Bringing sin and redemption to life in the form of literature was the purpose of Nathaniel Hawthorne in composing “The Scarlet Letter”. Hawthorne, through his writings, tried to compensate and apologize due to his ancestors having a violent and unpleasant history. In the seventeenth century, Major William Hathorne, his great-great-great-grandfather, persecuted Quakers due to differences in beliefs. His great-great-grandfather, Justice John Hathorne, then followed suit by being a judge in the Salem witch trials. In “The Scarlet Letter,” Hawthorne merges his family’s history with his imagination to perfectly depict his interpretation of sin and redemption. Nearly every character in the novel has a deep connection in the world of Hawthorne. Hester Prynne, for example, represents the people who were wrongly judged and criticized in the past. Prynne was punished to wear a scarlet ‘A’ until she dies because the law …show more content…
Throughout the novel Dimmesdale hid the truth. He hid the fact that, as a minister, he committed adultery. That he, as a holy person, conceived a child based on sin. He lies and lies until his own self dims around him. It is because he lives in a world full of lies, that he slowly ceases to exist. He represents the people who were aware of the mistake of basing the rules of life around Christianity. However, he may also represent those who were completely blinded by their faith. While Hester was being judged, he said, “If thou feelest it to be for thy soul's peace, and that thy earthly punishment will thereby be made more effectual to salvation, I charge thee to speak out the name of thy fellow-sinner and fellow-sufferer!” (73). His statement becomes an example of believing a lie so much that he sees it as the truth. Dimmesdale lead a life with a baseless belief, just as Major William Hathorne, Justice John Hathorne, and a majority of others