This was written for an english class and it had to sound like Hawthorne, so prepare for rambling. Today is my birthday (WOOHOO!! PARTY!!!!), and this is my present for anyone who reads this. So without further ado, here is my interpretation of the last chapter of the Scarlet Letter.
The Scarlet Letter:
Epilogue
It has been two years since the death of the town's beloved Hester Prynne; The woman who committed the worst sin imaginable. The woman who lived in shame for what she did. The woman who earned back the respect of the town through her charity and kindness towards them. The woman who left and then returned years later to die serenely within the town that her star-crossed lover rested in his eternal sleep.
The woman who bore the blazing scarlet token of infamy upon her bosom, and changed the meaning of the notoriety from 'Adulteress' to 'Able' through repentance and her goodwill towards the town that publicly shamed her.
Not many people today remember the truth about the legend of this shamed, perplexed, corrupted woman. Far less remember the young, handsome, and charismatic pastor that too took part in the transgression, though, whether they have just simply forgotten or purposely denied it, it is up to you as the reader to decide. Though the evidence is there, and is as apparent as radiant, red rose in a sea of thick, dull weeds, the townspeople have simply elected to not divulge in the knowledge. It is like telling the elderly, who have nothing else to live for, that our great God does not exist. They simply dismiss it and continue to trust in their beliefs. They are willingly blind to the truth. This was how the townspeople viewed Reverend Dimmsdale after the exposure of his sin, which was quickly followed by his death.
The only true evidence of the indiscretion between the two, that no one could look over, was the birth of the elf-child Pearl; the living symbol of the scarlet letter. It was both a blessing and a shame when the girl and her mother left for the old world, and none of the townspeople have neither heard nor seen the demon child since there departure. It was often wondered where she had gone when her mother returned to the town in her final days. Hester never talked about her daughter to the town. When ever asked, the once beautiful woman would take off the unseen mask she wore day to day that hid her emotions and her deepest desires, and reveal a small yet content smile, showing the love and respect she held for her sinful progeny. The only words the town could get from Hester's mouth about her daughter were 'she's doing well.' She would then go back about her business, with the remnants of a smile still on her face.
Nobody expected to ever see little Pearl again, and in a way, they were right in their beliefs. For the Pearl that came back to Massachusetts was not the elf-child that everyone remembered her to be. No, it seems that in her time in the old world she matured from a rose bud on a bush, just beginning to experience life, into a fully blossomed and beaming rose; the most beautiful rose that anyone has ever seen. When walking down the street, one would look at her and think that they had seen a vision of the good mother Mary. She was more beautiful then her father and her mother combined. She had her mother's dark, rich hair that allowed the sun to frolic in its curls, and yet she also had her father's doe-like eyes, eyes that conveyed the truth and had a calming effect on all those who looked into them. She wore an elegant crimson gown that swept across the floor as she walked. At the bodice of the gown, there was a flash of gold around her neck; a pendant, hidden under her dress.
The townspeople that happened to see her amble through the streets gawked at her, not recognizing her as the demon offspring they all thought that she was. The rumors spread like wildfire. One would say that she was the heir of a large fortune back in the old world. Another would say that she was one of the royal family checking the progress of the colonies in Massachusetts.
They all watched as she trudged through the town, and headed towards the old, abandoned, forsaken cottage by the seashore; the cottage in which Hester spent her final days in. A man, who saw the way she was headed, hesitantly approached the woman.
"Where art thou going, milady?" The woman turned to him in surprise.
"Why, to the cottage by the sea of course! I am acquainted with the woman who resides there," she replied to the man. The emotions played across the man's face, ranging from surprise, to perplexity, and ultimately sadness. When he replied to her, his tone was not rich, as it was before, but somber in knowing of the despair he was about to bring upon the beautiful young woman.
"She does not dwell there anymore, and hasn't for two summers now. Come, come, I shall show thee her new resting place."
The woman was taken aback, but eventually obliged and the two walked down the dusty, dirty streets in silence. The sky seemed to illustrate their moods, for the gray clouds above swirled in a threatening way just as the thunder released a piercing roar, which could only by rivaled by that of a jungle cat, ready to seize its prey. The clouds showed signs of the sorrow that was to come, but their presage was ignored by the two persons.
The two made their way to an old wooden building that was overgrown with millions of weeds. It was a dark and dreary scene that stood before them, filled with the emotions of hate, sorrow, regret, and an overall sobering effect on the soul. This place, this prison, was where the now grown Pearl was delivered many years ago. Memories flitted across her mind as she reminisced over her past. She remembered the speech that their beloved pastor had given to the town right before his death, proclaiming that he was her father. She remembered standing on the scaffold next to the prison in pitch dark, holding hands with her parents, only now knowing that she was in the presence of both of her parents. But above all, she remembered first laying eyes on the scarlet letter; the same one that put her mother and their sin down in infamy. When Pearl was little, she thought that the letter was a way of saying that she would always be with her mother, as long as she wore the letter. She thought that it was her mother's way of symbolizing that Pearl was a part of her.
And as the man led her to the back of the building, where the cemetery was, she felt that way again, as her eyes laid upon a black tombstone near the end of the plot. Upon closer inspection, she could make out that the crypt was relatively new, not yet appearing like the aged tombstones that inhabited the rest of the cemetery. It was not yet trodden down by nature's forces. The one tombstone served for two graves that were almost touching, but not quite. The tombstone held not a name for the two sleepers, but a quote, richly engraved in a striking red paint.
'On a field, sable, the letterA gules.'
The name of the two was not needed, for Pearl knew that it was the final resting place of both of her parents. She went numb with the despair that suddenly flowed through her, threatening to bring her to her knees and cry out in pain. She became oblivious to her surroundings, and it seemed that the only real thing in the world was her and her parent's tombstone. She later couldn't recall the young man leaving her at the crypt, let alone thanking him for bringing her there. The world swirled around her, and though it is not clear, there were several witnesses that at that moment in time who saw a strike of lightning light up the sky in a fiery passion, and heard the thunder boom in an earsplitting cry of desolation. All the while, Pearl could do nothing but stare down at the grave and let the tears she shed roll down her cheeks.
No one knows exactly how long she stood there at her parent's crypt silently weeping over her mother's death. Some say that she stood there for days not moving, not blinking, not speaking. The only noise one could hear was the occasional sniffle of the lamenting woman.
From seemingly out of nowhere, two small children appeared at the front gate of the graveyard, as if the anguish of the woman called to them and them alone. The wind carried the muffled cries of the woman and the children immediately broke out in a sprint to the familiar voice.
Pearl, in her despondency, didn't notice the two until they each grabbed hold of her arms. A little girl, with dark brown hair held on to her hand and looked at the grave, while a small boy held on to the other, only looking at her.
"Mama," said the little boy, in his small, childish voice. "What art thou doing here in the cemetery? And where is grandma?"
A single tear escaped from her eyelid. She looked down at her son, and the pleading look in his eyes. Pearl couldn't stop herself from dropping the boys hand and picking him up. She held him close to her chest.
"Oh, Arthur," she murmured.
Then, as if God was looking down upon them in that moment, the gray skies above them deceased, letting a single sunbeam shine down upon the three living, but the beauty wasn't shown in them. When the light hit the tomb, the slate seemed to sparkle. The dreariness seemed to all but disappear, leaving a feeling of hope and contentment around the grave.
"Mama," whispered the young boy again. "Why dost thou not answer me? Mama, please tell me, where is grandma?"
Pearl's gaze moved from the tomb, up to the fissure in the clouds. At that very moment, all of her fear and despair dispersed, for she knew deep down, that everything was going to be ok. Her hand that wasn't holding her son went up to her throat, and grasped the gold chain that the pirate had given her right before her father's death. She now knew that her mother was finally happy, and that her parents would forever be with her. Her hand wrapped around the pendant that was no longer hidden under her gown. It was now visible for the entire world to see, and Pearl wore it proudly, for around her neck, was a gold letter 'A,' encrusted with beaming, brilliant, beautiful rubies.
"Grandma is looking down upon us from heaven," she told her children. "She has been reunited with my father. I know it to be true."
And with that, the three left the graveyard, and it seemed that somehow, in that short amount of time, they had all changed, in one way or another. They seemed at ease with the world, and they were pleased that Hester, who had suffered from so much scrutiny, was finally back with their great God.
So, what did ya think? Was it Hawthorne-y enough? And does anyone else find it weird that there isn't a Scarlet Letter section on this website? Oh, well. Cyal8r!!!