What kind of character is Hester Prynne?
Hester Prynne is the protagonist of Nathaniel Hawthorne’s 1850 novel The Scarlet Letter. She is portrayed as a woman condemned by her Puritan neighbors. The character has been called “among the first and most important female protagonists in American literature”.
How is Hester Prynne portrayed in The Scarlet Letter?
By the novel’s end, Hester has become a protofeminist mother figure to the women of the community. Throughout The Scarlet Letter Hester is portrayed as an intelligent, capable, but not necessarily extraordinary woman. It is the extraordinary circumstances shaping her that make her such an important figure.
Who is Hester’s baby daddy?
Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale Dimmesdale is a young man who achieved fame in England as a theologian and then emigrated to America. In a moment of weakness, he and Hester became lovers. Although he will not confess it publicly, he is the father of her child.
How does Hester Prynne die?
Dimmesdale, leaving the church after his sermon, sees Hester and Pearl standing before the town scaffold. He impulsively mounts the scaffold with his lover and his daughter, and confesses publicly, exposing a scarlet letter seared into the flesh of his chest. When Hester dies, she is buried next to Dimmesdale.
What is the moral of scarlet letter?
Description: The Scarlet Letter which appeared in 1850 deals with a moral theme. It is first of all concerned with moral guilt and sin. He also realizes that he is doubly a sinner in so far as he continues to conceal his sin; therefore, his sense of sin not only weighs, but preys upon his mind ceaselessly.
How does Pearl symbolize truth?
In a way, Pearl can symbolize both truth and shame, referring to Hester, Chillingworth, and Dimmesdale. Pearl represents the shame in Hester because she is living proof that Hester is a sinner to adultery. In addition to the shame, Pearl can also be seen as a symbol of truth.
What is the symbolic meaning of Pearl’s name?
At the beginning of chapter five it states that she was named Pearl because she was “of great price-purchased with all she had,-her mother’s only treasure!” So, Pearl’s name is symbolic of the price that Hester had to pay in order to bear her.
Does Hester love Pearl?
Pearl becomes Hester’s spiritual support because she brings love and happiness to her. When the governor plans to take Pearl away from Hester, she argues for the happiness that Pearl brought to her. She says, “God gave me the child! As a mother, Hester gains happiness by taking care of Pearl.
Why Hester should keep Pearl?
Hester argues to keep Pearl by saying she can teach Pearl the faith through her mistakes and trials, but also by saying Pearl is a daily reminder of the sin she committed.
How is Hester cursed by Pearl?
Pearl is a curse because she seems to have a nature of afflicting her mother with the letter. We can also see this when Hester was finally able to discard the Letter, but this caused Pearl to refuse to come back to Hester when she decided to leave. Pearl exposed her wild side of her characteristics.
How is Pearl described in Chapter 6?
During her first three years, Pearl, who is so named because she came “of great price,” grows into a physically beautiful, vigorous, and graceful little girl. She is radiant in the rich and elaborate dresses that Hester sews for her.
Is Pearl evil in The Scarlet Letter?
Yet also like the scarlet letter, Pearl becomes Hester’s source of strength. Pearl, an outcast, is drawn to other outcasts, such as Mistress Hibbins and her witch friends. Pearl’s affinity for the occult associates her character with sin and evil, but Pearl is first and foremost a product of love, not just sin.
Why does pearl like the scarlet letter?
Pearl is the result of Hester’s adultery; therefore she has a strong connection with the scarlet letter. As a young girl, Pearl had always had a fascination and obsession with her mother’s scarlet letter. Yet also like the scarlet letter, Pearl becomes Hester’s source of strength.
How does Pearl behave in The Scarlet Letter?
Because Pearl is the “living A,” the embodiment of her parents’ sin, she cannot be normal and “pure” like the other children in Boston. Thus, throughout the book she acts as a devilish child. She does not fit in with other children; she is, instead, an outsider like her mother.