Hester Dimmesdale And Chillingworth Remain Unforgiven Analysis

He finds out it was Dimmesdale and then set out to torture him. “[Chillingworth] never set him free again until he has done all it’s bidding. He now dug into the poor clergyman’s heart” (Hawthorne 117). Hester tells Chillingworth to stop, but Chillingworth does not. He wants to get revenge on Dimmesdale. Because of this revenge, he loses Hester forever. Chillingworth tortures him in his own best interest. He is selfish. He wants Hester, even though Hester no longer loves him. Even after he has the chance to learn his lesson, Chillingworth still acts in his own interest. He learns that Dimmesdale and Hester are going to leave on a boat, and he books a ticket on the same boat, causing more problems for Hester and Dimmesdale. Chillingworth wants only what was in his own best interest, not what is better for others.

At first Hester, agrees to Chillingworth’s terms to keep his real identity a secret. This in return hurt Dimmesdale, her secret lover. She does not stand up to Chillingworth out of fear of the chain effect of damage it would cause. Hester says, “I will keep thy secret, as I have his”, which in essence shows her weakness towards a male. Yet, at the end of the book, she recognizes that she must “do what might be in her power for the rescue of the victim on whom [Chillingworth] had so evidently set his gripe”. She comes to the conclusion that hiding Chillingworth’s secret does not help Dimmesdale like she hopes, but in fact, hurts him further. The fact that she realizes this, though, displays her to be an devoted and loyal person. These qualities display many things a female, main character, in those times, did not have much opportunity to play, especially in the role of which Hester plays it.

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

Dimmesdale knew that Hester was married, but he still had an affair with her. After the sin, he became overwhelmed with grief and no matter how much he tried, he could not tell the town that he had committed adultery with Hester. His guilt drove him to a point where his mind was filled with satanic thoughts. Chillingworth, in his quest for revenge, became the face of the

Chillingworth is Hester’s husband, who was living abroad while Hester lived in Boston. Upon arriving, Chillingworth visits Hester, who now wears a scarlet “A” embroidered on her dress. Understanding the “A” to represent adultery, Chillingworth’s “face darkened with some powerful emotion” (Hawthorne 57). Soon, he becomes suspicious of Dimmesdale, whom he believes is the man Hester had an affair with, and he conjures a devious plan to seek vengeance for losing Hester. Chillingworth decides to torture both Hester and Dimmesdale, enough so that they can truly feel the pain of their actions against him. In a spite of anger he tells them: “Live, therefore, and bear about thy doom with thee, in the eyes of men and women—in the eyes of him thou didst call thy husband—in the eyes of yonder child! And, that thou mayst live, take off this draught” (Hawthorne 68). This passage from the novel demonstrates Chillingworth’s lack of compassion, inflicted by his anger and inability to forgive Hester and Dimmesdale. Chillingworth continues on this route, focusing especially on

The antagonist Roger Chillingworth, "Old Roger Chillingworth, throughout life, had been calm in temperament, kindly, though not of those warm affections but ever, and in all his relations with the world, a pure and upright man." (Hawthorne 259). This quote demonstrates the way Chillingworth is seen through societies eyes. But he no longer is seen this way when he starts to seek revenge towards Arthur Dimmesdale, whom had an affair with his wife Hester Prynne (the father of the baby she is carrying).

Throughout the novel Hester is dehumanized, ridiculed and shamed for her sin and put on a pedestal. Mr. Dimmesdale, a young clergyman who came from Europe's finest University, saw it as his duty to confess the man she slept with she refused because in fact Mr. Dimmesdale was the man she slept and bore a child with (Hawthorne, 264). While her shaming is still taking place Hester’s husband emerges from the forest and see’s his wife put to shame for dishonoring him through adultery they make eye contact but never say a word (Hawthorne, 63). The husband poses as a doctor and goes to see Hester in the prison and uses the name of Roger Chillingworth he continues to use that name throughout the book (Hawthorne,

When Dimmesdale committed adultery with Hester, he did not come forward as the father and let Hester take the sole blame. The young reverend had become rapidly ill, as the town had noticed, despite his age. He is known to have his hand over his chest, where Hester’s “A” lies on her bosom, and to look sickly, as if he were “burdened with the black secrets of his soul” (135). Not once until the very end of the novel does Dimmesdale attempt to spout the truth of Pearl’s heritage and take responsibility for his sin, and as a result he is wracked with guilt and the illness that befalls him. He even goes so far as to torture himself, and yet still does not profess his mistakes. “Mr. Dimmesdale, conscious that the poison of one morbid spot was infecting his heart’s entire substance” (132) remains silent. At the end of the novel, Dimmesdale comes to see he must atone for his mistakes and says “‘Let me make haste to take my shame upon me!’” (241). When Dimmesdale finally owns up and takes blame, he dies. Not facing and taking fault for his actions killed Arthur

However, as the story continues, Chillingworth experiences a substantial transformation as his bright minded and non-violent character began shifting to a darker spirit. After it was so clear to Chillingworth about Hester’s unfaithfulness, he began to develop the feeling towards vengeance against Dimmesdale, the man Hester had the affair with. The theme revenge in the novel is when the character Chillingworth truly depicted an obscure persona with his violent actions of attempting to murder reverend Dimmesdale several times. The ultimate desire of damaging Dimmesdale’s reputation became Chillingworth’s main focus and it completely changed his respect for others and his ability to make rational choices. His change from representing a morally intelligent man internally to developing a depraved personality was effectively demonstrated when Chillingworth used medical expertise and practices for attempting to poison Dimmesdale and manipulate him to confess the crime he felt guilty about. Hawthorne also manages to use imagery to portray Chillingworth’s transformation to an evil

Dimmesdale was able to forgive Hester, but Chillingworth was not as understanding towards Hester’s problem, thus he had a lesser chance of winning her love back. Both Hester and Dimmesdale admitted that they sinned, but Chillingworth would never admit it.

It could be said that some of his choices were not the smartest he could have made. Dimmesdale allows Hester to carry the burden of the embarrassment for their sin, although inside he is being eaten away by the secret guilt only he knows about. Because Dimmesdale will not confess that he was Hester's lover and that he is Pearl's father, the one act he thinks necessary to be saved from his sin is self-punishment. He beats himself with a bloody whip and keeps frequent inability to sleep during which his mind is threatened by terrifying

Chillingworth does not immediately know who Hester cheated with, and considering that Roger Chillingworth is a man “who devoted himself…

Furthermore, his sin as Hester’s mister went on to haunt him till the day he died as he could no longer embrace his own guilt and set it free. Chillingworth, Hester’s loyal husband let his emotions get the best

Chillingworth sent his wife, who he never acknowledged, to America promising her that he would meet her there. Instead he went to live with Indians. This shows how Roger Chillingworth is an untrustworthy man who cannot keep any promises. Roger Chillingworth finally goes to America where he notices his wife on the scaffold. Hester notices his deformed shoulder, which is a symbol for Chillingworth's twisted soul, and she recognizes him. Chillingworth realizes that she noticed him and he acts as if he does not know Hester. This image shows how ashamed Chillingworth was to be Hester's wife that he had to lie to save himself from embarrassment. While talking to someone in the crowd about Hester, Chillingworth calls himself foolish for thinking that he could keep a young wife happy. This shows how he at first felt awful for not being with his wife. Although, Chillingworth changes his mindset when he finds out that Hester has had an

For several years, Hester is prohibited from seeing her love in public. She can only meet with him privately. Even wanting to still see him represents true loyalty—after everything Hester has been through to protect Dimmsdale's secret is reason enough to be fed up with him (Swisher 53). Hester's loyalty to Dimmsdale continues until the end; she cradles him in his last dying moments on Earth. (Swisher 53) Hester keeps her loyalty to her husband, Roger Chillingworth, as well. He asks her not to reveal his identity in their first discussion of the novel, and she obliges. For many years, she keeps the secret while Chillingworth does dreadful things to Dimmsdale. Dimmsdale's deteriorating health is part due to the awful arts Chillingworth performs on his so-called “patient.” (Swisher 53) In chapter fifteen, Hester goes to confront Chillingworth about the situation. Hester argues and argues but Chillingworth