Nature. It’s a word that seems so broad and all-encompassing. In a novel, the elements of nature and setting often become so expected and banal that they are easily glossed over in order to get to the "more important" elements of a story: the plot, the characters and the events. Occasionally, however, an author will make calculating and blatant references to the setting, thus placing the background in the foreground. Throughout the novel The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne, several plants serve to symbolize the characters in their actions as well as their attachment to the community - a representation almost unachievable if they were described with simple words. By comparing Hester in the first chapter to the rose bush that grows just outside the prison gate, Hawthorne implies that Hester possesses all the qualities commonly associated with the flower without ever having to reveal her personality through conventional forms of exposition. Additionally, Hawthorne compares Dimmesdale to black weeds growing in a grave right outside his window. Subtly different from the comparisons between Hester and Dimmesdale, the author chooses a single flower to illustrate the enigmatic Pearl, the eelgrass. By using this symbolism, Hawthorne creates a parallel dimension between the plants and the characters. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an original essayA rose, perhaps the most basic and simplistic image, embodies a wealth of connotations. Throughout the novel, Hawthorne continually and indirectly connects Hester to this very distinct flower by juxtaposing her description followed closely by his own. The wild rose bush exists as a “robust plant”, often capable of “withstanding even the most severe frosts” (Audubon Society). Although this plant grows wild, many people seek to cultivate it due to its resistance to environmental stresses such as drought and frost. Like the rosebush, Hester demonstrates a strength that resists the pressures of her environment, namely the Puritan citizens of Boston. Despite the ministers' threats against the "peace of her soul" and her "salvation", Hester attests that she will never reveal the identity of her adulterous companion, resolutely agreeing to "endure his agony as well as [her own]" (53, 54). . Although its flowers can survive frost, rose petals are both brightly colored and delicately intricate in their arrangement. Like these petals, Hester possesses many beautiful qualities ranging from her delicate skill as an embroiderer to “the generosity and charity of her heart” within her community (Ringe 90). She is a woman on many levels: sometimes feminist, servant, punished, liberated. Her beauty, both interior and exterior, allows her to be the rose among “the burdock, the hogweed...and the so unsightly vegetation” that surrounds her (Hawthorne 41). However, to this indisputable beauty is added a necessary growth, much less attractive than the flower, and which, once touched, generates painful repercussions: the thorns. Although Hester strives to serve her community and become a good citizen, deep within her lies a passion and drive that can be considered her tragic flaw. This “passionate nature inevitably leads her to sin” with Dimmesdale, initiating punishments that will haunt her throughout her life (Ringe 90). Through both positive and negative attributes, Hawthorne aptly compares Hester to a physically durable, aesthetically appealing, but dangerously thorny rosebush. Throughout the stay ofChillingworth along with the ailing Reverend Dimmesdale, the doctor frequently collects various specimens of weeds and herbs from the nearby forest, possessing impressive botanical knowledge. Employing again the subtle method of indirect comparison, Hawthorne connects Dimmesdale with one of these leafy discoveries. Following an inquiry by the Minister regarding the original location of the "unsightly plant", Chillingworth replied that it arose from a grave without a headstone, but that its roots came from deep within the heart of a man with a “hideous secret that was buried with him” (94). Introducing both the physical heart and the concept of dying with a guilty conscience strikes a chord within Dimmesdale. Throughout the stressful moments of the novel, the young minister “keeps his hand on his heart,” further emphasizing this connection (126). Furthermore, like the plant itself, all of Dimmesdale's actions (and inactions) are well-founded and rooted in a guilty heart due to his refusal to confess. Even the appearance of the “dark, limp leaf” recalls the sickly minister (94). Obviously, this weed is suffering from poor health, perhaps even on the verge of death, due to its environment - lack of water, nutrients, sunlight, etc. Likewise, Dimmesdale's "form has become emaciated", his sonorous voice possesses a tinge of "decay" and his face often turns "red" with a "pallor, indicative of pain" (87). Beyond these somewhat concrete qualities of the plant lies an interesting recognition: despite Chillingworth's vast knowledge and interest in botany, this weed that grows in tombs is "new to [him]" (94). . In a similar vein, Chillingworth continually searches for Hester's sinner companion, but the identity of this sinner (Dimmesdale) is not yet confirmed to Chillingworth at this point in the novel. Through the subtle connections such as foundation in the heart, sickly appearance, and unknown origin, Hawthorne creates an unmistakable comparison between black grass and Dimmesdale. As Hester comes across Pearl playing in the tide pool, she discovers that Pearl has created a "cool". green letter A" in eelgrass to shape on his dress. Hawthorne here makes only a brief, although striking, reference to this organic representation. Eelgrass, an aquatic grass of pure water, grows from the sand below the level of water, but its flowers float on the surface of the water (Audubon Quite unique in nature, this plant survives in both worlds: aquatic and terrestrial, belonging no more to one than to the other). 'other, but rather drifting somewhere in between. Likewise, Pearl never quite takes on the black and white characteristics of being either angelic or demonic, "treasure" or "emblem of sin" (67, 70).The female flower reaches the surface of the water on a twisted, toothed stem. This twisted stem results from the undulating current of the water while the plant is still forming. from her environment, Pearl also reveals in her behavior the stress and confusion of her childhood. Because "Pearl was born an outcast...she had no rights among the baptized children," she developed a strange and pronounced animosity toward them (70). Her mischievous and evil tendencies strayed far from the righteous and moral path she is supposed to follow. Beyond its actual growth, eelgrass is incredibly "vigorous and not suitable for the average water garden", but it is much more suited to "natural growth, uninhibited by artificial environments" (www.botany.com) . Pearl develops with remarkable evaluation and comprehension skills;.