Simmons 1

Morgan Simmons
Kelley
AP Lang Pd. 3
6 December 2019
Dialectical Journal #1-3

1. “When the young woman - the mother of this child - stood fully revealed before the

crowd, it seemed to be her first impulse to clasp the infant closely to her bosom; not so

much by an impulse of motherly affection, as that she might thereby conceal a certain

token, which was wrought or fastened into her dress” (Chapter 2, page 35).

2. How does an individual overcome hardships and burdens?

3. In this passage, Hester Prynne is standing in front of the townspeople for the first time

since she was accused of adultery. This sentence of this paragraph depicts how Hester is

overcoming her hardships by facing them because she doesn't have another option or an

easy way out. Hester is ashamed to have to wear the scarlet A and stand in front of the

town as punishment, and the unsympathetic townspeople seem happy that she will not

only be reminded of that by her daughter but also because she will be forced to wear the

scarlet A on her chest. The townspeople’s hardship is not as severe. They are upset that

Hester has done wrong and they have decided to punish her. Hawthorne uses vivid

imagery to allow the reader to visualize exactly what is happening. The scarlet letter

Hester wears is described as an “elaborate embroidery and fantastic flourish of gold

thread” in order to show that although it may represent something that she did wrong, the

A she wears is not ugly or thoughtlessly sewn on her clothes. The words “burning blush”

and “haughty smile” are used when describing how Hester is reacting to her situation.
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These phrases help to explain that although Hester is ashamed, she is able to keep calm

and collected in front of the townspeople.

4. Because of this passage towards the beginning of the book, it is giving an introduction to

Hester’s character and how she feels about her scarlet letter. I think this is important to

the theme of being the outsider in this book because it is one of the earliest chances we

see Hester have contact with the townspeople. Hester is facing the stern Puritan

punishment for her sin, and I think it is important how later in this chapter Hester is seen

reflecting on her past, and how none of the mistakes she has made in the past can add up

to what she is going through now. In other words, I think this chapter is trying to give the

message that your situation can always be worse, but you won’t always know that until it

is worse.

1. “It was the scarlet letter in another form: the scarlet letter endowed with life” (Chapter 7,

page 67).

2. Community/Isolation: How does isolation of a person affect the way others view them?

3. In Chapter 7, Hester and Pearl are visiting the Governers hall in order to stop the idea that

Pearl will be taken away from her. Hester, despite being reminded of her sin because of

Pearl, has an overwhelming love for Pearl as she is her only family in this town, and

doesn’t want for her to be taken away. Hester and Pearl’s isolation affects the way others

view them in a negative way. As the mother and daughter were walking to the Governers
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hall, people pointed them out and threated to throw mud at them, until they were scared

away by Pearl and her “dauntless” attitude. There are many symbols that point to the idea

of Pearl being related to the scarlet letter. First off, Hester has Pearl wearing a red dress

embroidered with gold thread, similar to the scarlet letter that Hester wears on her

clothes. Another way Pearl is connected to the scarlet letter can be seen in the quote

above. Pearl wants a red rose, which can be viewed as symbolism for Pearl knowing she

is the result of her mother’s sin. Another possibility for significance behind the red rose

would be a connection to Hester’s past. In Chapter 1, a red rose bush was seen outside the

prison, and it was referred to as the only beautiful thing near this ugly, horrible prison. If

Pearl is the red rose, this symbolism is saying that Pearl is the only good, beautiful thing

in Hester’s life, and this would explain why Hester is fighting so hard to keep her

daughter. The townspeople view Pearl as Hester’s scarlet letter, not as a real person.

4. The metaphors in this passage made me think a lot about how everything in this book is

somehow connected. The four main characters are all connected, even if they don’t know

that yet. I think chapter 7 has some of the best examples of metaphors, specifically the

ones I noticed and discussed above. Another thing I liked about this chapter was how

Hawthorne elaborated on the idea of Hester and Pearl being outcasts, and also how

Hester and Pearl handle their situation. For example, when Hester and Pearl are walking

to the Governers Hall, children who were playing nearby spotted Hester and Pearl and

decided to throw mud at them. Pearl, whos character we learned about a lot in Chapter 6,

scares the kids away with her “dauntless” attitude. This scene plays back into the main

question of how isolation affects the way others view them because it clearly shows how
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because Hester and Pearl live alone and don’t socialize with other townspeople much,

they are seen as outcasts who have done significant wrong.

1. “The child probably overheard voices, for, looking up to the window with a bright, but

naughty smile of mirth and intelligence, she threw one of the prickly burs at the Rev. Mr.

Dimmesdale” (Chapter 10, page 89)

2. How do we create justice in society?

3. In this passage, Hester and Pearl are in the graveyard, and Pearl is placing prickly burs

she found on her mothers’ scarlet letter. When she sees Dimmesdale and throws a bur at

him, this is linking Hester to Dimmesdale, which we later discover are Pearl’s parents.

This is an example of juxtaposition. Hester, who is out in the open and proud to be

Pearl’s parent is being linked to Dimmesdale whose identity is still kept a secret. Another

word for justice is truth. This is the chapter is where the reader is able to infer the truth

about Pearl’s father. While it is never explicitly stated in this chapter, the symbolism of

the burs brings the idea of linking these two characters together. Justice is created in

society by revealing the truth, and in this chapter, Pearl is hinting at the truth, although

she isn’t aware of the truth herself.

4. When I was first reading this, I wasn’t fully sure what the burs meant in regards to the

story. After finishing the chapter and later finding out Dimmsdale was Pearl’s father, it

all began to make sense to me. But, Dimmsdale is still not ready to take responsibility for
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his actions, which is not creating justice for himself or for Hester. For years Hester has

taken the full blame and all the punishments, and this isn’t fair to her. Dimmsdale has the

ability to create justice, truth, and fairness but he refuses to do so because of his position

and connections in the town.