... and without weeds to kill the grass; however, "when poor Mr. Dimmesdale was thinking of his grave, he questioned with himself whether the grass would ever grow on it, because an accursed thing must there be buried" (131). In addition, weeds symbolize secrecy and the impurity of society. During Chillingworth and Dimmesdale's covert discussion about "the powers of nature call[ing] so earnestly for the confession of sin,[and discussing] that these black weeds have sprung up out of a buried heart, to make manifest an unspoken crime" (120) illustrates the idea of weeds filling the heart with sin and guilt. Moreover, "the black flower of civilized society" (45-46) refers to the Puritans harsh attitude towards sinners as they view Hester's punishment. Most importantly, the imagery used with leaves allows for different interpretations. "Thou shalt forgive me! cried Hester, flinging herself on the fallen leaves beside him [Dimmesdale]" (178) illustrates that Hester ...

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