Most people believe that there exists at least one person in the world who matches their personality exactly. Others believe that for every person there is an exact opposite or an evil twin so to speak. In the case of Hester Prynne and Arthur Dimmesdale, they fall somewhere in between these two definitions. Both were sinners, and yet the people glorified Dimmesdale and cast Hester away, only because they were misinformed. Hester Prynne and Arthur Dimmesdale are, at first glance totally different, however upon closer inspection, they become increasingly more similar.
Lifestyle is a trait everyone shares, however the trait itself can vary from person to person. Hester lived a life of exile and seclusion. The townspeople no longer wanted her. She was representative of sin and for that she had to be “cleansed” from the great Puritan body that was Boston. Dimmesdale, however, lived the life of a hero. He was, in the opinion of the people, the closest thing anyone of them had to God. He was often showered with praise and loved by the community. They did lead similar lifestyles, in the respect that they were both living a life based on keeping secrets. Hester was keeping secret the fact that Chillingworth was her husband. Chillingworth was trying to learn the identity of Pearl’s father “under the semblance of a friend and helper, and had availed himself of the opportunities thus afford to tapering with the delicate springs or Mr. Dimmsdale’s nature" (Hawthorne 173). Dimmesdale kept secret the fact that he was Pearl’s father and Hester’s “accomplice in sin”. Keeping the secret began to degrade Dimmesdale’s health, however even at his weakest, Dimmsdale’s secret was not revealed to the public (Hawthorne 285).
All people share character traits, however much like lifestyle, the traits themselves can be as varied as the colors of the rainbow. In Hester’s case, her main character trait was her submission to the punishment of the “A”, however through this submission, she became strong. After seven years of abuse, she learned to live with the shame. She wore the “A” even after there was general acceptance of her in the colony. She also became caring. She made clothes for many people and always helped the needy. Dimmesdale begins the story as a hypocritical being, and he remains so until the end of the book. He engaged in the very same sin as Hester, but he makes her the topic of every sermon, and preaches to her about the wrongnesses of evil.
Hester and Dimmesdale’s affair goes undiscovered until Hester is pregnant and bears a child without having her husband present. As her punishment, Hester is forced to stand on the scaffold in the middle of the market place, with an A on her chest. Dimmesdale has not told a single person that he is the adulterer. He sits in the balcony with the Governor, a judge, a general, and the rest of the ministers, watching the display, without any expression or emotion. Hester and Pearl go to the Governor’s home to deliver a pair of gloves, but more importantly to inquire about the possibility of the government taking away her child. Also there with Governor Bellingham are Pastor Wilson, Reverend Dimmesdale and Roger Chillingworth. After Mr. Wilson asks Pearl a few questions, the Governor decides that Hester is unfit as a mother and that the child would be better off in the hands of the church. Hester begs Dimmesdale, whom she says knows everything about her and has charge of her soul, to speak for her. Therefore, he does, convincing the Governor to let Hester keep Pearl. This is Dimmesdale’s first step to becoming the moral blossom. Late at night, a few years after the previous incident, Dimmesdale takes a walk through the town. He climbs onto the scaffold and pretends to confess; though there is no one out at this time at night. Hester and Pearl, on their way home, pass Dimmesdale on the scaffold. Dimmesdale calls out to them and they join him, standing hand in hand in the darkness. Dimmesdale has begun the road to confession by acknowledging Hester and Pearl and by acting out confession. Now he feels guiltier than ever.
To the town, Dimmesdale appears to be perfectly righteous and is respected highly; while in reality, he is just as guilty as Hester. The hypocrisy of his character first begins to develop as he denies his own sinfulness
One of Hester’s greatest qualities is her unrelenting selflessness. Despite her constant mental anguish due to her sin, the constant stares and rude comments, and the
The life of secrecy wasn 't as easy as Dimmesdale had thought it would be because he is now very ill from all the stress by keeping it inside. His sickness nonetheless, is not physically, but mentally. Dimmesdale was prescribed medication to keep himself from shutting down. He is still fully committed to staying with Hester and their daughter, Pearl, even if their relationship cannot move any further at the time being because Hester is still making a good name for herself again. The medicine however, only works a little bit or for a small amount of time because of how much guilt Dimmesdale is giving himself from not confessing. Arthur Dimmesdale lives with the pain growing and growing without confessing, wanting to please Hester, keep his promise to her and make sure she gets treated the way she is supposed to from all the drudgery she has done to remake her life new. Dimmesdale, at the time has his concentration on keeping other people happy at his time of life to make up for the sin he has done that he did not focus on keeping himself happy and neither did anyone else. Arthur Dimmesdale did not have the opportunity to confess his sins to the town because Hester and he agreed to keep that part of their life a secret from people, not wanting to have an even higher punishment. After more and more time passes on, Dimmesdale continues his ministry following his new emotional path
In choosing to contain his deep sin as a secret, Mr. Dimmesdale suffered from a festering guilt that plagued him until his death. After Hester was sentenced with the punishment for her act of adultery, Mr. Dimmesdale remained silent in refusal to confess to his inclusion in the sin. Over time, feelings of remorse gnawed at Mr. Dimmesdale’s conscience and left him in a self loathing state for his own hypocrisy. Dimmesdale felt excessive guilt in allowing Hester to undergo the entirety of the ridicule and punishment alone while he maintained a positioned of respected and idolized authority, yet could not find it in his heart to expose the sin. Looking upon his situation with the Puritan perspective, Mr. Dimmesdale “…loved the truth and loathed the lie, as few men ever did. Therefore above all things else, he loathed his miserable self” (136). Mr. Dimmesdale felt he was living a lie for he, the very man who preached to the community about living a pure life, was living one tainted with...
In further developing Dimmesdale's character, Hawthorne portrays him as a hypocrite. His outward demeanor deceives the villagers, appearing as a completely holy man. However, before the action of the novel begins, he stumbles into sin, by committing adultery with Hester Pryn...
Both Hester and Dimmesdale, are characters in the Scarlet Letter. They suffer with the guilt of the sin of adultery that they committed. At the time, the Puritans looked down on this type of sin. Hester and Dimmesdale can be compared and contrast in the way they handled their scarlet letter, their cowardliness, and their belief of what the afterlife is.
Throughout the novel, the harsh Puritan townspeople begin to realize the abilities of Hester despite her past. Hester works selflessly and devotes herself to the wellbeing of others. “Hester sought not to acquire anything beyond a subsistence of the plainest and most ascetic description, for herself, and a simple abundance for her child.
Pearl is not only a symbol of Hester but also a symbol to Dimmsdale. Pearl will not let him into her life until he accepts his sin. She wants him as a father but will not let him until he will not hide his sin in public. Pearl knows that Dimmsdale will not be seen holding her hand in the public eye and this bothers her. She asks her mother, " wilt tho promise to hold my and thy mothers hand to-morrow?"(105)
Reverend Dimmesdale was the puritan minister in Boston. Dimmesdale's sin was committing adultery with Hester creating a child named Pearl. Dimmesdale kept his sin a secret protecting himself. “‘Be not silent from any mistaken pity and tenderness for him; for, believe me, Hester, though he were to step down from a high place, and stand there beside thee, on thy pedestal...
In the puritan society one is judged by what someone has done in the past or their role in society. Both Hester and Dimmesdale are judged by whom the puritan people think they are. For Hester, the first thing they do when they see her emerge from the doors of the jail is judge her by her looks. For instance the author explained her as, "...tall, with a figure of perfect elegance on a large scale. She had dark and abundant hair, so glossy that it threw off the sunshine with a gleam, and a face which ,beside being beautiful from regularity of feature and richness of complexion was ladylike, too, after the manner of the feminine gentility of those days; characterized by a certain state and dignity" (Hawthorne 46). The women who judge her are viewed as gossipers and judging from jealousy and just out to hurt her. Hester never acts this way towards anyone and she is still viewed as a terrible sinner who should possible die because of a sin. Dimmesdale is viewed as a wise man, a great speaker, and someone to look up to. This is because he is the minister of the community which is highly respected in the puritan society. People viewed him with so much respect that when Dimmesdale admitted his crime, no one could believe it or even believed what they had seen. There were multiple thoughts of what had happened. By way of illustration, “...and the wonderful
Hester isolated herself from what her society, the Puritans, believe is right, and did what she wanted to. Hester gained freedom by breaking these boundaries. “She had cast aside her link to society like pieces of a broken chain. The world’s law did not restrict her mind (Hawthorne 180). Hester didn’t follow society's expectations and by doing so, she had a mind of her own. She proved that women weren’t bound to seek men or social approval. Hester began believing hopelessly in equality
is tormented by Chillingworth. As a result, Dimmesdale suffers from failing health as well as from his guilt. He tries to confess and cannot find the courage to do it. He even mounts the scaffold one night and calls Hester and Pearl to his side -- but it is under the cover of darkness. Unfortunately, Chillingworth watches this second scaffold scene in the darkness. He now has his final proof that Dimmesdale is the father of Pearl. His revenge intensifies.
The Reverend Dimmesdale was another character that demonstrated the effects of sin. He committed the same offense that Hester committed, adultery. The difference between Dimmesdale and Hester was that Dimmesdale was not publicly punished for his crime while Hester was. Because of this, Dimmesdale felt extremely guilty. This feeling of guilt was so atrocious that it mentally and physically withered Dimmesdale, as he felt a very strong need to repent and cleanse his soul.
Hester is indeed a sinner, adultery is no light matter, even today. On the other hand, her sin has brought her not evil, but good. Her charity to the poor, her comfort to the broken-hearted, her unquestionable presence in times of trouble are all direct results of her quest for repe...