scarlet letter the scarlet letter was the lesson it was to teach Hester Prynne. The ignominy and isolation Hester faced from being with Pearl in public taught her not to sin. Everyday with Pearl was a reminder of the sin Hester committed – Pearl was a constant reminder that one act of sin can have a lifetime consequence. However, because Hester’s love with the minister was true love, she was granted with the joy of having a child. Pearl was Hester’s “middle-ground” in that Pearl punishes her for her sins as well as blesses Hester with love and company she would not have felt without her. Had Pearl not been born, Hester’s wife would have come back to her and they would have lived a comfortable but unhappy life as they did in England. Pearl was the turning point in Hester’s life. If she had not been born, Hester’s affair would have never been discovered and she would never have had to wear the scarlet letter. However, without Pearl, Hester would not have grown into the admirable woman that Hawthorne wrote about.

The shift from “adulterer” to “able” was only made possible through the scarlet letters together: the embroidery and Pearl. Pearl was symbolic for Hester’s sins and happiness. Everyday Hester learned through Pearl the lessons Puritans felt she would learn from this as well as true happiness. Pearl’s growth physically tracked Hester’s growth in character throughout the novel. Through Pearl, Hawthorne expressed Hester’s joy, sadness, humility, and growth because she stood symbolic for so much.