Symbolism in the Scarlet Letter

"The common definition says that a symbol is a sign or token of something… We take symbols like these pretty much for granted. They are a part of everyday experience. In literature, matters are a little more complicated. Literary symbols usually don’t have instantly recognizable meanings. Rather they take their meanings from the work of which they are part" ("The Scarlet Letter" 8). An example of symbols that most take for granted would be the …

…booknotes/sletter.html. "The Scarlet Letter." [Online] Available http://www.cyberclassics.com/books/204-0.html. The Scarlet Letter, By Nathaniel Hawthorne." [Online] Available http://large.stanford.edu/ ndl/essays/Scarlet_Letter_2.htm. Waggoner, Hyatt H. "Nathaniel Hawthorn 1804-1864." American Writers II. Ed. Leonard Unger. New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1974. 223-246. Weiss, Daniel. "The Critic Agonistes." The Critic Agonistes: Psychology, Myth, and the Art of Fiction. Ed. Stephen Arkin. Seattle: University of Washington Press, 1985. 5-32.