Angel or Devil?Abstract: Is Pearl an angel for Hester or a devil who makes Hester suffer more? The child and the scarlet letter parallel each other; both represent the mother's sin--the child being a physical representation and the scarlet letter being a So she always reminds Hester of her sin， however she is Hester's love and mentor of Hester， without a helpless child to protect and guide， might not accept her punishment quite so passively as she seems However， would she be happier than now? Key Words: The Scarlet Letter， Pearl， angel， devil， HesterTo be frank， Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter is the unique book I have read in this However I feel lucky for it is not boring at all， furthermore， it attracted me at the So I want to and have to write my paper about this Most literary critics agree that The Scarlet Letter is Nathaniel Hawthorne's finest and most important work ， so do I In this novel， the one who impressed me most is not Hester， Chillingworth or Dimmesdal but P Sometimes， she looks like an angel， but sometimes she is like a So I cannot help wondering whether Pearl is an angel or a devil? When I am asking this question， actually， I mean just for Hester， is Pearl like an angel or like a devil? First， Pearl is Hester Prynne's With rare exception， wherever the mother is found， the child is also When the town official escort her from the prison so that the townspeople might see Pearl is also there --a baby of three months old， winking and turning her little face from the bright As Pearl grows older， her mother dresses her in brilliant colors， for Pearl is her one proud Later， her mother has named her Pearl， with meaning of Little Pearl has beauty， intelligence and physical She is described as a lovely flower， having sprung from a guilty Sometimes Pearl is fanciful to the point that she is almost For instance， while her mother talks with Roger Chillingworth near the seashore， the imaginative child makes herself a mermaid's costume our of Then， as a crowing touch， she gathers some eel-grass and makes for herself a green letter "A"， imitating as closely as possible her mother's scarlet Pearl often plays in the sunshine; whereas the sunshine will not shine directly on H The child is so close to nature that the little animal in the forest scene， such as partridges， pigeons， and squirrels， almost completely ignore her when she is passing by They recognize a wildness in the human child comparable to their Pearl is also very sympathetic For example， during the festivities of the New England Holiday， it is Pearl who describes D She remarks that in the dark nighttime and in the forest he is one type of person--loving and friendly; in the sunny days， he is a different sort of man， for he does not know She remarks:"A strange， sad man is he， with his hand always over his heart!" Pearl， by instinct， has supposed some things to be true which are All of these express the good aspect of P However， there are also majority of words that will give the opposite She is also Hester's child of She obeys no ruled unless she wishes to do Her moods change If she is crossed in any way， the child flies into a At one moment， she is wild， desperate， and filled with bad temper and gloom; then， suddenly， she can change in the sunny， happy child who wants to assure her mother of her love by kissing Pearl seems to have no set standard to govern her own behaviour-- she reacts according to her particular feeling of the Moreover， she has a certain peculiar look on her face which sometimes causes Hester to question whether or not Pearl is a human child or a being from another world like a little Her eyes are wild， bright， deeply- She is described as an imp of evil， emblem and product of The Puritan children flee in fear when resentful Pearl chases after them， flinging stones and shrill words at Once， Hester is frightened when she looks into the mirror of Pearl's She sees a freakish， elfish look In the headpiece of the armour in Governor Bellingham's hall， Hester is disturbed to see Pearl's expression， as it is reflected in the metal The child has an elfish look of naughty merriment， as if an imp were seeking to mould itself in Pearl's Attracted by the brightness of her mother's scarlet letter， the three-year-old Pearl plays game， flinging wildflowers at her mother's symbol of When Pearl playfully declares that she has no Heavenly Father， Hester remembers that some of the townspeople regard Pearl as an offspring of the Then， is Pearl an angel for Hester or a devil who makes Hester suffer more? The child and the scarlet letter parallel each other; both represent the mother's sin--the child being a physical representation and the scarlet letter being a So she always reminds Hester of her sin， however she is Hester's love and mentor of Hester， without a helpless child to protect and guide， might not accept her punishment quite so passively as she seems However， would she be happier than now? Do you remember the scene when she defends her capability to care for Pearl when she talks with Governor Bellingham， one of people planing to take the child from her? She loves Dimmesdal in a sense， so she must love their child， P It is Pearl who stay with her for a so long From my point of view， she is an angel for Hester， and this is also the reason why Hester gave Pearl this kind of In fact， in our real life， how can a mother hate her own child? This is the strongest reason for my Totally speaking， Pearl， like an angel， is always guarding Hester all the time， and so does Hester， who always keep protecting Pearl in her whole References: Charles Leawitt ---- Nathaniel Hawthorne's THE SCARLET LETTER and THE HOUSE OF SEVEN GABLES， THE BLTIHEDALE ROMANCE ， THE MARBLE FAUN
