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. Many symbols are underlying and hard to find, but symbols such as the letter "A" could not be more obvious. "The scarlet letter was her passport into regions where other women dared not tread. Shame, Despair, Solitude! Those had been her teachers -- stern and wild ones -- and they had made her strong, but taught her much amiss." The scarlet letter "A" is Hester Prynne's American Express card, she cannot leave home without it. With the exception of one occasion, Hester is true to her badge. In the eyes of the community and the reader the same the letter "A" transcends its own identity. First, standing for adultery which alienates Hester from the community, later that same letter is interpreted as Angel as the governor passes away, and finally the "A" comes to mean able as a result of Hester's ambition and compassion.
Without question Hester is guilty of adultery. She engaged in a relationship with Rev. Arthur Dimmesdale while she was still married to Roger Prynne (Chillingworth). As a result of her sin she is condemned to wear the letter "A". The "A" is meant to humiliate Hester. Her refusal to reveal the identity of her lover only compounds her punishment. The scarlet letter "A" becomes synonymous with Hester and she is not to be without it. At this point, however, the letter is shallow in meaning, standing for the sin of Adultery. To resonate the "A" in the mind of the reader Hawthorne displays the letter in a variety of altered profiles.
Besides being the beacon from Hester's breast the letter "A" is presented in several forms. 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.