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The Scarlet Letter Symbolism

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The Symbolism of the Scarlet “A” in The Scarlet Letter
Nathaniel Hawthorne gives a symbolic meaning to the scarlet “A” in The Scarlet Letter. Hawthorne’s main character, Hester, wears the scarlet “A”, because the citizens of Boston, Massachusetts find out she is pregnant from a man that is not her husband. The citizens know the baby is not from her husband, because her husband has been at sea for several months, and in the meantime she has gotten pregnant. Hawthorne changes the meaning of the scarlet “A” throughout the novel. Although some people might think the scarlet “A” only stands for adulterer, it stands for both adulterer and able.
In the first few chapters, the scarlet “A” only stands for adulterer. The scarlet “A” creates torture …show more content…

Hester is full of strength and hard work “As Hester Prynne builds a new life, her hard work and charity end up altering the letter’s meaning.” Hester is the person who changes the meaning of the letter. She does not let the letter “A” define her as something she is not. Hester ends up being a very helpful person in The Scarlet Letter and Hawthorne tells us that “The letter was a symbol of her calling. Such helpfulness was found in her, so much power to do, and power to sympathize that many people refused to interpret the scarlet “A” by its original significance” (146). People later realize that Hester has changed and become a wonderful woman who loves to help. The citizens do not even recognize the letter as its old significance, which is adulterer. Even the people who do not know Hester think that the letter on her breast symbolizes importance. In the article, Symbols: The Scarlet Letter, “...the Native Americans who come to watch the Election day pageant thank it marks her as a person of importance and status” (Sparknotes). The Native Americans who did not know Hester thought she was of great status because of her hard working abilities and the letter on her chest. The scarlet “A” dramatically shifts from a meaning of bad to a meaning of

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The scarlet letter ‘A’ did not stand for “adultery” anymore. It stood for “able.” “The letter was the symbol of her calling. Such helpfulness was found in her, —so much power to do, and power to sympathize, —that many people refused to interpret the scarlet A by its original signification. They said that it meant Able; so strong was Hester Prynne, with a woman's strength.”

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Hester has to wear a letter A on her chest for her punishment of adultery. In The Scarlet Letter, the meaning and significance of the letter A is altered as the novel goes on. Hester, the townspeople, and Pearl all have views of the letter that change. Through their views of the letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne, the author, reveals what his view on the letter is. Hester’s view of

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In The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne, Hester Prynne is seen as a disgrace for the town. The “A” on Hester’s chest forces her to feel like she has no independence, since she is not seen like a typical person; she does not feel like she

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Symbolism Within The Scarlet Letter Hawthorne created symbolism throughout The Scarlet Letter in order to develop the theme throughout Hester’s life. Hester is portrayed as a sheltered soul, shunned from society due to her adulterous acts. The red A and her daughter, Pearl, are symbols of Hester’s shame which she bares proudly despite society's harsh judgements. Hawthorne is able to use symbolism to develop themes, characters, and analogies in the Scarlet Letter.

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By wearing the “A,” Hester was publicly humiliated, however, her development in character causes a change in the meaning of the Scarlet Letter, which leads her to taking pride in the letter as it grows a part of her. After Hester’s sin the Puritan community places a false

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In the beginning the scarlet letter represented adultery and shame, but then the A represented “able.” Hester Prynne showed people that greatness can come out of huge mistake. One bad chapter does not mean your story is over. Willingly, Hester wanted to pick herself up again and move on with her life and eventually people noticed that. They began to respect her and think of her as strong and commendable

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She is a beautiful, young woman who has sinned, but is forgiven. Hawthorne portrays Hester as "divine maternity" and she can do no wrong. Not only Hester, but also the physical scarlet letter, a sign of shame, is shown as a beautiful, gold and colorful piece which

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Hawthorne uses symbolism throughout the Scarlet letter to display the sin and indecency people see Hester as. The detail represents ,the deep beauty Hester has inside although most people do not see her as a beutiful women. The deep red is a representation of adultery which shows her being an oncast from society. The symbol of the letter “A” is repetitive throughout the novel and grows with Hester and overcomes this with time as people start to see her as a person again and not just a adulterer. Hester acknowledges her sin in her puritan faith but swears to secrecy on the father of Pearl.

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Although she is looked down upon by the society in the beginning of the novel, she is transformed into a symbol of strength, something typically reserved for men, towards the end of the novel. “The letter was the symbol of her calling. Such helpfulness was found in her,—so much power to do, and power to sympathize,—that many people refused to interpret the scarlet A by its original signification. They said that it meant Able; so strong was Hester Prynne, with a woman’s strength” (Hawthorne 146). Through her suffering, Hester had become an inspiring symbol of strength for the community.

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Even though the Puritans may have designated the letter as a representation of sin, Hester’s renewed sense of pride does not want society to define the A for her. Rather Hester wants to define it herself and by doing so she develops responsibility and power over her own actions. Because Hester has the power to change who she is, she also has the power to change what the Scarlet Letter represents. By letting the letter be “embroidered with gold thread” readers are able to see how for Hester sin is not something to be fearful of; furthermore, it allows one to see how Hester has developed into an independent individual who accepts who she is and the situation she is presented with. Hester’s lover unfortunately

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Modern Societies Society today is considered as modern. Everyday, new trends, new styles, new models, and new looks are presented to the world. However, that is not what being modern means. To be modern means to be ambitious and to work hard to live in a way that’s desired for oneself. It means to express one’s opinions with the intent of leaving the traditional ways of the past, to improve the society in which one lives in.

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From the beginning of The Scarlet Letter, Hester Prynne and her letter “A” emerged at the scaffold in public for adultery, which is a sin could not be forgive by their religion.” This is a description of the letter “A” that only belongs to Hester Prynne. Why said this is “only belongs to her”? If readers have a deep reading to The Scarlet Letter, they could easily find out the sin that is up to everyone’s inner aspect and it has a different symbolic meaning, which is mentioned at above text: “A” changes Adultery to Able and Angel. But, how does the letter “A” direct the other characters to

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The scarlet letter has different meanings throughout the story and to each of the characters. The original meaning of the scarlet “A” is “Adultery”, but later in the story the townspeople and other characters begin to interpret it in different ways, each of them with their own idea and belief. Hester starts being more active in society and that makes the townspeople think differently about the scarlet “A”. The scarlet letter doesn´t keep the same meaning throughout the whole story, it changes with Hester´s actions and the Puritans beliefs. Hester starts being more active in society, she starts helping the poor and nursing the sick.

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Receiving the scarlet letter changed every aspect of Hester’s life. Especially at the start of the story, the letter symbolized the solitude and great suffering Hester faced just because of a letter placed on her bosom. The “A” also depicted how no one viewed Hester the same way as before her peccant actions. “…she saw that, owing to the peculiar effect of this convex mirror, the scarlet letter was represented in exaggerated and gigantic proportions, so as to be greatly the most prominent feature of her appearance” (Hawthorne 109). The pejorative community Hester lived in never saw Hester as the beautiful, young woman she was, but now, as a horrible fiend.

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“Was that Scarlet Letter, so fantastically embroidered and illuminated upon her bosom. ”(Hawthorne 51). Because Puritans were so against Hester’s sin, they made her wear an “A” on her chest that stands for adultery. The townspeople wanted everyone who sees her know what she did so that she would be humiliated by it for the rest of her life. Hester was basically rejected by the town, and was scorned by the people everyday.

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