In the novel "The Scarlet Letter" by Nathaniel Hawthorne, Pearl is considered a threat to society. In the time of witch trials, where drowning in the ocean was proof of innocence. And homosexuals were burned at the stake. it seams fitting that something so common in the world today as a single mother raising her illegitimate child, would have been a punishable offense back then. Even though Hester and Pearl's family is different, it is not dysfunctional. And although it has created barriers for them, it does not define their existence, as people once thought. As demonstrated by her conception and upbringing. Pearl represents an unconventional family structure in a puritan society, where different equates to evil.

Pearls life began as a public symbol for the evil that her parents had committed. The first time the town gets a glimpse of her it is when she is upon...