{"id":3142,"date":"2016-02-24T17:00:00","date_gmt":"2016-02-25T01:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.kibin.com\/blog\/?post_type=essay-writing-blog&p=3142"},"modified":"2019-04-08T12:06:55","modified_gmt":"2019-04-08T19:06:55","slug":"symbolism-in-the-scarlet-letter","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.kibin.com\/essay-writing-blog\/symbolism-in-the-scarlet-letter\/","title":{"rendered":"4 Tips for Dissecting Symbolism in The Scarlet Letter"},"content":{"rendered":"

While thumbing through the chapters of The Scarlet Letter<\/i>, by Nathaniel Hawthorne, you may wonder why you\u2019re reading it in the first place. On the surface, it\u2019s hard to relate to–it is<\/i> written about the Puritans in Colonial America, after all. Not exactly in tune with your life, right?<\/p>\n

It\u2019s time to take out your fine-toothed literary comb and start to pick through the content. Once you find and start to understand the symbolism in the novel, it starts to become more relatable.<\/p>\n

Don\u2019t worry if you\u2019re not great at hunting down symbolism quite yet–I\u2019m here to give you 4 tips for dissecting symbolism in The Scarlet Letter.<\/i><\/p>\n

Know What You\u2019re Working With–What is Symbolism?<\/h2>\n

Before we get into the awesome tips I have for you, it\u2019s important to know first what symbolism is exactly.<\/p>\n

Symbolism<\/i> is a person, place, or thing that represents an abstract concept.<\/p>\n

Literature is absolutely saturated<\/i> with symbolism, but you can find examples in real life too. The heart, for example, symbolizes love. (Fun fact: in ancient Rome and in Biblical texts, the liver<\/i> was the organ associated with love<\/a>. Imagine saying, \u201cI love you from the bottom of my liver!\u201d)<\/p>\n

Symbols can get a bit more complex, though. For instance, the government or the President might represent freedom, leadership, and democracy to some. But to others these things might symbolize oppression or a country\u2019s decline. The same person, place, or object can symbolize different things to different people depending on the interpreter\u2019s background.<\/p>\n

In literature, a symbol\u2019s definition is usually made more clear–though it can change throughout the story as the characters develop and the situation changes. For the purposes of the examples I\u2019ll point out below, I\u2019ll call that kind of symbol a transitional symbol<\/i>.<\/p>\n

Because symbols aren\u2019t always representative of just one idea, the explanations above probably aren\u2019t enough to get the concept of symbolism to really sink in. So let\u2019s get into symbolism in the Scarlet Letter<\/i> complete with tips and examples to really bring the point home.<\/p>\n

The list below is by no means an exhaustive one. There are plenty of symbols in The Scarlet Letter<\/i> that you can really sink your literary teeth into. These are just a good place to start–a kind of boost to get the creative thought process going.<\/p>\n

Symbolism in The Scarlet Letter<\/em> Tip 1: Colors Are Usually a Good Place to Start<\/h2>\n