ipl-logo

Dimmesdale's Guilt

825 Words4 Pages

Born in 1804, Nathaniel Hawthorne was a relative of John Hathorne. Originally his last name was Hathorne but since his relative John Hathorne was the only person from the Salem Witch Trials who did not repent of his actions, Hawthorne didn’t want to be tied directly to his relative and so he changed his name to Hawthorne. In 1850, Hawthorne published The Scarlet Letter, which he wrote to show his hatred towards the Puritans and their beliefs. In The Scarlet Letter guilt is the number one psychological idea shown. Nathaniel Hawthorne explains the psychological effects of guilt in The Scarlet Letter through the use of characters, settings, and symbols. The one character effect by guilt, the most, is Dimmesdale. This guilt is shown all throughout …show more content…

The first scene is in chapter nine when all the characters in the book start to notice how Dimmesdale is always clutching his heart. At this point the characters do not know the true reason for this action but it is recurring enough to notice. Dimmesdale is clutching his heart because he feels a great deal of guilt which is causing him physical and emotional pain. This scene is symbolized by his hand over his heart, because the guilt that Dimmesdale causes a great deal of pain in his heart. “But how could the young minister say so, when, with every successive Sabbath, his cheek was paler and thinner, and his voice more tremulous than before - when it had now become a constant habit, rather than a casual gesture, to press his hand over his …show more content…

Alongside Dimmesdale is Pearl and Hester all holding hands and talking. While on the scaffold with Hester and Pearl a meteor flies through the sky in which Dimmesdale believes is an “A” that is meant for him. Others believe that the “A” represents angel for the one who has just passed away but Dimmesdale believes that it was meant for him. This scene is symbolized by the “A” in the sky, because of that “A” that passed by Dimmesdale his guilt has grown even stronger. “So vivid was the expression, or so intense the minister’s perception of it, that it seemed still to remain painted on the darkness after the meteor had vanished, with an effect as is the street and all things else were at once

Show More
Related

The Scarlet Letter How To Read Literature Like A Professor

863 Words | 4 Pages

He was suffering from chest pain because of the secret he was hiding from the Puritan society. He was dying every day from inside because he could not carry the weight of his sin. He was totally consumed by guilt; his “form grew emaciated; his voice ...... his hand over his heart, with first a flush and then a paleness, indicative of plain” ( Hawthorne 13 ). This quote shows that Dimmesdale’s guilt had an impact on his health.

Read More

Hester Prynne Guilt Quotes In Scarlet Letter

934 Words | 4 Pages

Being in such close contact with Dimmesdale, Chillingworth begins to suspect that the minister's illness is the result of some unconfessed guilt. He applies psychological pressure to the minister because he suspects Dimmesdale to be Pearl's father. One evening, pulling the sleeping Dimmesdale's vestment aside, Chillingworth sees something startling on the sleeping minister's pale chest: a scarlet

Read More

Who Is Dimmesdale Guilty Of Adultery

582 Words | 3 Pages

“Why, then, had he come hither? Was it but the mockery of penitence? A mockery, indeed, but in which his soul trifled with itself. He had been driven higher by the impulse of that Remorse which dogged him everywhere” (Hawthorne 138) here dimmesdale can 't face the justice of what he has done wrong which is why the author called him a coward and is the reason why he kept his secrets because he is a coward to admit it to and face the consequences which is why later the guilt of keeping them eats him from the inside.

Read More

The Guilt Of Dimmesdale In Nathaniel Hawthorne's 'The Scarlet Letter'

319 Words | 2 Pages

By Dimmesdale's hand always on his chest, everyone makes the connection that he is the father of Pearl because of the Scarlet Letter on Hester’s

Read More

The Scarlet Letter Dimmesdale's Transformation

523 Words | 3 Pages

Dimmesdale changes his views on the repentance of sin throughout the The Scarlet Letter, especially during the beginning, when he is in denial; middle, when Chillingworth makes Dimmesdale turn obsessive of his sin; and end, when

Read More

Arthur Dimmesdale Within The Puritan Society

1177 Words | 5 Pages

Due to committing a sin Dimmesdale suffers mentally and emotionally, but not publicly. Since Arthur was not given public shaming like Hester and Pearl he takes his punishment upon himself. Dimmesdale has drove himself mentally sick, but once Chillingworth decided to help him with his health issues in order to get closer to revealing the sin from him, Dimmesdale acts like he is having chest pains. Dimmesdale claims “ Not to thee!

Read More

Suffering In The Scarlet Letter By Arthur Dimmesdale

762 Words | 4 Pages

Dimmesdale does not confess that he has committed a sin with Hester, and for a brutal seven years, he withholds his guilt inside of him. One of his worst sufferings is Pearl his own daughter rejects him. His child does not love him and washes off the kisses he gives her. Arthur Dimmesdale has the most tribulations without a doubt. He is faced to live with and tormented by not only his overwhelming guilt of sin, but moreover Roger Chillingworth who plagued him almost as much as his own conscience.

Read More

Arthur Dimmesdale's Guilt In Scarlet Letter

171 Words | 1 Pages

At the end of the novel Arthur Dimmesdale could rest on peace. The guilt makes him sick and becoming crazy with the help of Roger Chillingworth that psychologically torture Arthur. At the end Mr.Dimmesdale accomplish get rid of the guilt by confessing the truth. When he confesses it, Pearl gave him a kiss and at he said to Hester that God made the things for something and if it were not for God, he would be lost. Mr.Dimmesdale was dying, but he knows that he was not going to die in peace until he confessed, so he decided to leave the fear and cowardice on a side that held him, and stood on the scaffold to tell everybody that he was the father of Pearl.

Read More

The Guilt Of Reverend Dimmesdale

861 Words | 4 Pages

In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s, The Scarlet Letter, Hester Prynne is convicted of adultery and the whole town ostracises her for her sin and the secrecy of who the father is, who is coincidentally their preacher, Reverend Dimmesdale. The town fails to find out the true identity of the father until he confesses seven years later after the birth of Pearl. While Hester is able to forgive herself with the help of her only treasure, Pearl, Reverend Dimmesdale does not forgive himself. When Rev. Dimmesdale fails to confess and forgive himself, he dooms his life forever because of the burden of his sin; but, not only did it hurt his life, it hurt Hester and Pearl and the rest of the community. Reverend Dimmesdale feels very guilty for not confessing to

Read More

What Is The Symbolism In The Minister's Black Veil

1113 Words | 5 Pages

Nathaniel Hawthorne is one of the most studied and influential writers in history. His many works use symbolism and allegory to portray their purpose, filling them with deep meaning and offering a wide variety of interpretation. Hawthorne was not particularly proud of his family history; he disagreed with some of his ancestors positions in the salem witch trials. He distanced himself with that part of his family and added a “w” to his name to further do so. Hawthorne was born in Salem Massachusetts, which gave him a prevalent theme of puritanism in many of his stories.

Read More

Social Interaction In Dracula

979 Words | 4 Pages

Humans have relied on interaction with other humans since the creation of man; without human interaction, one does not learn the social expectations and civilized manners required to survive in this world. Dracula’s view as an anti hero build the claim to his lonely existence. Loneliness can be attributed to any of the main characters within Dracula and can even explain the motivations behind their actions. Moreover, the characters, at times, not only feel physically separated from the others in the story, as well as society, but they also feel emotionally isolated. Also, Count Dracula leads the loneliest existence out of all of the characters in the novel, and is therefore motivated the most by his feelings of isolation and desire for companionship

Read More

The Hidden Sin In The Scarlet Letter

686 Words | 3 Pages

As the moving of story, the “side effect” of the hidden sin has reveal. Dimmesdale become more sick and powerless. As the end of the story, Dimmesdale concede the sin and died as the winner of the fight with hidden sin. Dimmesdale as a combination of saint and sinner, his sin is not committed adultery, but it is that he cannot face the sin and admit it. He wanted to be all perfect in the eyes of the masses, but destroyed his perfectly in the eyes of God.

Read More

How Did Nathaniel Hawthorne Write The Scarlet Letter

812 Words | 4 Pages

Nathaniel Hawthorne was born on July 4, 1804 in Salem, Massachusetts. As a matter of fact, Nathaniel Hawthorne has had lots of influence in his life that caused him to write The Scarlet Letter. Possibly his greatest influence for writing this novel came from his earliest American ancestor, William Hawthorne. William Hawthorne was a magistrate who condemned a Quaker woman to public whipping. William Hawthorne believed strongly in Puritan orthodoxy because it believed in a pure unaltered form of religious worship, it followed an extremely simple way of life, and its views of the “natural depravity” of “fallen” men.

Read More

Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter And The House Of Seven Gables

452 Words | 2 Pages

Nathaniel Hawthorne was an American author who is most famous for writing The Scarlet Letter and The House of Seven Gables. He was born July 4, 1804 in Salem, Massachusetts as Nathaniel Hathorne. He later added the “w” later in his life to distinguish himself from his ancestors, such as John Hathorne, who dappled in the Salem witch trials. After graduating from college, Hawthorne submerged himself in researching his ancestral roots and his Puritan past. His research helped to push him into writing his many stories.

Read More

Nathaniel Hawthorne Research Paper

732 Words | 3 Pages

The History of Nathaniel Hawthorne Nathaniel Hawthorne was an American writer. He was born in Salem Massachusetts to a New England family with a puritan background. The family name was actually Hathorne but Nathaniel Hawthorne added a w to his name to distinguish himself from the rest of the people in the family. Nathaniel Hawthorne’s most well-known book is “The Scarlet Letter”. Nathaniel Hawthorne was living in the same time period as Ralph Waldo Emerson (Clendenning 1).

Read More

More about Dimmesdale's Guilt

Related Topics

Open Document