Who Is Arthur Dimmesdale In The Scarlet Letter

The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne is a book filled with romance, surprises, and second chances. Arthur Dimmesdale is a reverend, Reverend Wilson’s younger brother. Arthur’s greatest sin, committing adultery with Hester Prynne, will come to haunt him and lead to his eventual, though untimely, death. Reverend Wilson, along with Arthur’s other parishioners, think that he is a saint (or something close to it). Later on, the author uses this to accentuate his greatest flaw, cowardice, when Dimmesdale tries to tell his congregation of his great sin, when Roger Chillingworth asks Dimmesdale to reveal his secret so that he can better treat his illness, and when he meets Hester in the forest. First of all, when Dimmesdale tries to gather up

However, Dimmesdale responds with, “Perchance, he earnestly desired it, but could not” (page 149). Both of these incidents are examples of Dimmesdale’s wanting to confess his secret, but is too much of a coward to go through with it. He is also afraid that Chillingworth will abandon him because he knew that Hester was going to tell Arthur about their true relationship (page 228). Throughout it all, he also had a niggling fear of Chillingworth in a spiritual sense because, at times, he could sense Chillingworth digging and probing around for that one all-important secret (page 160). For example, on the second scaffold scene, Arthur says,” I tell thee, my soul shivers at him.” “Who is he?” “Who is he?” Canst thou do nothing for me? I have a nameless horror of the man.”(Page 178). Last, but certainly not least, is the climax, when Arthur runs into Hester in the forest (page 220). Hester asks him if he has been able to find peace. Arthur says that no, he has not; he has only been able to find despair (page 222).