Sin as a Being

Webster’s dictionary defines sin as, “transgression of the law of God,” or “a vitiated state of human nature in which the self is estranged from God.” However, Hawthorne and Melville believe it to be much more than that. They think of sin as not just man’s failing or estrangement from God, but as a living being, capable of its own actions. In both of their books they use symbolism to prove their point and to add a deeper message to their writing. In each of their novels, Hawthorne and Melville show sin as a living, breathing being.
Hawthorne’s character Pearl truly exemplifies living sin. She is the illegitimate daughter of Hester Prynne and Reverend Dimmesdale. The child is born out of the sin of adultery, and according to Hawthorne she is, “An imp of evil, emblem and product of sin, she had no right among christened infants.” (Hawthorne, 2000, p. 45) Hester herself often glimpses flashes of this evilness in her child. Hawthorne writes of her, “It was a fa...