Difficult yet Beautiful Pearl

" The child could not be made amenable to rules. In giving her existence a great law had been broken; and the result was a being whose elements were perhaps beautiful and brilliant, but all in disorder,  or with an order peculiar to themselves, amidst which the point of variety and arrangement was difficult or impossible to be discovered(81-82)."
a passage from The Scarlet Letter VI: Pearl
     Hawthorne provides an in-depth description of Pearl focusing on her contradictory nature. He initially describes her physical beauty then transitions to her wild and temperamental character. Even though she is innocent, to those in her society Pearl is a symbol of sin and like her mother has restrictions as to what she can and is allowed to do. Hester expects for her daughter to have a nature similar to that of the sin which created her. Hester believes that since the thing she did was considered evil then the product of it, her child, must also be evil, which helps to imply the narrator's criticism of the narrow-mindedness of Puritans. Since Pearl is a product of sin and love her ways are somewhat understood. With knowledge of this, Pearl is definitely seen as a unique child especially since she contests having a "Heavenly Father." Pearl also however, symbolizes everything that Puritans reject including imagination and passion. In some ways, Pearl is seen as a smaller version of Hester, who carries with her characteristics that Hester has learned to control in order to maintain life within the Puritan boundaries. Since Pearl embodies this nature, Hester finds it hard to discipline her. Harsh discipline for children was strongly advocated by Puritans, who taught children to revile difference which is why Hester and Pearl are treated this way. This passage clearly summarizes who Pearl has become because of the circumstances that she was a product of. 


1. What was the first thing Pearl noticed as a child and why is that significant?
2.  How does Pearl handle interactions with other children in the town?
3. Why do the townspeople want to take Pearl from Hester?

The Spokeswoman for Sin

"Throughout them all, giving up her individuality, she would become the general symbol at which the preacher and moralist might point, and in which they may vivify and embody their images of women's frailty and sinful passion. Thus the young and pure would be taught to look at her, with the scarlet letter flaming on her breast, ―at her, the child of honorable parents,―at her, the mother of a babe, that would hereafter be a woman,―at her, who had once been innocent― as the figure, the body, the reality of sin."(pg. 71, Modern Library Edition)
A passage from The Scarlet Letter Chapter 5 Hester At Her Needle


     This passage illustrates how Hester is viewed by the outside world and more specifically those in her community. Hester has acknowledged that she has done wrong yet is willing to deal with the guilt and consequences in an effort to express her strength and endurance. In a Puritan society, it was uncommon and quite rare for a woman to commit adultery, or have an affair while married to someone else. Not only did Hester have that affair, but a baby was produced as a result of it. This passage explains that Hester will be used as an example for fellow women and those to come in the future, as to what they don't want to do. She is looked down upon by the church and the people of society for what is considered to be a sin. Children will learn from her mistakes as to how she acquired the scarlet letter on her chest. Hester will be seen as a living sin, who came from good parents and an innocent, pure background. This passage is meaningful because it clearly summarizes the views of the people in the community and why they have chosen to punish her for a private matter publicly. Hawthorne uses colloquialism to describe the opinions of the society in which Hester lived and how those views play a significant role in the story. He also uses diction such as "innocent," "pure," "passion," and "sinful" to contrast what Hester should be and what is accepted to what Hester is and why her actions are so opposed.


Questions:
1. What is Roger Chillingworth's connection to Hester and why does he evoke so much emotion into his conversation with her?
2. In Chapter 5, Hawthorne describes Hester as feeling as if she didn't belong in society. What were her reasons for feeling this way?
3. Does Hawthorne defend or challenge the values, morals, and guidelines of Puritan society?