The Scarlet Letter: Section 2 Blog 3

In chapter 8 of The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne, the dispute over if Hester Prynne is capable to hold ownership over her daughter Pearl is disputed between Mr. Chillingworth, the governor, the minister, and Hester Prynne herself. The fact that there should even be an argument over whether a mother should have guardianship over her own child seems without debate in my opinion. I was slightly irritated with this idea, and therefore, sympathized with Hester, unable to imagine what life would be like to have one's child taken away especially when the child is the one positive result which came from a sin one is constantly reminded of. The diction used in this chapter helps describe the intense emotion of Hester and set the stage for sympathy evoked by the reader and intensity for the situation. " 'God gave me the child!..He gave her in requital of all things else, which he had taken from me. She is my happiness!..Pearl keeps me here in life! Pearl punishes me, too! See ye not, she is the scarlet letter, only capable of being loved, and so endowed with a million-fold the power of retribution for my sin? Ye shall not take her! I will die first,"(Hawthorne,85)! the begging tone of Hester and the choice of words depict her helpless cry for Pearl and show Hester's pride in Pearl, despite where Pearl arose from or the struggles Pearl gives Hester. Overall, this the defining instance thus far in the book where Hester's love is most deeply conveyed.