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Scarlet, Crimson, Magenta; Red is the color of passion, and out of passion rises life, like a Phoenix from the ashes. In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter, Hester Prynne and Arthur Dimmsdale, thinking with their hearts, submit to this scarlet passion, giving birth to their angel of retribution. ... Pearl journeys to bring her parents to salvation, and tests others, with her almost pre-sentient knowledge, as a symbol of both good and evil.
Fully understanding Pearl begins with seeing who she is on the outside. In the novel, Pearl is said to have a “rich and luxuriant beauty . ... The way he describes Pearl, Hawthorne is expressing to the reader what kind of child she is. Pearl is said to be a natural child that represents the beauty that can rise from sin. Hawthorne also uses the color crimson, which Pearl wears, to describe her as “magnificent . ... the splendor of Pearl’s own proper beauty, shining through the gorgeous robes which might have extinguished a paler loveliness. ... This expresses Pearl’s symbolism as a continuation of her mother’s scarlet letter. The representation of the evil of the scarlet letter is also one of her predominant and internal characteristics. Until the end of the novel, Pearl represents the scarlet letter because she is the product of her mother’s passion. Continuing his picture, Hawthorne describes Pearl as having hair “already of the deep, glossy Brown, and which, in after years, would be nearly akin to black” (Hawthorne 76). This description of Pearl’s hair symbolizes the end of her innocence and the danger of her growing up to become her mother.
Approximate Word count = 1293
Approximate Pages = 5.2
(250 words per page double spaced)
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