The Scarlet Letter Practice Test

Pearl is Hester's daughter—the child Hester bears as a result of her affair with Dimmesdale. This makes Pearl literally Hester’s offspring and, in the story, a living symbol of the sin Hester carries. The mother-daughter bond is central to the novel’s themes of guilt, judgment, and redemption, and it drives much of Hester’s choices and her relationship with Pearl. The other options don’t fit because Pearl is not a sister, a ward, or a cousin; she is the child Hester raises.