Nature Symbolism In Scarlet Letter

In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s “The Scarlet Letter” nature is a symbol of refuge which is used to establish the novels theme that nature does not judge and welcomes all regardless of their sins. Unlike the Puritan town, nature is a lawless place that does not look down upon others in a condescending manner. Nature exemplifies both a sanctuary and an emotional escape for outcasts such as Hester and Pearl. In the novel, Hawthorne uses nature as a symbol of refuge to establish the novels theme that nature does not judge and welcomes all regardless of their sins. Hawthorne does this by conveying that the Puritans corrupt laws are no match for natures welcoming ways. In Puritan society, people must follow the strict morals they create. The Puritans are …show more content…
When among the vicinity of the forest they both are granted complete solitude from the town. For instance, Hester chooses to meet dimmesdale in the forest because it is a place of privacy for them both. “Hester never thought of meeting him in any narrower privacy than beneath the open sky” (Hawthorne 201). Hester feels as if her secrets are safe among the enclosed forest. Alike to Hester, Pearl too uses the forest as an emotional escape. The forest is a place she, and her wildness, are recognized and welcomed by mother nature. “The truth seems to be, however, that the mother-forest, and these wild things which it nourished, all recognized a kindred wildness in the human child” (Hawthorne 226). Equally important, Pearl feels more safe amid the forest then in any other place that she’s ever been. Additionally, Pearl is more benevolent in nature than among the Puritan settlement. “And she was gentler here than in the grassy-margined streets of the settlement, or in her mother’s cottage” (Hawthorne 226). All in all, as displayed in this paragraph, nature also symbolizes an emotional escape for both Hester and