All
I could think about through these last few chapters is my second favorite
animal. (Behind the elephant of course) And if you could not already tell
from the attached video, this animal is the honey badger. I felt
that Hester Prynne, although she moved away from the main town did not seem to
care what the people of the town thought, which automatically reminded me of
this video! Hester continued to be a
part of the town and their community, leading me to believe that she was not
concerned with what the people of the town were saying about her. In this way Hester reminds me of myself. No matter what people say about me I can be a
strong confident woman and believe in myself.
That is why (as many of you Harry Potter fans may understand) my older
sister says that my Patronus is a honey badger.
My initial
reaction to the chapter Pearl was very mixed.
There are a thousand things going through my head and I am not sure my
fingers can move fast enough.
To begin
with Hester named her daughter Pearl… This is all well and good with me until I
get the reasoning. I understand that
Hester treasures her daughter over everything else in the world, but naming
your child Pearl because that is also something to be treasured makes no sense
to me. I think that Hester should have
picked a more normal name, something simple like Sarah or Lucy or Jane. It might just be because my mother picked
simple names for her kids, but I just think this was odd.
Along with
this, all I was thinking about Hester’s child Pearl through this chapter was is
this chick bipolar? I know she is a
child but I felt like one minute she was calmly walking beside her mother
through the town and the next she was throwing rocks and a group of kids. Also he
mother was right there, so why would not she stop her kid from attacking the
neighbors? What kind of mother does
that? And what kind of mother says to
their toddler, “’Thou art not my child!’” (Page 95). All I could think about during this part was
how crazy Hester and her daughter were becoming from their isolation.
Hester
should really help her daughter find some friends; although Hester is an
outcast from society she should not bestow this upon her daughter. If all Hester can think about, as exemplified
in the chapters, is how Pearl should have some kind of fault that God will give
her to help punish her mother for her previous crimes, Hester should not be
raising her. Children need all the love
and care they can get, and if a kid’s mother is always looking for her personal
downfall in her child, and keeping them at an arm’s length, that child should
have a different parent.
Overall I
felt like the relationship between Hester and her daughter Pearl is very dysfunctional. While Hester loves her daughter she believes
that there must be something wrong with her, and this worries me. A mother should never think that way about
their child. Rather I believe that
Hester should think of Pearl as her redemption instead of her punishment.
I love this picture!!!
6 comments:
I LOVE the honey badger analogy. I think that Hester has to put on a good face to the town becuase she needs them. Leaving is never an option for Hester after her punishment is doled out. How would she make money? Survive?
I completely agree on your character description of Hester. Very strong-willed. But, at the same time, I felt that she was to leanient with her husband. I mean, he wants to expose her lover, and expects her to keep his identity a secret? I don't think she should've agreed to that. She owed him nothing after he just up and left. Her agreeing was sort of out-of-character for Hester. This leads me to the conclusion that Roger brings out a part of Hester that most don't get to see.
I really enjoyed your blog! I also like the personal connections you made and how you always incorporate pictures. What you wrote about Hester and Pearls relationship really has me thinking because I haven't read that chapter yet. It kind of seems like even though Hester loves Pearl dearly, she looks at her differently than most mothers look at their child, Hester didn't get pregnant with Pearl, no one would have known of her affair and her life wouldn't be as difficult. I could see how maybe Hester blames Pearl for her own wrong doings, which obviously isn't right.
I usual I completely agree with you in the fact that Hester and Pearl' s relationship is dysfunctional. In a way though(and yes this is a kind of depressing thought) Pearl is almost a punishment for Hester simply because Hester herself has deluded herself into thinking this. I think part if the reason Hester isolates herself much is because she is trying to protect Pearl, but the isolation obviously has a negative effect on both PeRl and Hester.
Hey Lauren, great blog! I like where you're going with the dysfunctional family idea. When you said that Hester should help Pearl make friends, I don't think it would be that easy. Since Hester is an outcast, that weighs down on Pearl. I also think that the townspeople are somewhat afraid of Pearl.
Good comments.
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