1. "Her mother, while Pearl was yet an infant, grew acquainted with a certain peculiar look that warned her when it would be labor thrown away to insist, persuade, or plead. It was a look so intelligent, yet inexplicable, so perverse, sometimes so malicious, but generally accompanied by a wild flow of spirits, that Hester could not help questioning, at such moments, whether Pearl was a human child. She seemed rather an airy sprite, which, after playing its fantastic sports for a little while upon the cottage floor, would flit away with a mocking smile. Whenever that look appeared in her wild, bright, deeply black eyes, it invested her with a strange remoteness and intangibility; it was as if she were hovering in the air and might vanish, like a glimmering light that comes we know not whence and goes we know not whither. Beholding it, Hester was constrained to rush towards the child to pursue the little elf in the flight which she invariably began, to snatch her to her bosom, with a close pressure and earnest kisses--not so much from overflowing love, as to assure herself that Pearl was flesh and blood, and not utterly delusive. But Pearl's laugh, when she was caught, though full of merriment and music, made her mother more doubtful than before" (89).
2. Because Hester gave birth to Pearl as a result of her sin, she begins to question whether Pearl is human or not. Simply by considering Pearl's malicious laughter and strange smile, Hester begins to find Pearl different and even devilish. However, Pearl being Hester's first and only child implies that Hester lacks experience with children. Hence, she cannot find Pearl's behavior strange because she doesn't really know how children are suppose to behave.This passage is significant because it demonstrates how Hester's religious views and the townspeople's offenses are effective to Hester's belief of her daughter's humanity. Furthermore, she is being driven by the belief that her sin has cursed her with a demon-child even though she treasures her daughter more than anything. Hawthorne really emphasizes his stance on sin by making Hester challenge her daughter's humanity. He uses Hester to demonstrate how the idea of sin can create worries in one's conscience and interrupt the sense of reality.
1. How does Hawthorne address Hester's position on her own sin?
2. How does Hester's views on the scarlet letter differ from her views of little Pearl--both being symbols of her sin?
3. Why would Hawthorne spend an entire chapter describing Governor Bellingham's mansion, instead of using a paragraph or so?
To number 3, The reason for the long description of the governors house is to etch it into the mind of the reader. Hawthorne is trying to make us remember as much of the house as we can because he may be foreshadowing an important event that could happen at the house later on in the story.
ReplyDeleteHester views pearl differently from the letter. It looks like to her it is easier to come to grips with the scarlet letter being on her, than having a child born of sin as they say. This is exemplified in the way she thinks of pearl, it seems somewhat insane.