In chapter eight, Governor Bellingham says of Pearl, “…we might have judged that such a child’s mother must needs be a scarlet woman, and a worthy type of her of Babylon!” Those are hardly flattering words, but they are an allusion to one of the most stunning visuals offered in the last book of the […]
The Whirlwind
In chapter six, Hawthorne says of Hester that “She could recognize her [Pearl’s] wild, desperate, defiant mood, the flightiness of her temper, and even some of the very cloud-shapes of gloom and despondency that had brooded in her heart. They were now illuminated by the morning radiance of a young child’s disposition, but, later in […]
Pearl of Great Price
In the opening paragraph of chapter 6, Hawthorne notes that Hester “named the infant ‘Pearl,’ as being of great price,—purchased with all she had,—her mother’s only treasure!” Also, in chapter eight, Master Wilson admonishes Pearl with great solemnity, saying, “”Pearl, thou must take heed to instruction, that so, in due season, thou mayest wear in […]
Mark of Cain 2
In chapter five, Hawthorne describes his novel’s namesake in saying society “had set a mark upon her [Hester], more intolerable to a woman’s heart than that which branded the brow of Cain.” For an explanation of the Biblical allusion to the mark of Cain in GENESIS 4 : 8-15, see the entry for Henry Wadsworth Longfellow’s The Arsenal at Springfield.
Daniel
In chapter three, Hawthorne writes of Daniel’s reputation as an interpreter of dreams, as seen in DANIEL 2 : 1-49 and DANIEL 4 : 1-37, when Chillingsworth asks a stranger, “Who is the father of the babe held in Mistress Pryne’s arms on the scaffold?”