Chillingworth In Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter

Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter is a study of the effects of sin on the hearts and minds of the main characters, Hester Prynne, Arthur Dimmesdale, Roger Chillingworth. Hester, Dimmesdale, and Chillingworth. Sin strengthens Hester, humanizes Dimmesdale, and turns Chillingworth into a demon.

Altered by sin in The Scarlet Letter, evil, obsessive, and manipulative are what describe Roger Chillingworth. From the beginning, Roger is an enigmatic yet intriguing character, knowledgeable in medicine from his time in captivity, as well as - unbeknownst to others except for the audience - the wife of Hester Prynne. Becoming eviler as the story goes on, Roger’s complexion is only matched by the devil himself, with his only goal being to pursue Dimmesdale for his (and Hester’s) act of sin. Roger stays for seven years, becoming obsessed about Dimmesdale’s suffering and pain, like a leech. His dependency proves to be his downfall, as when Dimmesdale accepts his sin to be a part of him, Roger’s life is now without purpose. These chain of events leads to the idea that Roger Chillingworth’s act of sin (revenge), as well as Hester and Dimmesdale’s act of sin (passion) influence his character development and outcome greatly in The Scarlet Letter, as he becomes psychologically more manipulative, evil, and obsessive, and physically more sinister looking. In Puritan society, it proves someone else’s sin can make another one twisted and evil, as

Hester Prynne's guilt is the result of her committing adultery, which has a significant effect on her life. Hester is publicly seen with the scarlet letter when she first emerges out of the cold

The character of Roger Chillingworth in Nathaniel Hawthorne's Scarlet Letter is one of many different faces. Hawthorne changes the character of Chillingworth during different periods of the novel. As Chillingworth's actions and his motives change, so in turn does the reader's opinion of him, which ranges from compassion to antipathy. Hawthorne keeps the character of Chillingworth an enigma, and Hawthorne uses his narrative to shed light on the true feelings of Chillingworth, as well through the good doctor's interaction with other characters, especially Hester, Pearl, and Dimmesdale. As we watch the plot evolve, and the reader observes Chillingworth's actions,

One of the various ways Chillingworth serves as the devil’s advocate is by being the antithesis of Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale, the palpable Jesus figure of the narrative. Chillingworth keenly sets out to devastate Dimmesdale, as Hawthorne informs us when referring to Chillingworth's unearthing of Dimmesdale's secret, “All that guilty sorrow, hidden from the world, whose great heart would have pitied and forgiven, to be revealed to him, the

Physically deformed and mysterious, Roger Chillingworth finally met his wife after being separated from her for almost two years.  He showed no great anger towards her and took upon himself some of the accountability saying it was “...my folly and thy weakness,” (Hawthorne 52) which was the cause of Hester's sin.  Chillingworth's only feeling was one of revenge towards the man who had been Hester's lover.  Chillingworth was obsessed by hate and revenge so much that when Dimmesdale died “... the life seemed to have departed...” (Hawthorne 72) from him and he died within a year of Dimmesdale's death.  Chillingworth never felt guilt or attempted repentance because he “... violated, in cold blood, the sanctity of a human heart.” (Hawthorne 133).  He sought to destroy Dimmesdale's

In The Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne exhibits how three very unique characters are evidently brought together by the sins that they have perpetrated and how they manage to perform acts of atonement in the puritanical Boston society. Hester Prynne sins by committing the shocking transgression of adultery. Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale, who as well engages in adultery with Hester, abandons her and their daugher because of his own cowardice and hypocrisy. Roger Chillingworth grows to become a maleficent being who tries to corrupt the very soul of Reverend Dimmesdale. Although Hester Prynne and Arthur Dimmesdale do sin greatly, it is Roger Chillingworth who sins to the most ferocious degree.

Roger Chillingworth’s sin, however, was not in an instant. His was calculated, drawn out, and committed with malice towards both Dimmesdale and Hester for years on end. He tormented Dimmesdale psychologically for years, and drained what little life Dimmesdale had in him out slowly and intentionally.He felt no guilt for these sins, nor was he ever punished for them in life.

Roger Chillingworth’s soul is immediately taken captive by revenge as soon as he finds out about Hester’s infedelity (I would go w infidelity). He is transformed into a devilish figure overcome by a passion to torture Hester’s partner in crime, Arthur Dimmesdale. Hawthorne shows Chillingworth’s evil intentions, “The intellect of Roger Chillingworth had now a sufficiently plain path before it…which led him to imagine a more intimate revenge than any mortal had ever wreaked upon an enemy” (Hawthorne 127). In The Scarlet Letter,

In Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter, the reader is able to observe how one sin devastates three lives. Hester, Dimmesdale, and Chillingworth are all guilty of succumbing to temptation, anger, and desire, causing all to fit the definition of a sinner. Yet, Chillingworth's iniquities raise him up above Hester and Dimmesdale on the level of diabolic acts.

Hester put herself through all of this because she committed a sin that she could not forgive herself for. For the rest of the book she only takes off the scarlet letter once, in the

Can the way you behave change the way people perceive you? In “The Scarlet Letter,” by Nathaniel Hawthorne, the character Roger Chillingworth is perceived by other Characters in the story as evil. Roger Chillingworth is the husband of Hester Prynne, which causes him disgrace because of her adultery. He becomes a doctor, and has devoted all his time to try to ameliorate Dimmesdale of his illness, and he becomes skeptical of Dimmesdale, trying to figure out why he has become ailing, and he ends up guessing that it was a spiritual problem, and grows to the conclusion that he was Hester’s lover. Chillingworth has altered from a courteous scholar to an vengefulness, obsessed devil, and is perceived by numerous characters throughout the story, as

"Hester looked at the man of skill, and even then, with her fate hanging on the balance, was startled to perceive what a change had come over his features, --how much uglier they were, --how his dark complexion seemed to have grown duskier, and his figure more misshapen..." (Pg.103).  Hester is not the only person to notice the change in Chillingworth; many of the townspeople recognize the changes in him as well, "At first his expression had been calm, meditative, scholar-like. Now there was something ugly and evil in his face, which they had not previously noticed, and which still grew more obvious to sight the oftener they looked upon him" (Pg. 117). Slowly but surely Roger Chillingworth is changing from a man with normal interests, to a man with an evil obsession; every day he is getting closer and closer to the dark side.

“She took the baby on her arm, and with a burning blush, and yet a haughty smile, and a glance that would not be abashed, looked around at her townspeople and neighbours. On the breast of her gown, in fine red cloth, surrounded with an elaborate embroidery and fantastic flourishes of gold thread, appeared a letter A. (6) As she walked Hester was ladylike, dignified than ever before. I presume that Hester is not proud of the crime she committed but she is willing to stand tall and accept the consequences. The author described the scarlet letter as a spell on Hester Prynne that set her out of ordinary relations with humanity, and enclosing her in a sphere by herself, thus bringing her isolation (7). Hester’s walk of shame was the worse part of wearing the scarlet letter, with crude, stark, callous eyes staring at her knowing she will never be considered a part of their society again; though Hester sustained herself as best as she could. She began reminiscing remembering her old house in England with her mother, father, and a scholar, then she realizes the Scarlet Letter will always target her as an outcast. Which leads into chapter

In the book, The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne, Hawthorne implies that the theme in chapter 8 is to not judge a book by it’s cover. Chillingworth suggests to “analyze that child’s nature, and, from its make and mould, to give a shrewd guess at the father” (Hawthorne 110). What Chillingworth does not know is that Dimmesdale is the father of the child and Pearl’s personality is completely opposite of Dimmesdale’s. Hawthorne calls “ Pearl, that wild and flighty little elf” (Hawthorne 109) to show that she is playful, and Mr.Wilson seems to believe that “the little baggage hath witchcraft in her” (Hawthorne 109). The Puritan society sees Pearl as the Devil’s child while Dimmesdale is seen as someone holy and sent by God himself. This expert