Scarlet Letter Guilt

By revealing this small, hidden regret, he exposes Hester’s tortured state of mind. Unable to reach salvation in the town she desired to live in, she regretfully decided to leave and abandon her sorrows. The burden society placed on her with the scarlet letter was too demanding for her to handle any longer. Similarly, Arthur Dimmesdale was distressed from his ignominy. Afraid of societal repercussions, Dimmesdale had been “overcome with a great horror of mind, as if the universe were gazing at a scarlet token on his naked breast” (102). Society’s extensive honor toward him exacerbated his pain, thus causing society to trap Dimmesdale; this prevented him from revealing his dark secret and reaching salvation. Additionally, he began to picture his surroundings as an obstacle designed to hinder his path to redemption. His shortcoming to reach salvation agonized Dimmesdale to the point where he was incapable of recalling “[any] text of Scripture, nor aught else, except a brief, pithy, and, as it then appeared to him, unanswerable argument against the immorality of

A common theme throughout literature is religion and how the author feels about his or her faith. Nathaniel Hawthorne uses rhetorical devices to draw comparisons between characters and events in The Scarlet Letter and Biblical figures and accounts. A few of the devices found in this novel that connect it to the Bible are symbolism, paradox, allusions, and characterization. It is important to first look at the characters and how they are described through characterization.

In The Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne portrays Arthur Dimmesdale as a troubled individual. In him lies the central conflict of the book. Dimmesdale's soul is torn between two opposing forces: his heart, his love for freedom and his passion for Hester Prynne, and his head, his knowledge of Puritanism and its denial of fleshly love. He has committed the sin of adultery but cannot seek divine forgiveness, believing as the Puritans did that sinners received no grace. His dilemma, his struggle to cope with sin, manifests itself in the three scaffold scenes depicted in The Scarlet Letter. These scenes form a progression through which Dimmesdale at first denies, then accepts reluctantly, and finally conquers his sin.

Instead of confessing to the community, Dimmesdale, to try and seek forgiveness in another way than confessing, tortures himself to the brink of death. Whilst talking to Hester in the forest, Dimmesdale says: “Had I one friend, —or were it my worst enemy! —to whom, when sickened with the praises of all other men, I could daily betake myself, and be known as the vilest of all sinners, methinks my soul might keep itself alive thereby. Even thus much of truth would save me! But now, it is all falsehood! —all emptiness! —all death!” (288-289). Dimmesdale is depressed in the way that the only thing keeping him alive is his sin. Hester after seven years, is seen as a sort of hero in the community, which is shown when the town calls her “our Hester” (244). Dimmesdale is not able to confess and be forgiven, in relation to Hester already being forgiven and living a relatively decent life. Dimmesdale also must look to other methods for forgiveness while Hester lives with a static punishment. Dimmesdale physically whips himself to attempt to achieve forgiveness, he also does not have anyone to counsel about his feelings, which leads to much depression. Dimmesdale also must deal with physical and mental pain, while Hester deals with

Mr. Dimmesdale is an almost perfect example of the contrast between public and private truth in The Scarlet Letter. The young clergyman is often seen as saint by the public. Many of his sermons throughout the book bring dozens to Christ in the small town. The people of the town even began to say,“The saint on earth! Alas, if he discern such sinfulness in his own white soul, what horrid spectacle would he behold in thine or mine!”(Hawthorne 246). In private though, Mr. Dimmesdale is actually being eaten alive by the guilt that his sin with Hester gave him. Mr. Dimmesdale’s adulterous act caused

Since predestination was a major component in their belief, sin revealed a sure sign of wickedness-and therefore it was necessary to rid their communities of it. The town “[had] grown corrupt enough to smile” over Hester’s public humiliation (52). Though convicting Hester of adultery eased the conscience of the townspeople, hidden turmoil began to leak from the walls of the Reverend’s and Physician’s house. When Dimmesdale can no longer take the torment, he snaps and confesses on the brink death, claiming that “[God] hath proved most merciful” in allowing him to die with a clear conscience. Dimmesdale’s death allows the fog of secrecy to clear. Hester is no longer a captive of the Scarlet Letter. Instead, it is a positive and liberating element of her being, and is able to live her life in service aiding other women (247). Chillingworth also enjoys the relief in the exposed sin as his mission of revenge meets an abrupt end. Though he will never be the man he was in the Old World, “it only [remains] for the unhumanized mortal to betake himself” after the Devil leaves him (244). Even Pearl finds solace after witnessing Dimmesdale’s deadly confession as it allows her to develop her sympathies and cease to simply act as a messenger of anguish for her mother. The sufferers in the Scarlet Letter only find release in confessing to the public acknowledgement as the confessions

The feeling of responsibility or remorse for some misdeed or wrongdoing, is commonly known as the emotion of guilt. Guilt is a force that can drive people to great fear, depression, and even insanity. In the Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne, Reverend Dimmesdale has a great feeling of guilt and despair towards his actions, which drives him to insanity. Dimmesdale has committed an act of adultery, in which he impregnated a married woman. He is viewed by the public as a holy man who can do no wrong, however deep down in his soul he is torn apart and slowly wasting away.  Dimmesdale is developed throughout the story using archetypes, internal conflicts, and symbols to show the effects of guilt and how it can drive one to insanity.

To conclude, The Scarlet Letter is a novel of how confession is the only remedy for the guilt that comes with committing a sin. In this respect, both The Scarlet Letter and the King James Proverb are in complete agreement as to that confession leads to redemption. While the proverb only states this concept, The Scarlet Letter, by contrast, detailed an elaborate story portraying how confession gave the characters of Hester and eventually Dimmesdale their own salvation. Hester’s salvation came in the form of the change of the public perception of the scarlet letter. Many citizens after Hester’s confession and performance of good deeds began to believe that the scarlet letter now stood for “Able”, and some even believing that the letter be removed

This story is about two people committing a sin. The sin that was committed was adultery, but there were only one person the confess about committing the sin. Pearl was the science experiment they got out of adultery. Hester had to wear a scarlet letter A on her bosom that stood for adultery. In The Scarlet Letter, Hawthorne strengths the theme of secret sin and guilt, through Hester Prynne and Reverend Dimmesdale.

In The Scarlet Letter Hawthorne investigates the nature of sin and its weight on the human heart. Hester is punished for her affair with Dimmesdale and has a child named Pearl but Hester keeps his identity a secret and he continues to be a revered staple of righteousness in the puritan community. These two characters show that the struggle to keep a sin secret as well as the hypocritical community. The development of characters, setting, and plot in The Scarlet Letter are conveyed through Dimmesdale’s transformation, the development of the town as a setting, and the arrangement of the scaffold scenes to reveal how secret sin is destructive and hypocrisy in a society denies citizens justice.

The novel, The Scarlet Letter, shows how many members of a puritan society respond to the act of sin specifically the act of adultery.The reactions between the adulterers and community vastly contrasted in three different ways. Hester Prynne, one of the adulterers, responds to her sin in her very own personal way by wearing the scarlet letter on her chest. Reverend Dimmesdale, the other adulterer, responds punishing himself. The community responds to the sin of adultery by publicly shaming Hester Prynne.

Nathaniel Hawthorne’s novel, The Scarlet Letter, is a complex romance story in which each of the main characters experience personal conflicts that relate back to love, romance, and sin. Three of the principal characters are Hester Prynne, Arthur Dimmesdale, and Roger Chillingworth. Each of these characters experience a conflict between personal responsibility and personal desires. The nature of each character’s conflict, effects it has on them, and the overall significance in relation to the work is a critical part of understanding The Scarlet Letter. Hester Prynne committed adultery with Arthur Dimmesdale and now has a responsibility to mother and care for her child, Pearl.

Typically, I evaluate the usefulness of a source based three things; 1) does the message pertain to my topic, 2) do I agree with the author and if not, can I at least make a solid counterclaim, and 3) how much information/ interest is there about the topic. Perhaps in this case, there is not a great deal of interest in a psychological critique of The Scarlet Letter, but when I was in high school, it sure would have made the story more interesting. For my research paper, I want to focus on the psychological components of Hawthorne’s novel. For example, the repression and desire that caused Hester and Arthur to commit adultery and the shame and guilt they experienced because of their actions. Additionally, I think it’s important to focus on Chillingworth’s presence in the novel and his deviation into vengeance.

Thesis: The contrast between Dimmesdale and Hester shows a prominent theme of hiding versus confessing sins throughout the Scarlet Letter.

"The Scarlet Letter" is a story that illustrates the lifestyle of Puritans in Massachusetts in 17th century. Nathaniel Hawthorne takes the theme of sin committed by Hester Prynne prior to her affair with Arthur Dimmesdale and shows how it affects the lives of the people involved. Convicted of adultery by Boston's Puritan leaders, she is forced to wear a bright red "A" as a symbol of adultery over her breast to represent her wrongdoing to the townspeople. As a result of this sin a child is born, named Pearl. Dimmesdale feels his guilt in the shared sin, but he is unable to reveal the truth. However, the society punishes him as well. The society in which he lived suggested him the moral values that become the law of his inner self. Having