The Scarlet Letter focuses heavily on the romantic movement and what conflicted it at that time. Hawthorn uses these characters as outlets for showing the romantic movement and how it was put into action while also being ridiculed. Hawthorne wrote the Scarlet Letter to communicate how following the beliefs of the Romantic movement helps lead people to achieving their best moral life; their passion is the most natural feeling, how society ridicules the people who: believe in the romantic movement, and use it to become their truer self. The Romantic movement was a belief system for people against the cold unforgiving nature of the Puritan religion. Hawthorne wanted to express his personal view of the Puritan lifestyle while also comparing it
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Pearl, even as a baby, is able to identify Dimmesdale as her father—without knowing she did. Later after Dimmesdale confesses to his sin Pearl grants him the forgiveness he seeks from the crowd herself, even though Hester found her forgiveness through herself. Pearl isn’t tainted by the laws of man since she grew up outside of the church and the town so she has something no one else in the book could have—unaltered romantic thoughts. The Romantic movement and those living their lives by it — at that specific time period in the book Scarlet Letter— were ridiculed and outcasted by the members of the town. Hester’s act of passion and love was an act of ungodly behavior and she was punished for it. In the eyes of the church Hester’s action was disgusting and worthy of punishment for life; some would even be put to death. Society was taught that anything impulsive and not out of reason was either wrong or because it was planned by God herself. In the beginning of Hester’s punishment the town shuns her but later grow accustom to her letter and sin. However, in Dimmesdale’s case he never sought acceptance from the town until the end as he was too afraid of being shunned like Hester —with fear clouding his vision he couldn’t see
Pearl, even as a baby, is able to identify Dimmesdale as her father—without knowing she did. Later after Dimmesdale confesses to his sin Pearl grants him the forgiveness he seeks from the crowd herself, even though Hester found her forgiveness through herself. Pearl isn’t tainted by the laws of man since she grew up outside of the church and the town so she has something no one else in the book could have—unaltered romantic thoughts. The Romantic movement and those living their lives by it — at that specific time period in the book Scarlet Letter— were ridiculed and outcasted by the members of the town. Hester’s act of passion and love was an act of ungodly behavior and she was punished for it. In the eyes of the church Hester’s action was disgusting and worthy of punishment for life; some would even be put to death. Society was taught that anything impulsive and not out of reason was either wrong or because it was planned by God herself. In the beginning of Hester’s punishment the town shuns her but later grow accustom to her letter and sin. However, in Dimmesdale’s case he never sought acceptance from the town until the end as he was too afraid of being shunned like Hester —with fear clouding his vision he couldn’t see