In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s “The Scarlet Letter,” Hester Prynne’s daughter is named Pearl. Pearl is born while Hester is publicly punished for adultery in the Puritan Massachusetts Bay Colony, and her unusual behavior becomes a continuing source of fascination and concern.
Pearl is more than a supporting character: Hawthorne uses her as a living reminder of Hester’s hidden relationship with Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale. The novel describes her as the scarlet letter in another form, linking the child to the symbol Hester must wear on her clothing.
Readers sometimes confuse Pearl with the adults connected to her story. Roger Chillingworth is Hester’s estranged husband and Dimmesdale is Pearl’s biological father, while Mistress Hibbins is a separate character associated with the novel’s atmosphere of suspicion and religious strictness. Published in 1850, the novel explores sin, guilt, shame, identity, and social judgment.