Why is the most significant symbol in the novel? Support your response with evidence from the text. (You cannot use the scarlet letter--be more creative!)
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The most significant symbol in The Scarlet Letter is the prison door and rose bush, even though they are not mention much, they are very notable figures. In chapter 18, The Elfchild and the Minister, Pearl claims to be “plucked by her mother off the bush of wild roses that grew by the prison door”. “The Prison Door” is also the title of chapter 1. The prison door is described as “heavily timbered with oak and studded with iron spikes” and after only 10-15years the door has become very weathered and aged. The door represents the jarring righteousness of the Puritan society. The rose bush, a symbol of grace, mercy, and forgiveness of the Puritans, grows just beside the hideous prison door. This shows that for every bad there is a balance of good, just like Pearl is the good in a dark situation.
ReplyDeletePearl is the most significant symbol in the novel because she is another representation of the scarlet letter and sin that Hester committed. She is a blessing to Hester but also a punishment for what she did. "God as a direct consequence of the sin which man thus punished, had given her a lovely child, whose place was on that dishonored bosom, to connect her parent for ever with the race and descent of mortals, and to be finally a blessed soul in heaven!" (pg. 103-104) Pearl also noticed the connection between Hester and the minister that others didn't tend to see. She sees how her mother wears her sin on her chest but the minister always holds his heart like he is suffering from the sin on the inside. Mostly Pearl's name is a symbol. Her mother named her Pearl because she is her treasure but in the novel Pearl is described as an elf-child and that she has witchcraft inside of her. Yet a Pearl is a pure and beautiful thing, which is not how this child is perceived in the novel. "Pearl?-Ruby, rather!-or Coral!-or Red Rose, at the very least, judging from thy hue!...The little baggage hath witchcraft in her, I profess." (pg. 129 and 136)
ReplyDeleteThere are two symbols that have been important throughout the entire novel, the first one being Hester’s needle work. The embroidery itself is a symbol of her worth despite her previous actions. The fact alone that the embroidery is gold shows that Hester is a person of value despite the sin and taint that this value surrounds. This golden skill was of great value to the town and allowed her to gain such a station in the town that they considered removing her punishment of the letter. The second, and what I believe to be the most important symbol throughout the novel is the presence and use of sunshine and shadow. The sunshine symbolizes both purity and innocence, and this light of innocence is what allows shadows, or sins, to be shown. This is proven multiple times throughout the novel, including page 77, “’ No, my little Pearl!’ said her mother, ‘thou must gather thine own sunshine. I have none to give thee!’”. In this quote Hester is saying that Pearl must bother gather and keep her own innocence, her own purity, and not allow her passions to turn that sunshine to shadow as it had with her mother. Hester is constantly surrounded by shadow, whether it be her grey clothes or literal darkness, the same goes for the Reverend who was also depicted to have his own shadow that constantly followed him.
ReplyDeleteI think that Pearl is the most important symbol. Not just to show the sin that connected Hester and Mr. Dimmesdale, but she is the key to this whole "spell" that was cast on Mr. Dimmesdale. On page 197 it states, "Pearl kissed his lips. The spell was broken... Pearl's errand as a messenger of anguish was all fulfilled." Pearl is the reason for the pain, but she was also the cure it.
ReplyDeleteI agree that Pearl is the most important symbol in the novel. First of all, she represents the connection between Dimmesdale and Hester, the scarlet letter, also the symbol of their sin. "And there stood the minister, with his hand over his heart and Hester Prynne, with the embroidered letter glimmering on her bosom; and little Pearl, herself a symbol, and the connecting link between those two." (p.118)
ReplyDeleteAlso she is very similar to how sin acts and looks. She is beautiful but she is like a little imp, tormenting her mother.
I agree that Pearl is the most significant symbol throughout the novel. She's the living symbol of the scarlet letter. She represents the good and the bad of the sin that Hester and Dimmsdale committed. For Hester she is a punishment and a blessing, she was something good that came out of their sin. "She is my happiness! -she is my torture, none the less! Pearl keeps me here in life! Pearl punishes me too! See ye not, she is the scarlet letter, only capable of being loved..." (pg.133). I also agree with Shania and Dylan, that Pearl represents the connection between Hester and Dimmsdale and their correlation with the scarlet letter, She sees a deeper meaning to the scarlet letter. "In her was visible the tie that united them. She had been offered to the world, these seven years past, as the living hieroglyphic, in which was revealed the secret they so darkly sought to hide, -all written in this symbol..." (pg.248). She provides Dimmsdale and Hester with a connection that would otherwise not be there if she wasn't born.
ReplyDeleteThe most significant symbol in the book is Pearl. She symbolizes consequence. She shows that all actions have reactions and costs. Hester chose to be unfaithful and her consequence was the birth of her elf-like child and her disloyalty being revealed. "There was witchcraft in little Pearl's eyes." (pg. 183) Hester is accompanied by her elf-like daughter everyday and Pearl serves as the punishment Hester receives for her sin.
ReplyDeleteBailey, I didn't think about those as symbols, but I do now. I agree that these are significant symbols, as they cover and pertain to the entire book.
ReplyDeleteReverend Dimmesdale is a vital character and symbolic figure in the novel. He and his life represent the entire Puritan colony of Boston. Throughout most of "The Scarlet Letter," Dimmesdale is portrayed as a troubled, crippled individual. The prosperity of the colony and its people is parallel to this throughout the novel, as a majority of the book depicts Boston and its people as dark and gloomy. However, in chapter 20, Mr. Dimmesdale is overcome by a newfound happiness, and he feels as if the weight of the world has been lifted off of his shoulders. Page 170 says that he wrote his next sermon "with earnest haste and ecstasy," and "that he fancied himself inspired." In the following chapter, the seemingly sorrowful town of Boston becomes a host for a grand festival, and as Hester puts it, "the children have come from their schools, and the grown people from their workshops and their fields, on purpose to be happy (pg. 174)." Because of this event and the parallel alteration in mood between the town and Reverend Dimmesdale, I believe that the minister is a key symbol in "The Scarlet Letter."
ReplyDeleteI believe Pearl is the symbol that shows the most meaning. The good and the bad. To Hester, she is her biggest treasure, actually her only treasure as of chapter 6 before Dimmesdale, and their flee to Europe. Regardless, of what her mother thinks, Pearl is a huge outcast and is odd, most claimed her to be the devils child. To her mother a treasure, to others a demon. Pearl is living proof of Hester and Dimmesdale's sin. Pg. 133 "She is my happiness! she is my torture, none the less! Pearl keeps me here in life! Pearl punishes me too! See ye not, she is the scarlet letter, only capable of being loved..." Pearl is a daily reminder that with every decision theres an outcome, bad being humiliated for years and good being Dimmesdales ability to finally confess his sin.
ReplyDeleteI'm actually really sad that everyone decided to pick Pearl, I thought I was being unique but I do believe she is the best symbol. Also, I agree with Sydney Ely, Hester's embroidery is an awesome symbol, way to think outside the box!
ReplyDeletePearl is the most significant symbol in the novel. Pearl is a representation of the adultery committed by Hester and Dimmesdale and links the three together. " And there stood the minister, with his hand over his heart, and Hester Prynne, with the embroidered letter glimmering on her bosom; and little Pearl, herself a symbol, and the connecting link between those two"(140). Pearl shows the good and bad that came from the sin, and is a living representation of the scarlet letter worn by Hester. Pearl also gives Hester another reason to stay in New England. Hester wanted Pearl to meet her father. Pearl is also one of the driving forces of Dimmesdale's confession, not showing him any love or respect until he stands up where Hester and Pearl did 7 years ago, admitting his sin. Pearl is the shining light of a dark sin that had been committed, showing the positive in a negative situation.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Bailey. I never thought about those being symbols in the book but i definitely agree with you. I think that the prison door and the rose bush were significant symbols of the story because of the forgiveness granted when the truth was told and consequences were faced. The rose bush shows the positive in something negative, the prison door.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Luke Adkins as well. Pearl symbolizes the consequence of Hester's actions and got her caught in the first place. Without Pearl, Hester and Dimmesdale would have never gotten into any trouble and would have lived their lives with the sin. Pearl was what gave away Hester and Dimmesdale's secret affair.
ReplyDeleteThe Scarlet Letter is filled with symbols, all of which have important ties to the plot. Of those I would say that Pearl is indeed the most significant. She is present in every chapter making her the most frequently referred to symbol. She has been intertwined in Hester's situation for the totality of the book. I addition, because of different reading interpretations, Pearl can symbolize many different things, all of which are keys to understanding the novel. To demonstrate this, here is a short list...
ReplyDeletePearl can symbolize...
-Sin and its results
-Hope for the present and future
-Pain and burden
-The Scarlet Letter itself
i agree with everyone. There are so many symbols throughout the book it's hard to even remember all of them. I like the symbols Bailey presented. The symbols she pointed out i never would have thought as symbols in the book.
ReplyDeleteThe most significant symbol in the novel is the pedestal. It shows you that not only can horrific occasions happen there like in the first chapter where Hester was sentenced to stand there for hours on end as part of her punishment. Also it was used for the governor and for the proclamation of the minister for also having the scarlet letter. It represents judgement day. How depending on what you have done it can be a moment of pride and joy or of quilt and shame. This one pedestal sees all of your major accomplishments and failures. It may not seem like a major part in the novel but if you take it away there is no judgement, no reason for guilt, shame, or pride.
ReplyDeleteI highly agree with Bailey Crase, the prison door and the rose bush are something you don't think of being symbolic when you first read it the book. However, after reading your comment it makes a lot of sense. In my opinion, I'm going to be predictable and say that Pearl is probably the most symbolic thing in The Scarlet Letter. Page 183, "… and little pearl, herself a symbol and the connecting link between those two." This statement not only shows, but literally says that Pearl is a big symbol in the book. She symbolizes the link between Dimmesdale and Hester, the Scarlet Letter in living form, a burden from sin, and good coming out of bad. I believe Pearl being the main symbol in this book is a no-brainer.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteAlthough I had never actually paid much attention to the pedestal, I can see that Destiny makes a good point. The pedestal represents the judgement and the punishment Hester received. It gives a very prominent insight into the book, in a way it foreshadows what's yet to come. The judgement will last much longer than the pedestal. Also, it represents the exclusion from the society she was in. The pedestal also foreshadows that there was more to Reverend Dimmsdale then what was written in the first chapter.
ReplyDeletePearl is the greatest symbol in the novel. She symbolizes both good and bad. Even though being the child born of sin, she keeps Hester willing to fight. "God gave her into my keeping...Thou knowest what is in my heart, and what are a mother's rights, and how much stronger they are when that mother has but her child and the scarlet letter!" (pg. 133). Hester is stating that it is going to be hard for a sin child and a mother that bares the scarlet letter, but God gave her Pearl so she will do anything for her baby girl, because Pearl makes Hester a stronger person by knowing that she isn't just fighting for herself anymore.
ReplyDeleteI have to agree with everyone. Pearl is the most significant symbol in The Scarlet Letter. She symbolizes the connection between Hester and Dimmesdale along with symbolizing the sin they committed. She symbolizes that good things can come from bad things.
ReplyDeleteThe biggest symbol in the book besides the scarlet letter would have to be the reason Hester wears the letter, Pearl. Not only can Pearl represent her mothers sin but also can represent hope, love and, as many of my peers have said, consequence. She is a treasure to her mother and is a product of the connection between Hester and Dimmesdale. Like Shayna said, she symbolizes that good things can come from bad things.
ReplyDeleteThe most significant symbol other than the scarlet letter would be the scaffold. The reason as to why the scaffold is a significant symbol is because to Hester, Pearl, and Mr. Dimmesdale it has a special meaning to each. The scaffold also helps develop those characters and who they are.
ReplyDeleteThe scaffold is important to Hester because it's part of her punishment and helped form who she is. Hester is a strong individual who felt like if she had left Boston then she wouldn't of been getting the punishments she deserved. So as result of that, she stayed in Boston and stood on the scaffold were many people gazed at her, mocked her, laughed at her, and disrespected her. They were mean, cruel, and nasty to Hester. But once everyone began to forgive Hester for her sin, the 'A' on her chest changed from 'Adultery' to 'Able'. In the book it says, "Individuals in private life, meanwhile, had quite forgiven Hester Prynne for her frailty; nay, more, they had begun to look upon the scarlet letter as the token, not of that one sin, for which she had borne so long and dreary a penance, but of her many good deeds since." (Pg. 147) The community in a sense gave Hester a second chance at life. They allowed her to get involved in the community and sell her needle work.
(continued) The scaffold is important to Pearl because that's where she saw her mother be strong for the both of them. Pearl also began to understand the meaning behind the 'A' on her mother's chest. Pearl also met her father at the scaffold but she had no idea that he was her father who is also known as Mr. Dimmesdale. In chapter 19 Pearl had asked her mother if Mr. Dimmesdale would come back to town with Hester and herself and to hold their hands while standing on the scaffold in front of the community, Hester told Pearl not right now but maybe some other time. Pearl had a good idea about Mr. Dimmesdale and Hester's relationship because he was always holding his chest where the 'A' would of been on his shirts, therefore Pearl had thought that Mr. Dimmesdale was guilty of a sin like her mother's. But in chapter 23 Mr. Dimmesdale finally goes publicly and confesses his son along the side of Hester and Pearl. After Pearl being told no and not right now or not today, he finally did it while holding Pearl's hand. In the book it says, "He turned towards the scaffold, and stretched forth his arms. "Hester," said he, "come hither! Come, my little Pearl!".....The child, with the bird-like motion which was one of her characteristics, flew to him, and clasped her arms about his knees. Hester Prynne—slowly, as if impelled by inevitable fate, and against her strongest will—likewise drew near, but paused before she reached him." (Pg. 225)
ReplyDeleteThe scaffold is important to Mr. Dimmesdale because when he sees Hester and Pearl put there in front of the community, he knows he should be standing up there along side of them. But he doesn't, so he begins to get a guilty conscious and as the book develops his guilty conscious begins to take over his life. His "A" on his chest burns a deeper and deeper hole the more he keeps his secret to himself. In chapter 12 Mr. Dimmesdale sees a symbol of an 'A' in the sky on the same night Gov. Winthrop passes away. Mr. Dimmesdale is standing on the scaffold picturing that he is in front of everyone in the community just like Hester and Pearl was in the beginning of the book. Mr. Dimes sale thought that the 'A' in the sky that night was a sign that he needs to confess his sin. Therefore his guilty conscious was getting the best of him. Also standing upon the scaffold holding Hester and Pearl's hands, Mr. Dimmesdale began to feel new life and warmth inside. In the book it says, "The minister felt for the child's other hand, took it. The moment he did so, there came what seemed a tumultuous rush of new life, other life than his own, pouring like a torrent into his heart, hand hurrying through all his veins, as if the mother and the child were communicating their vital warmth of his half-torpid system. The three formed an electric chain." (Pg. 139) He felt the power of family.
As many have said Pearl is a huge symbol, she represents so many things. From the loss of innocence, pain, consequence, but also hope for the future like Levi said, and linking Hester and Dimmesdale to one another. As Shayna said Pearl is something good that came out of a sin, or a bad thing.
ReplyDeleteI love what Caity and Sydney have said about the sunshine and shadow. On Pg. 77 when Hester generally says that Pearl must earn her own sunshine and keep it pure, not letting anything or anyone change that into a shadow and changing the entire way that things are or making to good go straight to the bad, as the sin with Hester did.
ReplyDeletePearl because she is the symbol of Hester's sin, also the symbol of the scarlet letter, and just the overall result of everyone's actions. Pearl was a constant reminder to everyone that Hester had sinned and that she is being punished for this. She is also a symbol of love and fear. Pearl was the one love of Hester's that didn't leave and her one fear of what she might do. Pearl is the Scarlet Letter.
ReplyDeleteI belive that the most important symbol in the book is Hesters daughter and the product of her sin, Pearl. Not only is pearl the result of her adultry, but she is the constant reminder that Hester cannot escape what she has done. Though as far as the story goes, Pearl serves as just a reminder to her mother, but taken out of the context of the novel she serves as a sort of lesson to the readers, that you can't hide from your past. Only when you face it and learn to accept it for what it is can your inner healing begin. While the scarlet letter represents external shame, Pearl represents the inner pain and distress that comes with sin.
ReplyDeleteThe most significant symbol--in my opinion-- within the novel is Pearl. She serves as both a punishment and salvation for Hester and minister ("Alone in the world... with this sole treasure to keep her heart aluve, she felt that she possessed indefensible rights against the world, and was ready to defend them to the death" p. 106) while still being a symbol of hope as well, being that her name itself implies that Hester wishes her to be instilled with innocence and purity that she does not possess.
ReplyDelete