Symbolism and the Scarlet Letter Symbolism is traditionally a sign or sign of something. In matters of literature, the definition of the literary tool, symbolism, is more complicated. The symbols of literature are usually metaphysical. The main symbol of The Scarlet Letter is the red "A" that Hester Prynne was condemned to wear on her chest. Nathaniel Hawthorne's intention was to make the meaning of the crimson symbol worn on Hester Prynne's breast highly ambiguous. In this he was successful. Although the "A" means "adulteress" to the people of Boston, to the reader the "A" could have other meanings such as "American" or "able." To the townspeople, the author and the reader clearly the original intention of the "A" was to represent "adulteress". When Hester Prynne became pregnant during her husband's absence she was accused and convicted of adultery. Her phrase was to wear a scarlet letter "A" on her chest to let everyone know she was an adulteress, forever. Because of her unique phrase, everyone knew that she was actually an adulteress and people treated her that way. Society condemned her for her sin, without knowing anything else. Hester was forced to live alone on the outskirts of town. She was a seamstress, but got very little business. When he used his skills to decorate the "A", things only got worse. People thought she was trying to flaunt the fact that she was an adulteress, or that she was proud of it. Hester's daughter Pearl was constantly ridiculed by the other children for being a "wicked," "devil" child. Clearly the first intention of the symbol was toreve! all that Hester Prynne was an adulteress. Although the primary intention of the "A" was to mark Hester Prynne as an adulteress, it also has other, more abstract meanings. The letter has a relation to the word "American". The "A" in Hester Prynne reflects the meaning "American" in several ways. For one thing, America is a melting pot of many peoples and ideas, as was Hester's "A." He earned that “A” in certain situations. He was in a loveless marriage. She had been separated from her husband for 2 years. He thought it might be at the bottom of the sea. She was in love with another man. She was perceived and punished under a severe puritan eye. Like the development of America, there were many conditions that led to the development of Hester's "A". Another way Hester Prynne's "A" symbolizes America is that they were both shaped by past actions. No matter how much Hester had changed, from the time of her act of adultery, at any time