What Is The Significance Of Pearl In The Scarlet Letter

The Scarlet Letter tells the tale of a woman named Hester Prynne, who has an illegitimate child, Pearl, with one of Boston’s well-known ministers, Arthur Dimmesdale. Set in Puritan New England in the 1700s, the environment encircles the Puritan beliefs as well as the Puritan government. Caught by the town when her pregnancy starts to show, Hester is sentenced to prison time and public humiliation for her adultery. As she raises Pearl she encounters her eccentric behavior and wild actions in stride as she has difficulties establishing just punishments for her. Over the course of the novel, Pearl develops into a main character, daringly questions the townspeople, and leads Hester away from evil, which increases her significance in the novel. In the beginning of the novel, Pearl is a strange child that is rather wild and does not get along with other children her age. She scares others off when they make a scene about Hester’s scarlet letter and her sin, which supports the governor’s idea that Pearl is a demon-child. Hester is worried the governor will take her away because she acts …show more content…
Pearl’s role in The Scarlet Letter is largely significant because she deters Hester from evil and its’ temptations. Not only do her actions deem her human, but she proves to the town through her actions that she is not what they thought she was. Pearl develops into quite the young lady and she also begins to take matters into her own hands by questioning the authority figures around her. Her rise to the level of main character is supported by the fact that she matures into a more realistic and believable character. The tale of Pearl captures her forwardness towards the townspeople in her pursuit, along with her significance to the novel as a whole, and the fascinating development of her rise to the title of main