Pearl: A Punishment and Blessing In The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne, there is a woman, named Hester Prynne, who lives in a Puritan town of Boston, Massachusetts. Hester is guilty of adultery, and the whole town gathers together to seek her punishment. Her punishment is she must wear the scarlet letter A on her bosom for shame. During the sin she committed, she has a daughter out of wedlock. She and her daughter, Pearl, stand on a scaffold for the whole town to see and some to judge. Hester is a symbol of a sinner, and Pearl is her symbol of the sin she committed. One of the most unique and elaborate characters in this book is Pearl. She is the daughter of Hester Prynne and Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale. Pearl was born in sin and symbolizes the act of
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She is also said to be like a sprite or fairy and is very mysterious. Hawthorne first describes Pearl “whose innocent life had sprung, by the inscrutable decree of Providence, a lovely and immortal flower, out of the rank luxuriance of a guilty passion” (81). She is a constant reminder of the sin committed by Hester, and is shunned by other children because of it. Because Hester now has this child, the people know what horrible sin she committed. This is her biggest punishment. Pearl does not interact with any children; therefore she does not know how to act as a child. She is excluded. Pearl is wild and strange and does not follow any rules Hester puts before her. She does not conform to any rules because she is a rule that has been broken through adultery. The entire community sees both Hester and Pearl as sinners and outcasts. If Hester had never had the child, most of the people never would have learned that Hester had committed adultery. God punishes Hester by sending her this child so that the whole town can know. Pearl seems to physically be a very beautiful little girl. Hawthorne writes that Pearl has “beauty that shone with deep and vivid tints’ a bright complexion, eyes possessing intensity
She is also said to be like a sprite or fairy and is very mysterious. Hawthorne first describes Pearl “whose innocent life had sprung, by the inscrutable decree of Providence, a lovely and immortal flower, out of the rank luxuriance of a guilty passion” (81). She is a constant reminder of the sin committed by Hester, and is shunned by other children because of it. Because Hester now has this child, the people know what horrible sin she committed. This is her biggest punishment. Pearl does not interact with any children; therefore she does not know how to act as a child. She is excluded. Pearl is wild and strange and does not follow any rules Hester puts before her. She does not conform to any rules because she is a rule that has been broken through adultery. The entire community sees both Hester and Pearl as sinners and outcasts. If Hester had never had the child, most of the people never would have learned that Hester had committed adultery. God punishes Hester by sending her this child so that the whole town can know. Pearl seems to physically be a very beautiful little girl. Hawthorne writes that Pearl has “beauty that shone with deep and vivid tints’ a bright complexion, eyes possessing intensity