Summary Of Sin In The Scarlet Letter By Nathaniel Hawthorne

In the beginning of the novel in "The Market Place," Dimmesdale urges Hester to reveal him as Pearl's father because he could not bring himself to say it himself. Despite the extreme guilt displayed on the scaffold at night with Hester and Pearl, Dimmesdale is not able to bear himself to face his sin in public. Even in "The Revelation of the Scarlet Letter" he does not directly confess, but drops obvious hints that the Puritan could not pay attention to the world around them and only see what they want to see. The highly respected reverend is considered the most sacred in the society and for someone like him to commit such a sin would devastate the people and result in complete turmoil. Not only does the reaction of the society play in the mind of Dimmesdale, he also has personal reasons as well. "She thought of the dim forest, with its little dell of solitude, and love, and anguish, and the mossy tree-trunk, where, sitting hand in hand, they had mingled their sad and passionate talk with the melancholy murmur of the brook. How deeply had they known each other then! And was this the man? She hardly knew him now!" describes how two-faced Dimmesdale

Dimmesdale finally realizes that he has to change, but the sin had already done its damage. Referring to the dead man and the weeds on his grave, Chillingworth says, "They grew out of his heart, and typify, it may be, some hideous secret that was buried with him, and which he had done better to confess during his lifetime." (pg. 120). He is

Reverend Dimmesdale is thin and sickly and always clutches at his chest so Chillingworth becomes his hope for getting better. Though Dimmesdale doesn’t believe medicine can heal him, he caves and agrees to let Chillingworth help him. The two men spend time together and Chillingworth believes that he should analyze the reverend spiritually, physically, and mentally in order to cure him. Over time, they think it is a good idea for them ot temporarily move in together, being that Dimmesdale wasn’t married. Some of the townspeople think it is wise but others start thinking Chillingworth has “ugly and evil in his face” and that he has changed. Chillingowrth is dedicated to finding out who committed adultery with Hester. I think this shows shis darker side that he would do anything to reveal whom his wife cheated on him with.

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.

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

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

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

Nathaniel Hawthorne's bold novel, The Scarlet Letter, revolves around sin and punishment.  The main characters of the novel sharply contrast each other in the way they react to the sin that has been committed

In the beginning of The Scarlet Letter, the letter is understood as a label of punishment and sin being publicized. Hester Prynne bears the label of “A” signifining adulterer upon her chest. Because of this scorching red color label she becomes

Reverend Dimmesdale was a renowned, prideful man stricken with sin and extreme guilt.  From the time Hester and Dimmesdale made love, he was grievous of his sin but he also felt a great love towards her.  Dimmesdale's stubborn pride troubled him greatly, and although he tried many times, he could not confess his sin to his religious followers.  Dimmesdale felt guilt so strongly that he scourged himself on his breast and patterned an “A” into his own flesh, yet he could not confess his sin until his grief grew so great it caused him to perish.  Reverend Dimmesdale's sin was greater than Hester's because he let his pride conflict with his repentance, and let his life be ruined by his anguish.

In The Scarlet Letter Hester Prynne is more than a literary figure in a classic novel, she is known by some people to be one of the earliest American Hero’s. In The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne Hester commits adultery and has a child that she must care for all alone. She is forced to wear a powerful, attention grabbing “Scarlet A” on her chest while she must try to make a living to support her and her child, Pearl. Even though she must face all the harsh judgment and stares she does not allow her sin to stop her from living a successful life. She looks past the Letter as a symbol of sin and turns it into a sign of approval. Hester

Dimmesdale feels like a hypocrite, because he is portrayed as a pure man, but on the inside he is a sinner. Also, the more he tries to confess his sins, the more the congregation love his sermons. Dimmesdale even tries to reveal his inner self throughout the novel. In chapter 20 Dimmesdale wants to do bad things to show that he is impure, “it was only by the most careful self-control that the former could refrain from uttering certain blasphemous suggestions that rose into his mind” (207). The feeling of hypocrisy is driving Dimmesdale crazy, but Hester does not have this feeling.The reader sees that Dimmesdale is actually jealous of Hester, “Happy are you, Hester, that wear the scarlet letter openly upon your bosom! Mine burns in secret! Thou little knowest what a relief it is, after the torment of a seven years' cheat, to look into an eye that recognizes me for what I am!” (183) Hester does not have to deal with this guilt as much as Dimmesdale, because she was already publically punished. Everyone knows that she is a sinner, so she doesn’t have to hide it. In fact, after a couple of years, people began to see her as a saint, rather than a sinner. They even say that her scarlet letter stands for “able”. Dimmesdale’s whole life revolves around the shame and suffering of his sin, which is why he dies after he confesses his sin. However, because Hester’s sin is publically revealed, she only suffers for a couple of

Dimmsdales sins affects his physical well-being, and his mental stability. Since he never publicly admits his sin, he has to keep his sins bottled up within him. He has no way to relieve himself of the burden of his sins, but to be shamed in public. He ultimately becomes a coward and he tortures himself . He was healthy before, but as the years go by, he becomes sickly, and he worsens his condition by abusing himself. Later on through the years, when he joins with Hester and Pearl in the forest , he becomes different, and when they decide what their plans will be, his health changes, and his energy seems as I it was back. He changes and transforms to another person. "The minister's own will, and Hester's will, and the fate that grew between them, had wrought this transformation. It was the same town as heretofore; but the same minister returned not from the forest." He changed to a new him.

Through out the course of history, those who were considered sinners were often out casted from the society. This is much the case with Hester Prynne in Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter. After a public trial, Hester is considered a sinner due to her birthing of a so called “devil child”. Hester is convicted to the life long bearing of a scarlet letter on her chest. The Scarlet Letter that Hester Prynne wears symbolizes the change in perception of sin through out the novel. Due to the revelations of the governor Winthrop and the reverend Dimmesdale, the way sin is perceived changes from one of shame to the idea that every one is a sinner in their own right.

Symbolism has many different meanings, and the Scarlet ‘A’ in “The Scarlet Letter” has many different meanings as well. Hester Prynne is the main character who is forced to wear the scarlet letter as remembrance for the crime and the sin that she has committed. This letter completely ruined her reputation in her community. How could a small piece of fabric do so much harm? This letter was a representation of something much greater than the letter ‘A’. This letter was originally made to stand for adulteress, as physical reminder of her sins. The vibrant scarlet red is meant to shame Hester, to make her feel sorry for her mistakes. Most importantly it was a symbol for change and an emblem of identity. In short, the scarlet letter meant much more than a letter of shame, it was simply a piece of fabric with meaning that could easily change.