This is Hester's first public appearance with her child and the scarlet letter on her bosom. ... Dimmesdale says she may remove the scarlet letter she bears upon her chest if she confesses. ... Her statement signifies an early attachment to the letter and declares her plans to willingly endure her punishment. ... In this scene, Pearl and Hester join him on the scaffold, as they link hands together and watch as a meteor illuminates a letter "A" in the sky. ... Therefore, the scaffold's symbolism changes dramatically throughout the novel; from that of punishment to freedom...

• Word Count: 587
• Approx Pages: 2

Scarlet Letter's Use Of Symbolism To Show Psychological Effects Of Sin "The act gross and brief, and brings loathing after it." ... She wears her scarlet letter among the solemnly dressed Puritans as this rosebush wears its scarlet blossoms amidst a small plot of grass and weeds. ... Our first instance occurs during the second famous scaffold scene. ... In a moment of joy, Hester removes the scarlet letter and tosses it away from herself. ... We later see this is true as she lives her final years alone in her cottage on the outskirts of town, still with the scarlet letter a...

• Word Count: 1118
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School

The most symbolic piece of work in American Literature is Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter. Hawthorne's use of symbolism in The Scarlet Letter is one of the most significant contributions to the rise of American Literature. ... The most important symbol which is carried throughout the novel is undoubtedly the scarlet letter A. ... At night while Dimmesdale is standing on the scaffold he sees a bright red letter A in the sky. ... Nathaniel Hawthorne's use of symbolism in The Scarlet Letter shows his greatness to produce a novel...

• Word Count: 502
• Approx Pages: 2
• Grade Level: High School

She continues to wear the scarlet letter there. One of the conflicts in The Scarlet Letter is one man's battle against himself. ... The Scarlet Letter is overflowing with symbolism. ... The Scarlet Letter "A" is the central symbol of the novel. ... The scarlet letter also forges a link between the characters. ...

• Word Count: 2338
• Approx Pages: 9
• Grade Level: High School

The Scarlet Letter is a book revealing lives of sin, social identity, and humanity. ... With its complex, emotional plot and its rich symbolism, this masterpiece has become a highly prized classic in American literature. ... Through the crowd's remarks and the narration of Hester's thoughts, it can be concluded that the scarlet letter stands for "adulteress." ... Pearl delights in the scarlet letter and enjoys emphasizing the symbol on her mother's breast. In fact, it is said that when Pearl was a baby, the first feature she noticed about her mother was the scarlet letter on...

• Word Count: 3653
• Approx Pages: 15
• Grade Level: High School

Looking Deeper Into the Scarlet Letter The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne, was a well written book. ... Before the class discussion, I enjoyed the book, but did not feel there was any other symbolism than the scarlet "A" representing Hester's sin. ... I was glad for Hester when Dimmesdale finally did stand up at the scaffold and confess his sins. ... Symbolism was a major area that I had problems with. ... The scaffold also represents an important part of the book. ...

• Word Count: 702
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne is one of the great novels in American Literature. Hawthorne's use of symbolism in the novel is very significant. ... "The scarlet letter was her passport into regions where other women dared not tread. ... It is on the armor breastplate in Governor Bellingham's garden, in the sky on the night of Dimmesdale's scaffold vigil, continually little Pearl is pictured to be the scarlet letter personified, and the most dramatic of the "A"'s is that which is on Dimmesdale's chest when he reveals his chest and sin. ... The synopsis o...

• Word Count: 661
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

From Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter, One of the most complex and misunderstood symbols in the book is Pearl, the illegitimate daughter of Hester Prynne and Arthur Dimmsdale. ... At first, Pearl is curious of why her mother wears the scarlet letter on her chest. ... Hawthorne presents symbolism from three main time periods of Pearl's life, birth, age three and age seven. ... Pearl's curiosity of the scarlet letter on Hestor's chest is unusual for a child her age. ... She showed this the day Dimmsdale got on the scaffold to realize how it felt to be the shame of the...

• Word Count: 442
• Approx Pages: 2
• Grade Level: High School

Nathaniel Hawthorne's novel, The Scarlet Letter, is a classic tale of human frailty and sin and the hardships that are caused by a single mistake. ... At the same time, The Scarlet Letter, tells the story of one woman's struggle to find meaning in living after disobeying the highly regarded word of God. ... The Scarlet Letter uses dark romanticism as Hawthorne attempts to explain the sinfulness of human nature and why people act as they do. ... The mistress is even "present" in chapter 12 when Dimmesdale appears on the scaffold. ... It [the letter] was revealed!" ...

• Word Count: 1296
• Approx Pages: 5
• Grade Level: High School

Hawthorne's novel "The Scarlet Letter" was published in 1850 and when it was first released it did not do well. ... Although Hawthorne wrote many novels, none of them were as successful as "The Scarlet Letter". ... In the Scarlet Letter, there is the symbolic significance of various settings: the scaffold; the forest, which ironically becomes an oasis of freedom for Hester and Dimmesdale, though everyone else views it as the devil's territory. ... The scaffold is a place in the Scarlet Letter in which Puritan punishment takes its course, through the scorn that...

• Word Count: 1003
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

In The Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne uses many different objects and people as symbols to express his message throughout the book. ... Perhaps the most complex symbol in the book is the most obvious and prevalent one, the books namesake, The Scarlet Letter itself. ... A third symbol Hawthorne uses in The Scarlet Letter is Pearl, Hester's daughter. ... He arrives in Boston while Hester is on the scaffold for the first time. ... In Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter, there are many more than just these four prevalent symbols. ...

• Word Count: 777
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

Nathaniel Hawthorne strayed from this redundant theme in his story The Scarlet Letter. ... After reading The Scarlet Letter, Hester Prynne is ranked towards the top of the hero list. ... The reason why I feel empowered by Hester after reading The Scarlet Letter comes from the chapter titled "The Revelation of the Scarlet Letter". ... Some critics of Hawthorne say that he overdid symbolism. ... The Scarlet Letter. ...

• Word Count: 3565
• Approx Pages: 14
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

In the novel The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne, the letter A is given to the characters Hester and Dimmesdale. ... For Hester, the Scarlet Letter symbolizes her adultery and for Dimmesdale, it is a reminder of his hidden sin. The characters are given different punishments corresponding to their symbolisms. ... The Scarlet Letter portrays the idea that guilt is harsher and more destructive than public punishments. ... The letter was the symbol of her calling. ...

• Word Count: 1309
• Approx Pages: 5

Nathaniel Hawthorne's "The Scarlet Letter"" is exceedingly rich, both thematically and symbolically. ... The themes of personal guilt and an individual's place in society are examined in this novel and the symbol of the scarlet letter A is used to illustrate the manner in which the main characters deal with this guilt. ... When strangers looked curiously at the scarlet letter, "and none ever failed to do so, "they branded it afresh into Hester's soul; so that, oftentimes, she could scarcely refrain, yet always did refrain, from covering the symbol with her hand" (Haw...

• Word Count: 872
• Approx Pages: 3
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

Although the sense of the meaning "adulteress" is constant, the metaphoric, emotional, and moralistic meanings of the scarlet letter vary from positive to negative interpretations throughout the novel The Scarlet Letter. ... The symbolism of the scarlet letter is expanded in Chapter Five, Hester at Her Needle. ... However, they never would know what it was like to be the person who bore that scarlet letter. ... Hester and her scarlet letter never achieve simplicity. ... Another vision of Hester's letter is that of its color, scarlet. ...

• Word Count: 1352
• Approx Pages: 5
• Grade Level: High School

Nathaniel Hawthorne was an anti-transcendentalist and believed in the dark side of man, hence his dark romantic novel The Scarlet Letter. ... The Scarlet Letter defines the American Romanticist movement while using symbolic characters and places that give the book seemingly two different stories. ... Furthermore the novel can be defined as a romantic novel by analyzing the characters Hester, Pearl, and Dimmesdale for their overall purpose to the story and the symbolism. ... Once in the center of town he approaches the scaffold where Hester and Pearl stood. He calls to them to help him cl...

• Word Count: 1687
• Approx Pages: 7
• Grade Level: High School

Chillingworth as Satan in The Scarlet Letter The Scarlet Letter is a novel packed with religious symbolism, and Hawthorne subtly assigns the role of the devil to Roger Chillingworth. ... Symbolically, on another more obvious note, Chillingworth steals one of Dimmesdale's gloves and drops it on the scaffold where sinners are shamed in front of the town. ...

• Word Count: 307
• Approx Pages: 1
• Grade Level: High School

If the steps and concept of symbolism are then applied to the Nathaniel Hawthorne's novel, The Scarlet Letter, we would find a multitude of example of symbols in the characters' lives, objects and the characters themselves. ... We see light and dark represented though out The Scarlet Letter from seeing Hester in the dark to Pearl in the light. ... Seemingly well informed, Pearl explains this occurrence being caused by the fact that "the sunshine does not love her" mother and it is afraid of something on her chest (Hawthorne 160); the scarlet letter. ... The role of a charac...

• Word Count: 1244
• Approx Pages: 5
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

Upon further reading of this passage, not only did I choose this scene based on the good feeling that I got, but also because Hawthorne filled the scene with what I believe to be symbolism and deeper meaning. ... Whatever he does, whether he goes on the scaffold and professes his sin, or moves to England with Hester and Pearl, this relationship can not work because in so many ways, Dimmesdale rejects the Scarlet Letter, in both human and supernatural forms, it now rejects him, evidenced by the reactions of Pearl in the last chapter, when she runs to the brook to was her head after she D...

• Word Count: 1256
• Approx Pages: 5

His most popular book, The Scarlet Letter, earned Hawthorne international fame. ... Relating directly to allegories is Hawthorne's use of symbolism in his stories. This is very evident in The Scarlet Letter where he uses setting and characterization to create an image of the various characters who each symbolize a different human trait. ... Terence Martin sums up the meaning of Hawthorne's best known book, The Scarlet Letter in three sentences: "Taking its form in Hawthorne's imagination, the total context of The Scarlet Letter inheres in the letter itself. ... Hawthorne begins ...

• Word Count: 855
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

"The Scarlet Letter" Nathaniel Hawthorne wrote "The Scarlet Letter" in 1850 in the highly religious area of New England. ... "The Scarlet Letter" by Nathaniel Hawthorne has many different themes contained in the novel, but the themes of Puritanism vs. ... The Scarlet Letter is chock full of symbolism. ... Not only Hester, but also the physical scarlet letter, the badge of shame, is shown through the author's tone and word choice as a beautiful, gold and colorful piece attached with gold thread, thus giving the scarlet letter A a majestic tone when Hester wears it. ... The Sca...

• Word Count: 2043
• Approx Pages: 8

Dimmesdale's trip to the scaffold during the night demonstrates that he suffers from insomnia. ... Dimmesdale's trip to the scaffold shows that he feels guilt and shames himself for not standing there with Hester seven years ago. He regrets that he wasn't there with Hester when "[Hester] lived through her first hour of public ignominy" However, Dimmesdale is not yet ready to admit to his sin, so he approaches the scaffold at night when "the town was all asleep". Dimmesdale's only risk in approaching the scaffold at this time of night is decrementing his health- which progre...

• Word Count: 393
• Approx Pages: 2
• Grade Level: Undergraduate