Forest Symbolism In Scarlet Letter

In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s classic The Scarlet Letter, there are lots of symbols with multiple meanings. One such object with multiple meanings is the forest. The forest has multiple meanings because it represents evil and danger to some, but to others it is freedom and a happy place. The multiple meanings of the forest shows how Hawthorne feels about many of his characters and even the world around them. Hawthorne feels that people and the world, much like the forest, has many sides and can be seen differently by different people. To the townspeople in the town the forest is a dark and evil place where people go to meet the Devil. One example of the townspeople’s belief that the forest is bad is when Pearl tells Hester, “She said that a thousand and a thousand people had met him here, and had written in his book, and have his mark on them”(181). She refers to a townswomen who strongly believes that all who go into the forest will meet the Black Man, or the Devil. The townswoman also states that Hester’s scarlet letter is a mark of the Black Man. The …show more content…
The theme of The Scarlet Letter is very much that people aren’t one dimensional and can have relationships with people that put them in a different light with those people. This is seen with Hester and Pearl’s relationship. The town sees Hester as the adulterer and a sinner and they view Pearl as a bad, elfish child. However, to Pearl, Hester is her loving, caring mother. To Hester, Pearl is precious and she sees the gentler side of Pearl the town doesn’t see. Another example is Dimmesdale. The town sees him as amazing and unable to sin. They worship the very ground he walks on. But our three other main characters, he is the broken adulterer. Chillingworth actively tries to destroy Dimmesdale and when he gives Pearl a kiss she tries to wash it off in the