Sins In Scarlet Letter

The Scarlet Letter illustrates that the illumination of self-deception gapes open after one like the very jaws of hell. This is apparent through all the main characters of the novel. Although Hawthorne's work has several imperfect people as the main characters, including Hester Prynne, Arthur Dimmesdale, and Roger Chillingworth, the worst sinner is Roger Chillingworth. Chillingworth commits the greater sin because of his failure to forgive; he has an insatiable appetite for revenge; he receives extreme pleasure in torturing Dimmesdale. Hester Prynne, however, has committed sins of almost the same magnitude.

Chillingworth’s goal was to “ruin” (65) Dimmesdale's soul, an act that continued to fuel his vengeance and fill his own soul with darkness. His entire demeanor was affected by this purpose; while he did attempt to hide what he felt internally by acting “calm , gentle, [and] passionless”, he failed and showed his “active” “malice” that “led him to imagine a more intimate revenge than any mortal has ever wreaked upon an enemy” (116). The significance of the immorality of his plan further shows how he was inhumane, more like a Devil than a person. Chillingworth “brought himself” “below” “her level” “ by the revenge which he has stooped for,” (138) because it filled him with such hatred that it drained him of morality and humanity, making him lower than Hester and ultimately less powerful. Hester on the other hand, wanted to repent for previous transgressions, doing this by utilizing her flaming passion for charity. She became known as one “who is so kind to the poor, so helpful to the sick, [and] so comfortable to the afflicted” (134-135). Her Scarlet Letter stopped being interpreted “by its original signification”, and now “meant Able” (134) instead. This new purpose in life brought her higher than Chillingworth and put her in a higher position of power due to its emphasis on

Dimmesdale believes that Hester has declared her sins through the scarlet A on her chest and it relieves her burden. Dimmesdales hidden thoughts, however, seem to be the source of his illness. Despite this, he doesn’t tell anyone and doesn’t believe in confessing to an “earthly physician” and believes he should only confess to Christ. Chillingworth gets impatient but after they fight, the two men make up. Later, Dimmesdale falls asleep and Chillingworth goes to his room and lifts his shirt to reveal something that excites him. To me, his secretive nature reveals his not-so-positive intentions and the townspeople rightly suspect him of acting darkly towards the

In contrast to Dimmesdale, there was Chillingworth, the legal husband of the woman Dimmesdale sinned with. Disguised as a healer, Chillingworth waits and observes, trying to discover the identity of the father of Pearl, the child of Hester. When he discovers that Dimmesdale was the lover, he moves in with Dimmesdale to torture him. Chillingworth uses his position as a healer to do the opposite of his occupation, to hurt Dimmesdale’s mind, tormenting him psychologically, and ultimately poisoning his mind. He tortured Dimmesdale throughout the whole novel and not once showed remorse for his horrible sin. He was never confused about his sin; he never questioned if it was right or wrong. This was a result of his religious views; he wasn 't religious at all in fact, he was referenced as the Devil.

He was Hester's husband and he never returned to her, which was shamed in the Puritan society. He didn't want anyone knowing his true identity, so he assumed the name Roger Chillingworth. Chillingworth is known as the greatest doctor in their town, and in many of the surrounding towns. He lives this life kind of to forget his previous sins and to keep others from finding out. Roger Chillingworth wanted to keep this secret forever and the name he had before "should never more be spoken."(Hawthorn 237). He also disclosed to Hester that he was trying to kill the priest. He described him as being a "miserable priest" (Hawthorn 343) and he tells Hester that he was dying "in the sight of his worst enemy." Hawthorn (344). He is angered that Hester had an affair and had Pearl with Dimmesdale and he seeks the worst revenge possible. These issues progress the piece because they make the it more complicated and the characters, as well. Freud states that people's actions are "influenced by their unconscious" and this is especially true in the Scarlet Letter.

Chillingworth’s bitterness, jealousy and guiltiness eventually become a contrived desire for revenge. In particular, his bitterness against his unfaithful wife, his jealousy of her love for someone else and the guiltiness of not being a proficient husband leads to the demise of his character. The revulsion stored deep in the corridors of his heart twist and maul his character that he goes from being an intelligent individual to a grand manipulator. His twisted, deformed shoulders only mirror the twisted deformity that rests

Chillingworth is, honestly, just a very creepy character, for starters. He reunites with his wife, whom

Unlike Hester’s sin of adultery, which she redeemed through charitable and amicable behavior, Chillingworth’s misdeed is one of malice and remains largely unredeemed at the end of The Scarlet Letter. At the beginning of the novel, Chillingworth makes a point of befriending Dimmesdale only so that he may gradually siphon away the minister’s liveliness and vigor, a phenomenon that Hawthorne alludes to by comparing Chillingworth to a blood-sucking leech. As his hatred develops further, Chillingworth “[grows] emaciated, his voice… [becoming] a certain melancholy prophecy of decay” (9). This consequence of Chillingworth’s spite, which haunts him physically so that he becomes a gaunter, more harrowed and wretched version of himself, becomes increasingly

In the beginning of the book, Chillingworth reveals his intentions and his plan for revenge. Chillingworth is determined to “seek this man” and “see him tremble” (Hawthorne 145). At this time, the reader can understand the feeling of betrayal Chillingworth has and can see why he seeks for revenge. However, his thirst for revenge changes “his features – how much uglier they were – how his dark complexion seemed to have grown duskier, and his figure more misshapen” (Hawthorne 219). The result of his sin is that his physical appearance started to deteriorate and his evilness grows within him, turning him insane.

Firstly, Chillingworth is Dimmesdale's truest enemy because of his sin. While speaking to Hester Prynne in the prison, Chillingworth asks, "But, Hester, the man lives who wronged us both! Who is he?" (Hawthorne 52). The idea that someone made him a cuckold leads Chillingworth to become angry and desire that person to be hurt. As stated in the text when Chillingworth learned that Dimmesdale was the one he sought, "…which lead him to imagine a more intimate revenge than any mortal had ever wreaked upon an enemy... He became thenceforth, not a spectator only, but a chief actor, in the poor minister's world. He could play him as he chose" (Hawthorne 96). Now that Chillingworth knows who to take

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

Chillingworth’s sins were also motivated by envy and a desire for revenge, which overpowered him. His envy made him want to win Hester back, and he would not let anything stand in his way. Hester and Dimmesdale’s sins were motivated by love for each other, while Chillingworth acted out of his own anger and jealousy. This went as far as to create noticeable differences in his personality.

In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter, the readers are able to notice how a single sin is capable of destroying three perfectly good lives. Chillingworth, Hester, and Dimmesdale are all guilty of submitting to, anger, and ambition, causing all to qualify as a sinner. Chillingworth’s sinfulness ways put him higher up than Hester and Dimmesdale on the scale of their evil acts. From the instant Chillingworth is introduced, he is dishonest with the Puritan society. Chillingworth is portrayed as though he doesn't know any kind of thing that may have gone on at scaffold. He asks one of the puritans: “…who is this woman? – and wherefore is she here to set up to public shame?” (Hawthorne 67). We learn in the following chapter that he does however

Roger Chillingworth presents a fierce will focused on finding the man who participated in an unlawful relationship with his wife. Under the guise of a physician he learns of his wife’s guilt and immediately promises to “...seek this man, as [he has] sought the truth” (Hawthorne 81). This attitude begins as soon as he first finds out about the situation, and only grows stronger through time, until he has completely “devoted himself” to his task of gaining revenge

Hawthorne had introduced Chillingworth as the victim, not the villain. After all, Hester and Dimmesdale both violated him by engaging in the act of adultery. This causes many readers to sympathize for Chillingworth until he plainly confesses that it was originally himself that sinned: "Mine was the first wrong, when I betrayed thy budding youth into a false and unnatural relation with my decay."(66) Chillingworth knew that Hester didn't love him before they were married, but he was looking for what he