Scarlet Letter Darkness Symbolism

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As well as in objects, Hawthorne uses darkness in characters throughout the novel to symbolize the impurity of puritan society. When Hester and Pearl go walking in the forest to meet Dimmesdale; Pearl runs through the trees playing with the sun. However. Pearl notices that the light seems to avoid Hester and wherever Hester goes, shadow follows her. Hawthorne uses the symbolism of the darkness when Pearl says, “The sunshine does not love you. It runs away and hides itself, because it is afraid of something on your bosom,” (Hawthorne 138). The goodness or purity that light symbolizes cannot stand to be in the same space as the evil sin that takes place on the scarlet letter. The letter society placed on Hester emanates this evil that pushes the purity away and because …show more content…

When chillingworth figures out dimmesdale is the father he commits his whole purpose in life to revenge, causing a darkness to grow in him. The symbolism of this darkness is shown when Hawthorne says, "...likewise a new purpose; dark, it is true, if not guilty, but of force enough to engage the full strength of his faculties," (Hawthorne 81). Chillingworth’s need for revenge burned away all of the good that used to be in him and he made it his only purpose in life. The darkness in chillingworth symbolizes his corruption and need for revenge. Just like the darkness corrupted chillingworth it could also warp the rest of the society; therefore, society should be less critical of its people because anyone is capable of sin.Chillingworth follows a trend of characters in Hawthorne’s novels of good characters who become corrupted when, “Quite often, these obsessed people start out as particularly rational…they are overtaken by their goals; they lose touch with humanity; they become monsters,” (Baym 61). Even people who were good at heart can be perverted by darkness and

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