Symbolism in the Scarlet Letter

Symbolism in the Scarlet Letter

In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s novel The Scarlet Letter, the author represents that all reinforce the primary concept of the story. The central thought that reoccurred all through the book is that people do not have to allow their circumstances or mistakes define who they are or what they become; it is in how one takes life to be. Most symbols may appear as just an ordinary character or unexpected object to some readers, but the symbols have a profound, fundamental meaning. Though there are various symbols in this novel, there is three key that supports the primary idea:  Hester Prynne’s scarlet letter, Hester’s daughter Pearl, and the forest.

The Scarlet Letter “A” represents Pearl’s emotional relationship to Hester. For example, Pearl is as profoundly loving to the letter as she is to her mother. In chapter ten, the author demonstrates that Pearl takes, “a small number of them together with the lines of the scarlet letter.” In this case, Pearl is expressing her affection for her mother by beautifying her letter as though the letter itself were a channel between the two. Moreover, Pearl sees her mother and the letter as equals. In chapter fourteen, it is demonstrated that Hester resolves to remove her letter while in the forest. Therefore, Pearl is unwilling to face her. Hester, identifying what is wrong, states, “Pearl misses that she has often seen me put on.” After she brings back the letter her dearest, “Pearl kissed brow and both cheeks, but Pearl raised her mouth and kissed the scarlet letter as well.” Since Pearl compares the letter to her mother, the letter is as profound as a symbol of a loving relationship as Hester is herself.  Besides the emotional bond, the scarlet letter signifies isolation. Whoever puts on the letter will be feared by society.

Hester Prynne’s association with the sunlight signifies her conversion from a sinner, to a better person before the society. At the beginning of the novel, when Pearl informs Hester that the sunlight should be offered to her to play with, Hester answers, “No, my little Pearl! You must gather your sunshine. I have none to give you!” (Hawthorne 96). This symbolism signifies Hester’s lack of innocence, and it signifies that Pearl is still innocent, although he is a product of sin. When Pearl demands sunshine from Hester, the author is representing the sunshine as innocence. Pearl understands that the sunlight will not dawn on Hester..

The last symbol that Hawthorne uses in the novel is the forest. In chapter four, the author writes, “Are you like a Black Man that haunts the forest around us?” By stating this, Hester is advancing the belief of the Puritans in the novel, who perceives the forest as evil or dark, as a place where witches hold meetings at night, and a dwelling of the devil. A rational understanding why the Puritans came up with all sorts of stories about the forest could be they wanted to block people from the Natural Law; thus they wanted people to conform and follow the Puritan Law. I believe this is what the author is trying to put across, however, as with the final symbol and the common understanding of it, I believe he errs in his point. As we explored in class, Hawthorne tries to paint Puritans as bad people. For instance, in chapter 21, the author writes, “Their immediate future, the generation next to the early expatriates put on the blackest shade of Puritanism, and so dimmed the national look with it. That all the following years have not emerged to clear it up” (Hawthorne 112). The common understanding that the author tries to put a cross means that the Natural Law as depicted in the text is equivalent to God’s Law and that the Puritans have all their traditions occupied and they are wrong. This is where the author errs. In the real sense, Puritan Law is equivalent to God’s law than is a natural law, as portrayed in the book. The Puritans anchor their law on God’s law; however, Natural Law depicted in the novel is not anchored on God’s law.

In conclusion, Hawthorne applies various symbols to represent ideas and themes in this text. Each of these has a common understanding, most of which are not accurate.

Works Cited

Hawthorne, Nathaniel. The scarlet letter. Oxford University Press, USA, 1998.