How is the scarlet letter embodied by Pearl?
Esmeralda Brown
04/02/16
AP Literature
Response to Essay Question:
"How is the Scarlet Letter embodied by Pearl?"
(Meant to be read out loud, angrily to the bathroom mirror):
If my period had hit me
-the first
-the important one
-the blood that equals womanhood
for its promise to continue humanity
(aka: all that important BS)-
in high school,
would people have thought I’d lost my virginity?
that’s what happens, right?
as a girl you bleed and bleed and bleed.
your lining sheds
and you bleed.
some guy comes inside
and you bleed.
you try to outwit the pain inside
with pain outside
-from your heart to your hair
-from your soul to your skin-
and you bleed.
you birth another human
and you bleed.
I look forward to the time
when this Scarlet Letter of my gender
can offer acceptance,
not pain.
Empathy,
not excuses.
Life,
not stained underwear.
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