Wait a second!
More handpicked essays just for you.
Puritan society in new england
Puritan society in new england
The religious hipocicy in the Scarlet letter
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
More handpicked essays just for you.
Puritan society in new england
Puritan society in new england
The religious hipocicy in the Scarlet letter
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
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!
In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter, Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale commits a mortal sin by having an affair with a married woman, Hester Prynne. As a man of the cloth in Puritan society, Dimmesdale is expected to be the embodiment of the town’s values. He becomes captive to a self-imposed guilt that manifests from affair and his fear that he won’t meet the town’s high expectations of him. In an attempt to mitigate this guilt, Dimmesdale acts “piously” and accepts Chillingworth’s torture, causing him to suffer privately, unlike Hester who repented in the eyes of the townspeople. When Dimmesdale finally reveals his sin to the townspeople, he is able to free himself from his guilt.
Then, and there, before the judgment seat, thy mother, and thou, and I must stand together. But the daylight of this world shall not see our meeting!" (Hawthrone 277). This reply Dimmesdale gives to pearl when she asks him why he cannot stay with his mother and her together shows that even though Dimmesdale feels guilt and wants to make things right with Pearl and Hester. However, he still has a constant fear of what the public would think of him and the fear of losing his position in the church/society.
Erin Joel Mrs. Janosy English 2H P 5 22 October 2015 Quote Explication Dimmesdale is trying to overcome a conflict within his own soul, defying his own religion, and choosing to do wrong by keeping his sin to himself. In a theocracy type community like Dimmesdale's, God is known as the supreme civil ruler, and a crime would be known as a sin. On the other hand, Hester’s sin was made known to the public, receiving the public shame and ridicule she deserved. During the duration of time when the public knew Dimmesdale was hiding his sin, “the agony with which this public tortured him” (Hawthorne 119).
In the book The Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne demonstrated Dimmesdale suffering and regret over the years that build him up and lead him to many obstacles and challenges that killed him in the inside. Also, Nathaniel Hawthorne depicts the agony of Dimmesdale`s conscience as his guilt that is eating away at him until he confesses. In addition, Dimmesdale’s faces many obstacles and challenges that killed him and eat him from the inside. For example, of a challenge that he faces is not confessing to Hester Prynne up front to the townsfolks that he was Hester partner in the affairs. Another example is that when Hester walk up on stage and confess that she was responsible for the adultery and while she was talking, she has
At the beginning of the book, Dimmesdale attempts to tell his followers of his adulterous sins in his sermons, but “They heard it all, and did but reverence him more… ‘The godly youth!’ said they among themselves, ‘The saint on earth!’” (134). Here, despite Dimmesdale’s efforts, the crowd does not understand that he is trying to share a great sin with them. But later in the novel Dimmesdale climbs the scaffold in the center of the town, and confesses his guilt to the townspeople, and in response “[the people’s] great heart was thoroughly appalled, yet overflowing with tearful sympathy, as knowing [of] some deep life-matter - which, if full of sin, was full of anguish and repentance likewise…” (238-239).
Furthermore, Dimmesdale had assisted Hester Prynne with the Adultery signed on her chest because he just won't confess. Nathaniel Hawthorne says,
Guilt lead Dimmesdale to whip himself, starve himself, and possibly carve the scarlet letter into himself. His health depletes rapidly after Hester is publically shamed but he is allowed to continue his normal daily life. This creates unrest in Dimmesdale, he feels that he also deserves a punishment. Therefore, one night, Dimmesdale in his state of omnipresent guilt, goes to the scaffold, the one that Hester was publicly shamed on. While traveling
Many characters from The Scarlet Letter, written by Nathaniel Hawthorne, changed throughout the progression of the novel, — including Chillingworth, Hester, and even Pearl herself. No character, however, has changed as much as Dimmesdale has. Towards the beginning of the novel, Dimmesdale tries to ignore his sinful actions. Near the middle of the book, the clergyman, with the ‘help’ of Chillingworth, is able to realize his wrongdoings, and starts obsessively thinking of those wrongdoings. Around the end of the novel, with the help of the forest’s freedom, is able to finally repent correctly for his sin.
While both Chillingworth and Dimmesdale were living together so Chillingworth can conduct laboratorial exams, the narrator makes
In chapter 12 it’s noted that because Dimmesdale has not come forward about his sins, he is faced with the harsh judgment of himself and feelings of inferiority, by allowing Hester to endure the punishment alone, although both committed the sin (Hawthorne, 531). Hawthorne writes, “A mockery, indeed, but in which his soul trifled with itself” he then continues to say, “He has been driven hither by the impulse of that Remorse which dogged him everywhere” (Hawthorne, 531). Later in the novel it’s confirmed that the remorse Dimmesdale feels has too taken an emotional toll on him (Hawthorne, 538). In chapter 8, Hawthorne expressed the emotional toll of judgment and justification on Hester. Hawthorne states, “The world was hostile” (Hawthorne, 541).
For example, Dimmesdale’s actions show that he has something to hide: “He keeps vigils, likewise, night after night” (Hawthorne 127). Dimmesdale fears if his furtive sin becomes exposed, that his reputation in the community would vanish as well. Fear floods Dimmesdale’s brain at the thought of losing the communities support. He pities himself for risking his reputation: “Whose great heart would have pitied and forgiven . . .” (Hawthorne 127).
(158), and he replies “More Misery, Hester! Only more misery” (158). In reality, he feels worse about “saving” others because he is really just corrupting the “redemption of [their] souls” by virtue of his own “ruined soul” (158). This quote is important because one argument for not confessing is that you can still help people; however, if your soul is corrupt, how can you save others? In the end, Dimmesdale’s body cannot stand the guilt any longer, and he decides he must confess before he passes away.
After he sinned with Hester he did his best to conceal his sin. In the beginning of the book he had the opportunity to confess his part in the making of the baby, but he stood instead “Leaning over the balcony”(76). Because of his concealed sin he lived a lie. He would get up on his pulpit and would utter “I...am utterly a pollution and a lie”(164). While Mr. Dimmesdale’s one mistake was a shameful one he could have reconciled himself by confessing his sin to the
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.