The Scarlett Letter, Symbolism

The Scarlet Letter Nathaniel Hawthorne uses symbolism several times in the book, The Scarlet Letter. Some examples of this are when they talk of the scaffold, the brook, the forest, and the sunshine. The one that I will discuss is the sunshine. Hawthorne uses sunshine in the novel to symbolize purity and hope several times throughout the book. In one scene of the book, Pearl requests that Hester grab some sunshine and give it to …

…was no longer afraid of her, it embraced her. In conclusion, the frequent use of the sunshine, showing purity and impurity, is used well by Hawthorne. He does a great job of illustrating Hester’s situation and how she goes from an unwanted outcast, when she was shunned by the sun, to where she was a good, able citizen and received penance and lost the shameful "A", and the sun would shine upon her again.