Theme Of Appearance Vs Reality In The Scarlet Letter

Emma Lynch

Mrs. Oliveros

American Literature H

November 7, 2016

Do Not Judge a Book by its Cover Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter demonstrates the numerous conflicts that can arise between the citizen and community. One of the main characters, Pearl, exhibits the theme of “Appearance vs. Reality” since the community sees her as a symbol of sin, yet she is actually the complete opposite. Hester Prynne, Pearl’s mother, committed a sin with Dimmesdale, and Pearl was the outcome of their affair. This automatically convinced the community to hold negative opinions about Pearl, and thus, established the contradiction between Pearl’s appearance and the reality. In her Puritan community, Pearl exhibits a symbol of sin. Her appearance and personality are not that of a typical Puritan child. Puritan children were characteristically polite and respectful, and Pearl displays the opposite. Pearl is rambunctious, knowing, observant, has a bad mouth, and “…could not

Pearl’s existence is ironic as she is the reason for Hester’s troubles, but she is in fact, the only reason Hester is living. Her rambunctious personality and existence sheds light on Hester’s dark life, “…the splendor of Pearl’s own proper beauty, shining through the gorgeous robes which might have extinguished a paler loveliness, that there was an absolute circle of radiance around her, on the darksome cottage-floor” (Hawthorne 72). Pearl not only serves as a light for Hester, but others, like the minister, are able to see her radiant expressions, “…the minister had described her, like a bright-apparelled vision, in a sunbeam” (Hawthorne 159). Pearl’s ability to shine as a light in people’s lives enables her to be perceptive. She closely observes others and is able to convince them, most importantly, Dimmesdale. She provides the most penetrating judgment of Dimmesdale’s failure to admit to his adultery. She sheds light onto his sin and is able to help him reveal