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Arthur Dimmesdale's Guilt In The Scarlet Letter By Nathaniel Hawthorne

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The definition of guilt is defined as a feeling you have done wrong or failed an obligation, now imagine feeling that way for seven years. In The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne one of the main characters sits on secrets, lies and sins for almost a decade. Arthur Dimmesdale lives with a guilty conscience for not taking responsibility for his actions. He watches the woman he loves become outcasted by society and permanently branded. Dimmesdale’s health takes a turn for the worst, which puts him at death’s door for most of the novel. He then resorts to self inflicted pain and self punishment as a way to serve his sentence. All of Dimmesdale’s feelings are due to his own cowardice and inability to take blame.
Unable to tell the truth,
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Dimmesdale’s Guilt In Nathaniel Hawthorne's novel, The Scarlet Letter, admitting guilt opens oneself to sin. When Hester admits to being guilty of adultery, it condemns her. However, by accepting her condemnation, she saves her soul. On the other hand, Dimmesdale does not confess to his part in the adultery. He keeps his guilt bottled up inside.

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According to Hawthorne, the consequence of sin is mental deterioration as represented by Reverend Dimmesdale. Dimmesdale is a priest that has committed a vile crime, although only a scanty amount of people know about it. Dimmesdale has not publically announced his sin, which in turn worsens his mental health due to guilt. Dimmesdale stood in front of the town when his past lover, Hester, was being publically humiliated and never uttered a word, only placed “his hand upon his heart” (59). The consequence of not admitting his immoral sin was ultimate guilt.

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I believe Dimmesdale did enough for forgiveness because in the end of the story, he stood on the scaffold with Hester and Pearl. In the Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne in chapter 23 Hawthorne states; “Hester Prynne," cried he, with a piercing earnestness, "in the name of Him, so terrible and so merciful, who gives me grace, at this last moment, to do what--for my own heavy sin and miserable agony--I withheld myself from doing seven years ago, come hither now, and twine thy strength about me! Thy strength, Hester; but let it be guided by the will which God hath granted me! This wretched and wronged old man is opposing it with all his might!--with all his own might, and the fiend's! Come, Hester--come!

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What may a red "A" on your bosom mean? Well for Hester Prynne, it was a punishment that she had and only her had to pay. After having a baby, Pearl, with a man that was not her husband, she was charged with adultery. She carried the punishment to her grave, but not until seven years after Pearl had been born did the father speak out.

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In order to reveal Dimmesdale's sorrowful nature. Hawthorne describes the different actions the poor minister takes in order to attempt to atone for his sins such as “[fasting]” and his use of a “bloody scourge” he genuinely believed that this would help to purify himself of his sins and to relieve the burden that he was forced to bear upon his shoulders, however his attempts to atone ultimately lead to even more torment. Hawthorne discloses this by describing Dimmesdale’s visions of the “herd of diabolic shapes, that grinned and mocked at the pale minister” this further reveals the utter anguish that he is going through another example of this is the vision of his mother “turning her face away as she passed by” the emotional

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... He longed to speak out, from his own pulpit, at the full height of his voice, and tell the people what he was. His deception over the people increases his stress level which add onto his decline of health. Dimmesdale’s suffering and guilt drives him to physically abuse himself.

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In the story The Scarlet Letter, by Nathaniel Hawthorne, the character Dimmesdale demonstrates that hiding guilt and sin only leads to self- loathing and that it may be easier to exhibit guilt rather than conceal it. In the beginning of the story, Hawthorne describes a scene in which Hester stands on the scaffold in front and of a large crowd. “On the breast of her gown, in fine red cloth, surrounded with an elaborate embroidery and fantastic flourishes of gold thread, appeared the letter A ” (Hawthorne 48). As Hester walked to the scaffold everyone focused the A displayed on her chest.

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The article, “Why we undervalue a liberal arts education” By Adam Chapnick written on March 6, 2013 is informative and insightful because the author talks about the importance of not undervaluing liberal arts. Chapnick tells you that at the end of the day science, technology, engineering and mathematics is what is really important. One of Adam Chapnick main idea is that the large public does not get the value of liberal arts. That it has no money value, it is just important.

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Thesis: Dimmesdale, a naturally “dim” individual, neither has moral strength nor courage to face the consequences of his sin. I. Dimmesdale is completely “dim”, or unaware of Chillingworth’s true intentions toward him. A. Dimmesdale is continually tormented by guilt that is exacerbated by Chillingworth’s wicked, prying heart. B. Chillingworth harbors suspicions that Dimmesdale is Pearl’s father, and uses the friendly relationship he has with Dimmesdale to increase Dimmesdale’s mental anguish. II.

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There are many different themes in the early chapters of The Scarlet Letter that support the development of the plot. A main theme found in the novel is that deception and secrecy can be destructive. Hawthorne incorporates several secrets kept for various reasons, and all lead to some form of chaos. One example is the Reverend’s attempt to keep his connection with Pearl a secret, which proves to be a major impediment to his everyday life. Reverend Dimmesdale’s secret is one that becomes destructive in his mental and physical health, his involvement with the church and community, and in his relationships with others.

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In 1964, Lawrence Kohlberg, a psychologist introduced the idea that humans evolved through different stages of morality. In the novel, The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne male characters exemplify a moral development as the story unfolds. In particular, Arthur Dimmesdale’s morality differs from the beginning of the novel to the ending of the novel. His morality undergoes continuity and change by constantly changing from selfishness, social order, and social contract. Dimmesdale undergoes the morality maintaining the social order and being considerate of others to eventually being selfish and only thinks about himself.

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The book “The Scarlet Letter” by Nathaniel Hawthorne is a complex novel that has underlying themes of sin and the responsibility for sin. The novel takes place in a Puritanical society, but two people, Hester Prynne and Arthur Dimmesdale, fornicate with each other, even though Hester is married to someone else. Only Hester is punished, so Dimmesdale keeps his guilt inside, not revealing it to anyone. Hester’s husband, Chillingworth, then proceeds to ruin Hester’s partner in crime, corrupting his soul and being the ultimate cause for his death. Hester, on the other hand, leads a relatively happy life after she had repented for her sin.

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In The Scarlet Letter, Hawthorne suggests that the origin of guilt is the absence of confession in the presence of sin; He specifies that guilt is often a tool of satan and, taken too

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When encountered with a woman charged with adultery, Jesus proclaimed, “Let any one of you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her” (John 8:7). As no man is truly without sin, humans cannot justly punish them for sins without holy guidance. They can, however, worsen their own sin to the point of being irredeemable. in The Scarlet Letter, by Nathaniel Hawthorne, Arthur Dimmesdale’s sin was the most unholy and dangerous of all those presented in the novel.

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