Dokimonsta
English 7th
Scarlet Letter: Colors Theme
The Scarlet Letter was a novel that relied much on its symbolism and managed to give very deep meaning through the use of colors. Nathaniel Hawthorne purposefully used the colors red, white, and black to represent the sin and how the person dealt with it but also that person’s heart/soul. Hawthorne also uses colors to describe the setting around the sin and Hester. As everything else is dull and grey around the prison, the use of the rosebush near the prison set a “sweet moral blossom” for the condemned is a good example. Hester Prynne, Pearl, Arthur Dimmesdale, and Roger Chillingworth are all who are affected by the sin. Hester punished for committing adultery, was made to wear a scarlet letter “A” embroidered in gold on top of her bosom has the bright vivid colors. Pearl, the offspring of an unacceptable passion was the reminder to Hester that she had committed a sin. Pearl is often dressed in red outfits made by her mother, "with fantasies and flourishes of gold-thread.” Pearl was also called “Ruby”, “Coral”, or “Red Rose” by the town fathers further showing that Pearl is the product of the Hester’s scarlet letter. She is fascinated with her mother’s scarlet letter, torturing her by playing with it, once even making her own out of green moss. The Puritan townspeople were only looking at her, judging her based on the scarlet letter she had on her chest. Hester had nothing but that scarlet letter and her daughter. She accepted it, and wore it proudly as a representation of her passion. An open sin, for everybody to see. She was now the symbol of adultery. The use of dark colors like grey and black were the representation of evil, ruin, or despair. Black herbs from upon a grave of a man who had not confessed his sins. For Dimmesdale not being able to confess his sins, his health started to decline because he could not find prosperity. As his soul was being eaten away. Chillingworth was so caught up with...