Pearl Dimmesdale's Guilt In The Scarlett Letter By Nathaniel Hawthorne

Dimmesdale. Ye have both been here before, but i was not with you. Come up, hither once again, and we will stand all three together!” She silently ascended the steps, and stood on the platform, holding little pearl by the hand. The minister felt for the child's other hand and took it “ (Hawthorne 143) From here they are starting to become closer and you notice the closeness that they have bythe way that they all stood together under the moon holding hands. Pearl feels liberated because even though it's night you are still able to see people around. It also implies that they are able to get through the struggles but does not affect them all that much because sooner than later Dimmesdale admits that he is the father of Pearl and Hester kisses Dimmesdale immediately “Partly supported by Hester Prynne, and holding one hand of little Pearl’s the Reverend Mr. Dimmesdale turned to dignified the venerable rulers; to the holy ministers, who were his brethren; to the people, whose great heart was thoroughly appalled yet overflowing with tearful sympathy” (Hawthorne 379) It’s able to explain how truthful he was to share out his family and how Pearl accepted to grab his hand in front of all the people. Since she’s been truthful the whole time she was blessed with good fortune after Dimmesdale had died. She met a man who she married and

Guilt, shame, and penitence are just a few of the emotions that are often associated with a great act of sin. Mr. Arthur Dimmesdale, a highly respected minister of a 17th century Puritan community, is true example of this as he was somehow affected by all of these emotions after committing adultery. Due to the seven years of torturous internal struggle that finally resulted in his untimely death, Mr. Dimmesdale is the character who suffered the most throughout Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter. Mr. Dimmesdale’s ever present guilt and boundless penance cause him an ongoing mental struggle of remorse and his conscience as well as deep physical pain from deprivation and self inflicted wounds. The external influence of the members of

Nelson Mandela once said, “There is nothing like returning to a place that remains unchanged to find the ways in which you yourself have altered.” In most cases, it is difficult to distinguish and fully understand when you have changed. Whether it be a trivial change in habit to a crucial character transformation, it is best to set oneself up against an untouched canvas, and begin to analyze the newfangled person from there. Throughout Nathaniel Hawthorne’s Scarlet Letter, the concept of identifying one’s changes is apparent in two of the main characters, Pearl and Dimmesdale. Both characters experience their own engenderment of maturity and personal growth, though Dimmesdale’s involvement with it is much more deleterious in comparison to Pearl’s.

It is very sad that a child has no purpose in life other than show his parents guilt and shame. In The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne Pearl was a little girl who was the product of and adulterous act when the minister at the church Rev. Arthur Dimmesdale and a young lady named Hester Prynne. “We have spoken of Pearl’s rich and luxuriant beauty—a beauty that shone with deep and vivid tints, a bright complexion, eyes possessing intensity both of depth and glow, and hair already of a deep, glossy brown, and which, in after years, would be nearly akin to black. “ (Hawthorne 52) Here is a brief description of Pearl, furthermore Pearl is also described as a child who seemed to have some sort of wildness in her.It is said that Pearl was a girl who distinguished herself among others. Pearl was intelligent, very

Hester's daughter, Pearl, functions primarily as a symbol. She is quite young during most of the events of this novel—when Dimmesdale dies she is only seven years old—and her real importance lies in her ability to provoke the adult characters in the book. She asks them pointed questions and draws their attention, and the reader's, to the denied or overlooked truths of the adult world. In general, children in The Scarlet Letter are portrayed as more perceptive and more honest than adults, and Pearl is the most perceptive of them all.

However, as a revered preacher, Dimmesdale is a part of the authority. He is supposed to be a pious puritan. But he violates the law set by the puritanism. His adultery with Hester is intolerable. In the light of his special profession, he should undertake more sin than normal people.

Early in the novel, the reader sees evidence of Dimmesdale's hypocrisy. Although the audience remains unaware of his sin until later on in the novel, Dimmesdale asks Hester on the scaffold to reveal the name of Pearl's father, instead of confessing. As the text reads "If thou feelest it to be for thy soul's peace, and that thy earthly punishment will thereby be made more effectual to salvation, I charge thee to speak out the name

dealing with the guilt, he causes himself not to sleep or eat. Dimmesdale is described as, “pitiably weak; no evidence at once so slight and irrefragable, of a subtle disease, that had long since begun to eat into the real substance of his character” (Hawthorne 147). Seven years later, he confesses that he is Pearl’s father and he committed adultery with Hester Prynne. Tired of the guilt, Dimmesdale brands an ‘A’ on his chest to represent his sin just like Hester (Miller). Shortly after confessing, Dimmesdale dies.

This is appropriately named because Dimmesdale reveals his “scarlet letter” and publicly confessing his sin during the second procession of dignitaries. He climbs the scaffold with help of Hester and pearl and confesses the sin, adultery, and that Pearl is his daughter. Upon his revealing he collapses and asks for forgiveness for roger and a kiss from pearl. He then dies in Hester’s arms and the crowd makes a strange murmur sound.

The insight I have gained from this excerpt is the reason being Pearl rejects Dimmesdale is as a result from him not publically acknowledging her. Furthermore, the reason being Pearl dislikes him is, due to he acts differently when in public, in contrast when he was in the forest, to illustrate he holds hands with pearl in the forest, however when they are in public he behaves as if they don't know each other. In addition, the insight I have gained is that Pearl exclaims to her mother that he is a strange man, in order to mock and ridicule Dimmesdale and Hester. Furthermore she achieves mocking and ridiculing Hester and Dimmesdale by referencing that he holds his hand over his heart, in order to connect it with the scarlet letter in Hester’s

Hester, Pearl, Roger, and Dimmesdale are all saved and have made up for their sins. Their suffering has made up for their wrong-doings in the mortal world, and in the afterlife they can expect to walk up to the Gates of Heaven without any issue. The four may have had many sins, but they are only human and have human error. Before perishing they atone for their sins, making it useless to continue to torture them for eternity.

“To sigh, yet not recede; to grieve, yet not repent.” George Crabbe. Everyone agrees that Pearl had a father, while some believe that Dimmesdale should have confessed, but others reckon he should not have confessed. Dimmesdale should have confessed for these three reasons: Chillingworth would know who it was, Dimmesdale would be able to show his face without guilt, and his actions were heinously sinful.

It’s a Scarlet Life, for me In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s novel, The Scarlet Letter, one may observe the theme of a secret sin versus a public sin is prominently shown throughout the novel.. For instance, one of the main characters, Dimmesdale, struggles internally about whether to keep his sin a secret or to divulge it to the public, a conflict that is intensified because of his higher social status as a reverend. Oftentimes, he considers revealing his sin; however, other times his actions seemingly contradict his sayings. In this work of literature, Dimmesdale's ultimate decision contributes to the culmination of the literary work by illustrating the internal arguments, the consequences of his hidden sin, and ultimately exposing the sin to the

Hawthorne has many creative ways in which he conveys character's states of mind, but none so dramatically than the symbolic Scarlet Letter across Dimmesdale's chest, a physical manifestation of his guilt. Pearl can seemingly sense this guilt, as she asks "Is it because, when the minister wrote his name in the book, the Black Man set his mark in that place?" (Hawthorne 89), an allusion to the devil. The mark upon Dimmesdale's chest dramatizes his guilty and deeply remorseful state of mind. Pearl herself is also a symbol, representing sin as the scarlet letter does and it can even be said that Pearl is a symbol for the letterherself. Her interactions with Hester often dramatize Hester's guilt as Pearl often taunts her. Pearl seems to recognize

One of the most complex characters in The Scarlet Letter is Pearl, the illegitimate daughter of Hester Prynne and Arthur Dimmesdale. Throughout the story, she develops into a dynamic individual, as well as an extremely important symbol. Pearl is shunned from society because of her mother's sin. She is a living representation of the scarlet letter, acting as a constant reminder of Hester's sin.