Symbolism & The Scarlet Letter (Dana Knox's 11th grade AmStud)
Puritan Ties to Symbolism
The Puritan literature that we have studied is a prime example of the symbolism
authors have used in connection to the time period. The Scarlet Letter, as well as works
such as Young Goodman Brown, are so full of symbolism that it can't be missed.
Throughout both stories, characters, clothing, and places are used to symbolize ideas that
were common among Puritans. There are multiple examples in each case, and the
symbolism builds until the end of the story. Each character is involved in symbolism in
some way, and it is up to the reader to make their own correlations.
In The Scarlet Letter, Hester Prynne's adultery is considered an extreme sin. She
has violated the Puritan ways. Because of her sin, she is forced to wear the scarlet 'A',
which is a symbol of shame. That shame is meant to be her punishment, attached to her for
life, that all may see it. "Open a passage; and, I promise ye, Mistress Prynne shall be set
where man, woman and child may have fair sight of her brave apparel..." (Hawthorne 62)
Talk of Hester Prynne was harsh, for example, "If the hussy stood up for judgment before
us five, that are now here in a knot together, would she come off with such a sentence as
the worshipful magistrates have awarded? Marry, I trow not!" (Hawthorne 59) The
townspeople continue their tongue lashing, and the scarlet 'A' became not only a symbol of
Hester's sin, but to the people of the town it became a symbol of a person who was
deserving of their scorn. Because of the scarlet letter, they felt free to ostracize and judge
Hester. And because of the skill with which Hester has created the letter, they felt that she
was trying to make it a symbol of her craftsmanship in order to distract from its shame, and
mock those who would try to use it as a symbol of such. A female spectator says, "...but
did ever a woman, before this brazen hussy, contrive such a way of showing [her
needlework skills]. Why, gossips, what is it but to laugh in the faces of our godly
magistrates, and make a pride out of what they, worthy gentlemen, meant for a
punishment?" (Hawthorne 61) Hester's scarlet letter was a symbol of her sin, her
punishment, and also of the person she was beyond simply "the adulteress."
Pearl, Hester's daughter, was also a symbolic character. She was wild, and
associated closely with the forest, the forest being affiliated with all things evil throughout
the book. She enjoyed playing with flowers, and in the trees, and she seemed to fit in with
these natural things. It is as though she felt at home in the forest. "And she was gentler here
[the forest] than in the grassy-margined streets of the settlement, or in her mother's cottage.
The flowers appeared to know it." Pearl is a symbol of what the Puritans felt a child should
not be- wild, uncontrolled, and fiendish. Hester dressed Pearl extravagantly, and in such a
way that she became like a living scarlet letter. "It [Pearl] was the scarlet letter in another
form; the scarlet letter endowed with life!" (Hawthorne 103) She was a symbol and
reminder to everyone that she is the product of Hester's sin, both in her unruly nature and
her apparel.
Arthur Dimmesdale carried symbolism throughout the book as a juxtaposition of
good and evil. To the community, he appeared as the religious leader who could do no
wrong. To those whose mere existence he was tortured by (Chillingworth, Hester, and
especially Pearl) he appeared as a cowardly man who could not shake the effects of his
Lawrence 2
guilt, nor seem to own up to his own sin. Although he attempted at confession in the pulpit,
the community members refused to accept his admission seriously. He says, "I, your
reverend, whom you so reverence and trust, am utterly a pollution and a lie!" But the
congregation saw his declaration of sin as though he were merely magnifying a small
misdeed. "They heard it all but did reverence him the more. They little guessed what
deadly purport lurked in those self-condemning words. "The godly youth!" said they
among themselves. "The saint on earth! Alas, if he discerns such sinfulness in his own
white soul, what horrid spectacle would he behold in thine or mine!" (Hawthorne 140) By
the community, he is held up as a symbol of good, and by those who know his secret sin
he is a symbol of cowardice, and the effects of guilt.
Throughout the book, specific places are used as symbols. The prison is a symbol
of punishment and shame shared by all who commit crimes. It seems to have been around
forever. "Like all that pertains to crime, it seemed never to have known a youthful era."
(Hawthorne 55) It is possible that Hawthorne is trying to give the reader a sense of the
extent to which sin is a part of human nature, rooted deep in history. The scaffolding on
which Hester is forced to stand as part of her punishment, is a symbol of demonstration
and exposure, that all crimes will be made known publicly. Because the nature of one who
has committed a crime is to hide, their punishment is to be exposed in their guilt. Hester
was made to stand on the scaffold, "...where iniquity is dragged out into the sunshine!"
(Hawthorne, 62) The forest is held to be a symbol of evil throughout the Puritan literature
which we have studied. In Young Goodman Brown, evil was met in the forest, and it
welcomed innocent people to the world of sin. In the forest, surrounded by evil, Goodman
Brown and his wife could not resist sin, however they might try. "Faith! Faith!" cried the
husband, "look up to heaven, and resist the wicked one." However, in The Scarlet Letter,
evil was much more subtle. Pearl can identify it though, and she does so by asking her
mother, "Art thou like the Black Man that haunts the forest round about us? Hast thou
enticed me into a bond that will prove the ruin of my soul?" (Hawthorne 81)
There are many more individual occurrences of symbolism, too many to list them
all. But the strongest characters, as well as the places and items entwined in their stories,
are all emblems with dual purposes. Each has a literal position in the story, as well as a
figurative meaning and less obvious purpose. For many, the less evident is what makes the
reading interesting- they are free to develop their own interpretation. What Nathaniel
Hawthorne lays in front of the reader in The Scarlet Letter is groundwork for many ideas
on the meaning of each symbol. The above is one interpretation drawn from examples
primarily from The Scarlet Letter, and serves to offer views developed by our study of
Puritan Literature.
The Puritan literature that we have studied is a prime example of the symbolism
authors have used in connection to the time period. The Scarlet Letter, as well as works
such as Young Goodman Brown, are so full of symbolism that it can't be missed.
Throughout both stories, characters, clothing, and places are used to symbolize ideas that
were common among Puritans. There are multiple examples in each case, and the
symbolism builds until the end of the story. Each character is involved in symbolism in
some way, and it is up to the reader to make their own correlations.
In The Scarlet Letter, Hester Prynne's adultery is considered an extreme sin. She
has violated the Puritan ways. Because of her sin, she is forced to wear the scarlet 'A',
which is a symbol of shame. That shame is meant to be her punishment, attached to her for
life, that all may see it. "Open a passage; and, I promise ye, Mistress Prynne shall be set
where man, woman and child may have fair sight of her brave apparel..." (Hawthorne 62)
Talk of Hester Prynne was harsh, for example, "If the hussy stood up for judgment before
us five, that are now here in a knot together, would she come off with such a sentence as
the worshipful magistrates have awarded? Marry, I trow not!" (Hawthorne 59) The
townspeople continue their tongue lashing, and the scarlet 'A' became not only a symbol of
Hester's sin, but to the people of the town it became a symbol of a person who was
deserving of their scorn. Because of the scarlet letter, they felt free to ostracize and judge
Hester. And because of the skill with which Hester has created the letter, they felt that she
was trying to make it a symbol of her craftsmanship in order to distract from its shame, and
mock those who would try to use it as a symbol of such. A female spectator says, "...but
did ever a woman, before this brazen hussy, contrive such a way of showing [her
needlework skills]. Why, gossips, what is it but to laugh in the faces of our godly
magistrates, and make a pride out of what they, worthy gentlemen, meant for a
punishment?" (Hawthorne 61) Hester's scarlet letter was a symbol of her sin, her
punishment, and also of the person she was beyond simply "the adulteress."
Pearl, Hester's daughter, was also a symbolic character. She was wild, and
associated closely with the forest, the forest being affiliated with all things evil throughout
the book. She enjoyed playing with flowers, and in the trees, and she seemed to fit in with
these natural things. It is as though she felt at home in the forest. "And she was gentler here
[the forest] than in the grassy-margined streets of the settlement, or in her mother's cottage.
The flowers appeared to know it." Pearl is a symbol of what the Puritans felt a child should
not be- wild, uncontrolled, and fiendish. Hester dressed Pearl extravagantly, and in such a
way that she became like a living scarlet letter. "It [Pearl] was the scarlet letter in another
form; the scarlet letter endowed with life!" (Hawthorne 103) She was a symbol and
reminder to everyone that she is the product of Hester's sin, both in her unruly nature and
her apparel.
Arthur Dimmesdale carried symbolism throughout the book as a juxtaposition of
good and evil. To the community, he appeared as the religious leader who could do no
wrong. To those whose mere existence he was tortured by (Chillingworth, Hester, and
especially Pearl) he appeared as a cowardly man who could not shake the effects of his
Lawrence 2
guilt, nor seem to own up to his own sin. Although he attempted at confession in the pulpit,
the community members refused to accept his admission seriously. He says, "I, your
reverend, whom you so reverence and trust, am utterly a pollution and a lie!" But the
congregation saw his declaration of sin as though he were merely magnifying a small
misdeed. "They heard it all but did reverence him the more. They little guessed what
deadly purport lurked in those self-condemning words. "The godly youth!" said they
among themselves. "The saint on earth! Alas, if he discerns such sinfulness in his own
white soul, what horrid spectacle would he behold in thine or mine!" (Hawthorne 140) By
the community, he is held up as a symbol of good, and by those who know his secret sin
he is a symbol of cowardice, and the effects of guilt.
Throughout the book, specific places are used as symbols. The prison is a symbol
of punishment and shame shared by all who commit crimes. It seems to have been around
forever. "Like all that pertains to crime, it seemed never to have known a youthful era."
(Hawthorne 55) It is possible that Hawthorne is trying to give the reader a sense of the
extent to which sin is a part of human nature, rooted deep in history. The scaffolding on
which Hester is forced to stand as part of her punishment, is a symbol of demonstration
and exposure, that all crimes will be made known publicly. Because the nature of one who
has committed a crime is to hide, their punishment is to be exposed in their guilt. Hester
was made to stand on the scaffold, "...where iniquity is dragged out into the sunshine!"
(Hawthorne, 62) The forest is held to be a symbol of evil throughout the Puritan literature
which we have studied. In Young Goodman Brown, evil was met in the forest, and it
welcomed innocent people to the world of sin. In the forest, surrounded by evil, Goodman
Brown and his wife could not resist sin, however they might try. "Faith! Faith!" cried the
husband, "look up to heaven, and resist the wicked one." However, in The Scarlet Letter,
evil was much more subtle. Pearl can identify it though, and she does so by asking her
mother, "Art thou like the Black Man that haunts the forest round about us? Hast thou
enticed me into a bond that will prove the ruin of my soul?" (Hawthorne 81)
There are many more individual occurrences of symbolism, too many to list them
all. But the strongest characters, as well as the places and items entwined in their stories,
are all emblems with dual purposes. Each has a literal position in the story, as well as a
figurative meaning and less obvious purpose. For many, the less evident is what makes the
reading interesting- they are free to develop their own interpretation. What Nathaniel
Hawthorne lays in front of the reader in The Scarlet Letter is groundwork for many ideas
on the meaning of each symbol. The above is one interpretation drawn from examples
primarily from The Scarlet Letter, and serves to offer views developed by our study of
Puritan Literature.