Characters
In the jail, this man gives Hester and Pearl a calming herbal draught.
Who is Roger Chillingworth?
Calling Chillingworth “the leech” is this device.
What is a metaphor?
Her skill turns the scarlet “A” into this kind of garment art.
What is embroidery?
The embroidered letter on Hester’s chest first represents this sin.
What is adultery?
These strict moral rules shape Hester’s punishment.
What is the Purtanical Code of Law?
Chillingworth’s transformation into a “fiend” mirrors the way many citizens in Young Goodman Brown, like Goody Cloyse, are revealed to be followers of this figure in the forest.
Who is the Devil (or the Black Man)?
The sharp contrast between the stern Puritan officials and Pearl’s wild energy is this device.
What is juxtaposition?
Despite her shame, the town hires Hester to make clothes for these occasions.
What are public ceremonies?
Something precious and valuable, a treasure.
Who is Pearl? / What is a pearl?
This place becomes a public stage for shaming sinners.
What is the scaffold?
This character is the sister of Governor Bellingham and is known for inviting people to meet the "Black Man" in the forest at night.
Who is Mistress Hibbins?
Describing the “grim, gray, and grizzled” atmosphere of the settlement is an example of this device.
What is alliteration?
This group is the only one for whom Hester is never asked to sew.
Who are brides?
The elaborate and artful embroidery of the "A," which offends the Puritan sensibilities, symbolizes this aspect of Hester's character.
What is her defiance or unrepentant pride?
According to Puritan law, this was the typical punishment for the crime of adultery.
What is death?
This character’s mysterious intuition allows her to sense the hidden tension between Chillingworth and Dimmesdale, even before adults recognize it.
Who is Pearl?
"An imp of evil, emblem and product of sin, she had no right amoung christened infants - demon offspring," is this literary device.
What is hyperbole?
Her stitching adorns the garments of this powerful household, highlighting her ironic dependence on them.
What is Governor Bellingham’s household?
The governor’s elaborate mansion symbolizes this contrast with Puritan ideals.
What is hypocrisy?
The magistrates threaten to take Pearl from Hester, citing the strict Puritan requirement for children to receive this type of upbringing.
What is a religious or moral education?
He introduced the physician to Hester
Who is Master Bracket?
A mystic shadow of suspicion immediately attatched itself to the spot, shows this device.
What is personification?
The town’s gradual respect for the “A” through her craft shows it transforming into this meaning.
What is "able"?
This element illuminates Hester's sin, a shining light on shame in public.
What is the sun?
The combination of these two forms of governance meant that a sin against God was simultaneously a crime against the state in the Massachusetts Bay Colony.
What is theocracy?