This implies that Sheila choose to prostitute herself and the use of 'sleep with' insinuates that it was a pleasant experience. This paired with the stage direction 'shocked' visually shows Bridie's attitude towards Sheila actions regardless of how they ended up saving her life. This is another reference to Bridie's sexual innocence as her implications of it being a pleasant experience shows her lack of experience and knowledge of the act that took place. Sheila runs from Bridie in the hospital after they left the camp, thus creating the start of the conflict between the two. 'and I couldn't stay and keep on lying.
It is their identification of her as their sinner that binds her to conform to their societal values. Pearl is the living version of the scarlet letter that traps Hester Prynne in Puritan society, and yet is ironically one of the most free-spirited and wild creatures, and the symbol of Hester’s passion in the novel. Unlike other children in the Puritan community, Pearl is free-spirited and cannot be governed by any laws, and instead seems to follow her own rules. When describing Pearl, the narrator notes that Hester is afraid of Pearl because “the child could not be made amenable to rules… the result was a being whose elements were perhaps beautiful and brilliant, but all in disorder; or with an order peculiar to themselves” (80). Because Pearl is a product of the passion of the adultery that the Puritan community does not accept, she does not follow by its rules and when she is born into the Puritan community she has to make her own laws to follow.
He points out that it is just a part of the job: “But we’re never really alone when we are rejected; it’s the other side of being a writer, the side that isn’t shared as much as our successes.” He uses factual quotes taken from rejection letters (utilizing the epistolary genre) that published authors have received. Sylvia Plath’s writing was rejected by an editor who said, “There certainly isn’t enough genuine talent for us to take notice.” These quotes could also place the essay in the form of an expository essay because they impart information. On the other hand, his use of memory in the following lines is symbolic of a memoir: “When I read such negative responses, I always think: What if the writer had just given up?” and his mother’s advice: “Don’t compare yourself with anyone else … unless it’s to make yourself feel better.” These lines quoted from memory place the essay in the fiction genre because memory is flawed. His thoughts or his mother’s words may not have been thought or said in those exact words because memory is flawed and can never be 100 percent accurate. It is also a fiction essay because it has points where the author interjects his own thoughts and feeling in brackets: (Ah Mum, she always knew what to say!)
The Puritan’s see the main characters from their perspective of right and wrong. Whereas, Hawthorne’s portrayal of his characters through their actions and symbolism are opposite of those perceived by the Puritan community. Pearl, the illegitimate daughter of Hestor, is the symbol of Hestor’s conflict over who she may have become. By following the development of Pearl’s symbolism, the reader sees how Pearl’s symbolism changes from her mother’s adultery and passion to that of a strong independent child, free of Puritan ethics. In the beginning of the novel Pearl represents Hestor’s sin, shame and desire.
“I can’t stand a naked light bulb, any more than I can a rude remark or a vulgar action.” Blanche has a fear or light because she has a fear of people seeing her clearly and her true age. She wants to hide from the truth by hiding behind a mask. She uses light as a way to survive in the society she is living in by hiding from reality. “It was like you suddenly turned a blinding light on something that had always been half in shadow, that’s how it stuck the world for me.” Blanche uses her fantasy world as a way to hide from reality and truth. She thinks as long as she is no believing reality then she will not have to believe in the truth either.
This said, Addie’s approach to language in the one chapter of her voice reveals her attempt to escape her suppression: as a “woman”, Addie cannot help but fall into the traps of “wife” and “mother”, and their associated duties. Addie ascribes no value to words; they are nothing more than dead sounds. And despite her claim that words are “quick and harmless”, she is tricked by them, and relies on them to take her revenge on Anse. While the word “sin” means nothing to Addie, she is nevertheless consumed by the idea of Sin. How ironic for the reader to decipher a chapter of words when Addie says they are empty shapes.
The whole story itself seems to be a satire of Puritan society to begin with, as Hawthorne seems to exaggerate the aspects of their society. The Scarlet Letter is a symbol not only of Hester’s crime, but of her fight against Puritan ideals. Later in the story, when she finally rips off her Scarlet Letter, symbolizes a fight that has been won and a rejection of the Puritan ideals that have been weighing her down for so long (Hawthorne 198). A classic conclusion where the protagonist defeats the antagonist and becomes a new person, free from the shackles they
He sat in jail with Hester and made her promise to keep their marriage a secret. There was nothing he wanted more than to see this man dead. “In a word, old Roger Chillingworth was a striking evidence of man’s faculty of transforming himself into a devil.” Dimmesdale, a man looked at with much respect by the townspeople, asserts his evil in many forms. He watches the woman he loves and his daughter live in shame and does nothing to help, which shows “the portion of him which the devil claimed, and through which he sought to win the rest.” Dimmesdale was the town minister who was supposed to represent the good things God gives us. But, he was said to be a servant of the “Black Man.” He watched Hester stand on the scaffold holding their child, with a scarlet letter embroidered on her clothing for all to see, alone.
The letter's meaning in Puritan society banishes her from her normal life. The Puritans view this letter as a symbol of the devil. Because of her alienation from the puritan society, Hester has become fiercely independent from her isolation from the community. This indicates that Hester does not consider her “sin” to be really wrong but yet, she has still not truly come in terms with this letter. Later on in the novel, we see that the letter “A” symbolizes Hester’s atonement for her sin.
Though she finds solace from a community that scorns her for her former actions, Hester ultimately suffers as a result of her isolation from other human beings. Her retirement from public life leads her to ponder, alone, the hypocrisy that is and was Puritan morality. She is forced to reexamine her life, and live from day-to-day seeking forgiveness and redemption. Hester never does repent for her actions, but it is a cruel torture that is augmented due to the hypocritical nature of the populace that has condemned her. Hester’s pain at her alienation is apparent in the devotion she holds towards her daughter Pearl, her (and Pearl’s) only company.