Symbols in The Scarlet Letter Essay

No other author like Nathaniel Hawthorne can use symbols in such a understanding way. In the Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne, there are various amounts of symbols that all connect to Hawthorne's purpose in writing the novel. The main idea of The Scarlet letter was depressing; a married Puritan woman named Hester who has borne an illegitimate child by a lover who she doesn't want to name, is forced to wear a scarlet “A” on her clothes as a symbol of her adultery. Hawthorne uses various amounts of symbols like the scarlet letter represents sin and punishment for who commit adultery in the Puritan Society. Hawthorne conveys the message of evil through symbols of Pearl and how she represents sin, and the Blackman represent how Puritans society

The Puritans despised Hester and her symbol for her sin, and shunned her for many years even after her prison sentence. Hester could have just lived a depressed, lonely life in seclusion with her daughter Pearl, but she decided to accept her sin and wrong doing to become a mentally stronger woman. During the many years of Hester being in prison and being rejected when she was released, she practiced needlework to provide food for her and her daughter. As the people in Salem recognized her talent of her embroidery and garments, they began respecting her talent, and so the scarlet “A” that stood for “adulterer” slowly began to stand for “able.” Hester started to supply apparel for babies, ceremonies, inaugurations, and funerals. Furthermore, the Scarlet letter has another symbolic meaning. When Pearl went to the seashore, she made a green letter “A” out of seaweed – nature’s color. This was symbolic for Pearl’s sinless life so far because she hasn’t truly been introduced to sin; she still is “green” and “pure”. As for Hester, her scarlet “A” is symbolic of her many sins, for no one can avoid sin as they grow older.

Webster defined "symbol" with these words: "Something concrete that represents or suggests another thing that cannot in itself be pictured." This concept has been particularly applied to literature and used by writers throughout history. Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter uses multitudes of symbols in such a manner. One of the most prominent, and most complicated, of such symbols is the scarlet letter "A". The scarlet letter "A" is a symbol of a daughter's connection to her mother, isolation, and the devil and its associations.

Using symbolism gives a story meaning like the objects and people that the story contains, and it causes the reader to make relations with what events are occurring. In The Scarlet Letter, symbolism is used in order to describe Hester Prynne’s sin and disgrace. Even though the story is about her and how she handles the shame, the other culprit behind the lust, Arthur Dimmesdale, does not actually come forward until the end, but he suffers throughout the book by beating himself. In the end, however, he dies because he withheld the guilt while Hester suffers with their child, Pearl, who is one of the symbols of the story. Nathaniel Hawthorne uses rhetorical devices, especially symbolism, in order to show objects have deeper meanings than what they actually represent when he describes the scene when Hester Prynne is standing on the scaffold in the middle of the town in front of thousands of citizens.

Throughout the book, the villagers view of the scarlet letter changed. It’s original meaning was to punish Hester for having an affair, but as the book goes on, the “A” no longer stands for “Adulterer”, it stands for “Able”. For example, in chapter two, Hester is

For committing the crime of adultery, Hester Prynne is forced by the town council to have a scarlet ‘A’ with a gold trim to be worn at all times, as symbol of her sin, and, to be worn at all times for the rest of her life. Because everyone in town is strong in their puritan faith, the townspeople reject Hester along with the church. At first, society rejects Hester for her sinful ways. Consequently, Hester moves to the outskirts of town to escape the oppression society pressed on her. As time went on, “many people refused to interpret the scarlet letter ‘A’ by its original signification.

Throughout this novel, Author Nathaniel Hawthorne used Pearl as different symbols. Pearl was a symbol of Hester and Dimmesdale’s sin, the innocent reminder of that sin, and balance. He shows her being these symbols often throughout the book. Though, as the book goes on you can notice Pearl start to grow and evolve into the different symbols. Some of her original symbolism stays with her, however, she goes through stages as she ages. She was put through many things she couldn’t understand and endured pain because of her surroundings. When Hester is being screamed at to tell everyone who Pearl’s father, Hawthorne says Pearl, “pierced the air with its wailings and screams.”(Hawthorne 78). Just like her aging, her symbolism

Nathaniel Hawthorne incorporated many different symbols to help portray what he envisioned for the book, The Scarlet Letter. His symbols are key to understanding his novels. The primary symbol he used was the scarlet letter A itself. A symbol is something that is used to represent something else. In literature, a symbol has a different meaning. A symbol is an object used to signify an idea or quality, often like a moral, something religion-based, or realistic concept or value. Three ways he uses the scarlet letter to convey meaning is by the different characters, light and dark, and the settings.

It doesn't seem like much, but when dwelled upon, it appears to describe Dimmesdale’s characteristics. These characteristics could be described as weak and unmotivated. These characteristics are shown throughout the book as Dimmesdale begins to not want to live under the self- inflicted guilt that he is suffering. In the book, he is constantly struggling against the stereotype that all ministers are holy and never sin. On the other hand, when he tries to indirectly talk about his sin to his parish, it makes them love him even more and follow his ways with more passion. Dimmesdale could also represent Adam in the story of Adam and Eve in the Bible. In both stories sin results in isolation and suffering. However, it does include the gift of knowledge, which can be both a good and bad thing. This is not just overall knowledge, it the knowledge of what it means to be human, have faults, and make mistakes. The burden of this sin forces Dimmesdale to sympathize with all of the other “sinners” around the world, he has so much sympathy for these people that his heart aches for them. However, his sympathy fuels his to preach powerful sermons that makes the whole town more passionate than ever! Even though Dimmesdale has the given identity of a holy and humble minister, he still has a certain element of evil and deception in him. This shows when he runs into Hester in the woods, and Pearl believes that he is

Nathaniel Hawthorne was a nineteenth-century author who lived in the 1800s, and his novels were focused on Puritan-era New England in the 1600s. His novel. The Scarlet Letter, tells the story of a woman named Hester Prynne and how she must pay for her sin of adultery by wearing a scarlet letter “A” on her bosom for the rest of her life. Throughout the story, Nathaniel Hawthorne uses symbolism to represent and convey his themes. In the Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne uses the symbolism of Pearl, the cottage, and Dimmesdale to contribute to the overall theme of imperfection.

The townspeople have begun to regard Hester with a certain amount of respect. She has been pure in heart and deed ever since her public fall from graces, and she is charitable to the poor. Hester earns her money by doing stitch-work for local dignitaries, but she often spends her time helping the poor and sick. In fact, her suffering makes her kinder toward others. She knows how to offer grace, because she had been denied it herself. People begin to suggest that the A stands for Able. Some suggest that the scarlet letter connotes holiness. For Hester, however, the symbol has hardened her against ever feeling passion of affection again. She has ceased, in short, to be a

The Scarlet Letter’s Symbolism in Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter (The Symbolism of the Letter “A” in The Scarlet Letter) In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter, the letter “’A” symbolizes many things through out the story. In the beginning of the book, Hester is standing on the scaffold holding Pearl as a small baby and wearing the scarlet letter, which at this early point in the plot represented her sin of committing adultery.

By making the scarlet letter symbolize sin and having the community shun her for it, Hawthorne is illustrating how constraining the Puritans are, since they judge people solely on their sins or lack thereof.

Authors employ symbolism to convey a complex idea and incorporate a deeper understanding of a novel. Many writers exert symbolism through an object, character, or a circumstance that signifies a deeper meaning rather than directly pointing out how they feel about their novel. In The Scarlet Letter, Hawthorne includes symbols to represent his life experiences under Puritan ideals. Hawthorne uses symbolism in the names of the following characters; Hester Prynne, Roger Chillingworth, Arthur Dimmesdale, and Pearl which represents different aspects of each characters personality. Hawthorne selected these names based on biblical references, Puritan era, and evocative names. In The Scarlet Letter, by Nathaniel Hawthorne writes a historical and romantic fiction novel riddled with symbolism to help portray a profound understanding of the main characters.

Symbolism has many different meanings, and the Scarlet ‘A’ in “The Scarlet Letter” has many different meanings as well. Hester Prynne is the main character who is forced to wear the scarlet letter as remembrance for the crime and the sin that she has committed. This letter completely ruined her reputation in her community. How could a small piece of fabric do so much harm? This letter was a representation of something much greater than the letter ‘A’. This letter was originally made to stand for adulteress, as physical reminder of her sins. The vibrant scarlet red is meant to shame Hester, to make her feel sorry for her mistakes. Most importantly it was a symbol for change and an emblem of identity. In short, the scarlet letter meant much more than a letter of shame, it was simply a piece of fabric with meaning that could easily change.