Scarlet Letter
Symbolism is traditionally a sign or token of something. In the matter of literature, the definition of the literary device, symbolism, is more complicated. Symbols of literature are usually metaphysical. The main symbol of The Scarlet Letter is the red "A" that Hester Prynne was sentenced to wear on her chest. Nathaniel Hawthorne's intention was to make the meaning of the crimson token worn on the bosom of Hester Prynne is highly ambiguous. In this he was successful. Although the "A" means "adulteress" to the people of Boston, to the reader, the "A" may have other meanings such as "able" or "alienation".
To the townspeople, author, and reader, the original intention of the "A" was to stand for "adulteress". When Hester Prynne became pregnant during the absence of her husband she was accused and convicted of the sin adultery, because, "In the view of the Infinite Purity, we are sinners all alike"(Pg. 241, chap 24). Her sentence was to wear a scarlet letter "A" on her bosom to let everyone know that she was an adulteress, forevermore. Because of her unique sentence everyone knew that she was, in fact, an adulteress and people treated her that way. Society condemned her for her sin, without knowing anything else. When she used her sowing skills to decorate the "A", things only got worse. People felt that she was trying to show off the fact that she was an adulteress, or that she was proud to be. Hester's daughter, Pearl, was constantly ridiculed by other children for being an "evil", "devil" child. Clearly it was the first intention of the symbol to reveal that Hester Prynne was an adulteress.
Along with meaning "adulteress" or "alienation", Hester Prynne's letter "A" stood for "able". Hester Prynne was a very able woman. She was too strong of a woman for Puritan Boston right from the start. That was known from the very beginning of the novel when she faced the people of Boston with her sentence and her dignity. She always held her head high. She...
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