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What Does Roger Chillingworth Symbolize In The Scarlet Letter

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Why are symbols important? Symbols within this book relate to American life in the past, present, and future. The Scarlet Letter is a novel by Nathaniel Hawthorne about a woman named Hester. She wears a scarlet A on her chest. This symbol marks her as an adulterer and a sinner in the Puritan society where she resides. Roger is the man who was hurt because of this sin (her husband), and he is determined to uncover the identity of the man who “stole” his wife. In The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne, Roger Chillingworth symbolizes revenge while Hester Prene can be seen as a symbol of strength. They have similarities such as anger and differences in the sins they carry. Roger Chillingworth represents revenge. Roger spoke to Hester about …show more content…

This makes Arthur concerned, worsening his condition because he is afraid of the town discovering his secret and scorning him in this life and the next. Hester told Roger, “Better he died at once! Never did mortal suffer what this man has suffered. And all, all in the sight of his worst enemy!” (Hawthorne 157). Chillingworth pretends to be a doctor and says he will attempt to heal the reverend from his sickness. He never has the intention of healing Arthur because he holds a grudge against him for having a child with his wife. So vengeful is Roger, that he sins against his roommate by purposefully harming him. “Roger Chillingworth’s aspect had undergone a remarkable change while he had dwelt in town…” (Hawthorne 117). Through the course of this story, Roger can be seen changing spiritually and physically. He becomes a vile and cruel man and even the shape of his face changes. Hester Prene represents strength. “Open a passage; and, I promise ye, Mistress Prynne shall be set where man, woman, and child might have fair sight of her brave apparel, from this time…” (Hawthorne 51). This is a representation of strength because she is resisting the pressure of the community

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558 Words | 3 Pages

A person’s outward appearance often influences the way others perceive their character. In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter, Roger Chillingworth arrives in the colony to find that his wife, Hester, is being punished for extramarital relations. As the storyline continues, Chillingworth acts as the colony’s physician, becoming very close to Dimmesdale and Hester Prynne. Consequently, Chillingworth’s desire for revenge guided his appearance and interactions with Hester Prynne and Dimmesdale, ultimately altering his character.

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285 Words | 2 Pages

Roger Chillingworth committed the greater sin in the Scarlet Letter. Chillingworth was a malicious man. After the news that Hester had committed adultery, he became more and more like the “Black Man.” He lied about being a doctor and his identity. Additionally, Chillingworth was the overall cause for Dimmesdale’s death, after seven years of torturing his mind.

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315 Words | 2 Pages

Hawthorne uses many forms of rhetoric to portray his characters, but relies heavily on pathos in the instance of Hester Prynne. She’s a member of an inherently misogynistic society, and because she’s a woman, her every act is scrutinized. As punishment for her act of adultery, Hester is ordered to adorn her chest with a permanent scarlet letter. Although the audience is well aware of the atrocity of the sin she’s committed, Hawthorne’s writing sparks a feeling of empathy within the reader. Throughout the novel, the reader is exposed to several clear uses of pathos.

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867 Words | 4 Pages

In the novel the scarlet letter, the scarlet letter is shown through the use of imagery and figurative language to demonstrate that judgment through society as well as sin is bad while the scarlet is a symbol of sin wrapped in good and beauty. Hester is able to take something that was meant to be a punishment for a crime she committed and turn it into something absolutely stunning. Hawthorne portrayed Pearl

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505 Words | 3 Pages

The Scarlet Letter In The Scarlet Letter by Daniel Hawthorne many villainous acts occur that contribute to the plot and direction of the text. One antagonist in the novel is Chillingworth, the “departed” husband of Hester Prynne. Chillingworth and his constant mission to gain his wife's love and to reveal the father with whom Hester's baby was conceived by leads him to take some villainous actions. Chillingworth took many actions to obtain his goals, examples of this are constantly exemplified throughout the novel, one example is Chillingworth’s unrelenting hatred towards Dimmesdale.

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748 Words | 3 Pages

The Scarlet Letter Essay “All that guilty sorrow, hidden from the world, whose great heart would have pitied and forgiven, to be revealed to him, the Pitiless, to him, the Unforgiving! All that dark treasure to be lavished on the very man, to whom nothing else could so adequately pay the debt of vengeance!” (Hawthorne 111). Without doubt, throughout The Scarlet Letter Roger Chillingworth is been a very flat character in the sense that even from his first appearance in chapter three until chapter twenty-four when he drops dead his mission was to get revenge on Pearl's father.

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200 Words | 1 Pages

The Scarlet Letter introduces us to a few characters. Two being Arthur Dimmesdale and Roger Chillingworth. These two characters seem to be the polar opposite. They also have a few things that they have in common. First off, Chillingworth is described as a very inhuman character.

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616 Words | 3 Pages

Symbolism Within The Scarlet Letter Hawthorne created symbolism throughout The Scarlet Letter in order to develop the theme throughout Hester’s life. Hester is portrayed as a sheltered soul, shunned from society due to her adulterous acts. The red A and her daughter, Pearl, are symbols of Hester’s shame which she bares proudly despite society's harsh judgements. Hawthorne is able to use symbolism to develop themes, characters, and analogies in the Scarlet Letter.

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656 Words | 3 Pages

In “The Scarlet Letter,” the author, Nathaniel Hawthorne, depicts Roger Chillingworth as a man that is out for revenge. Chillingworth comes into the story and immediately comes to realize that his ex-wife has betrayed him by sleeping with another man. Chillingworth wants to avenge his pride by finding the man that did him wrong by sneaking into his personal life and torturing him under his nose. Throughout this book, Chillingworth changes in many different ways, physically and emotionally. Driven by his lust for revenge, Roger Chillingworth uses his personal background to hide his intent of torturing his wife’s hidden lover, and changes his being throughout the book.

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1010 Words | 5 Pages

In the book The Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne uses multiple characters as symbols. With an influx of evidence, Hawthorne proves that Roger Chillingworth is a symbol of evil. Roger Chillingworth first appears in chapter three of the book. He is Hester’s estranged husband from England. He fits into the story as a medical professional that has just traveled to the town.

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1270 Words | 6 Pages

Throughout The Scarlet Letter, Hawthorne exposes the blindness of the Puritan people through the treatment of Hester, Chillingworth, and Dimmesdale’s external characters. Hester Prynne is labeled as an adulteress and mistreated by society because of their unwillingness to see her true character. Chillingworth, the husband of Hester, leads the town to believe he is an honorable man and skillful doctor, when his true intents root from his vindictive nature Finally, Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale, Hester’s lover and the father of her baby, acts as the perfect man therefore the town views him as an exemplar model, while he is truly a sinner. In the novel, Hawthorne portrays Hester as a strong, resilient woman, though the members of her community

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665 Words | 3 Pages

The book The Scarlet Letter by Nathanial Hawthorne has symbolism all throughout it. People and objects are symbolic of events and thoughts. Throughout the book, Nathaniel Hawthorne uses Hester, Pearl, and Arthur Dimmesdale to signify philosophies that are evident during this time period. Hester Prynne, through the eyes of the Puritans, is an extreme sinner; she has gone against their ways, committing adultery. For this sin, she must wear a symbol of shame for the rest of her life.

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940 Words | 4 Pages

Hawthorne uses symbolism throughout the Scarlet letter to display the sin and indecency people see Hester as. The detail represents ,the deep beauty Hester has inside although most people do not see her as a beutiful women. The deep red is a representation of adultery which shows her being an oncast from society. The symbol of the letter “A” is repetitive throughout the novel and grows with Hester and overcomes this with time as people start to see her as a person again and not just a adulterer. Hester acknowledges her sin in her puritan faith but swears to secrecy on the father of Pearl.

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687 Words | 3 Pages

In Richard Connel’s short story, “The most dangerous game” is about two men fighting in a life or death situation. In addition, one had to suffer through his own consequence.     The story consist two main characters. General Zaroff and Sanger Rainsford. Between them, I noticed a major contrast between their personalities and actions.

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1322 Words | 6 Pages

Chillingworth wants revenge towards Hester´s lover and he won´t rest until he finds him. Roger tells Hester not to tell anyone that he is her husband, he doesn´t want people to know that Hester is his wife because people would think of him as the betrayed husband and he would live in shame. Chillingworth pretends to be a doctor, that way he won´t drag too much attention since the town is small and the people living in it don´t have access to good

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