Theme Of Choices In The Scarlett Letter '

526 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: In the scarlet letter does dimmesdale feel guilty about hester

In the novel The Scarlett Letter, one theme can be the choices people make determine what they become. Hester shows the theme by accepting the A. Dimmesdale shows the theme by not speaking up about being an adulterer. Chillingworth also shows the theme by choosing to get revenge. The theme the choices people make determine what they become can be seen in the characters Hester, Dimmesdale, and Chillingworth. Hester shows the theme that the choices people make determine what they become. First, Hester chooses to live with the Scarlett Letter. In Chapter three Hester says, “And would that I might endure his agony, as well as mine” (71). Hester accepts the punishment and does not tell who the father is. Second, Hester has a harder time because not as many people will come to her for needlework because of the A. Fewer people go to Hester for her services but she still manages to make a living. Lastly, The Scarlett Letter stands for Angel instead of Adultery at the end. This happens because she …show more content…

First, he chooses to get revenge on Dimmesdale. In Chapter four he says, “Not the less he shall be mine” (79). He says he will get revenge on Dimmesdale. Second, he spends several years of his life trying to get revenge on Dimmesdale. Because of this he becomes an evil person. Lastly, he spent so much of his life getting revenge on Dimmesdale he has nothing to live for after Dimmesdale dies. After Dimmesdale dies Chillingworth dies a year later. This is how Chillingworth shows the theme that the choices people make determine what they become. This is why in The Scarlett Letter one theme is the choices people make determine what they become. Hester shows this by accepting the A. Dimmesdale shows this by not speaking up. Chillingworth also shows this by getting revenge on Dimmesdale. They all become something different later in the story. This is how the theme is shown in the

Show More
Related

  • The Scarlett Letter: Compybols And Symbolism In The Scarlet Letter

    1319 Words  | 3 Pages

    First, Hester is a main symbol in the book and she is a symbol of sin, confession, shame, and repentance. The first two symbols Hester represents are shame and sin. She has committed adultery and was forced to stand on the scaffold for public humiliation. She has to wear the scarlet letter ‘A’. The scarlet letter ‘A’ stands for adultery and is a symbol of shame. Hester is forced to wear this so she will always be reminded of the sin she has committed and so everyone knows that she has committed adultery. Although Hester has to wear the scarlet letter, she is a very strong, independent woman even without a male influence in her life. Hester is also a symbol of strength because she has to hold all of the shame and punishment in the sin that her and Reverend Dimmesdale committed. On Election Day Reverend Dimmesdale gives his sermon and people say it is the most powerful speech he has ever given. They think that

    Read More

  • The Scarlet Letter Rhetorical Analysis

    1688 Words  | 4 Pages

    Years ago, Hester promised Chillingworth to keep his identity a secret, thus allowing him to do evil to Dimmesdale. Chillingworth believes that it was his fate to change from a kind man to a vengeful fiend. He believes that it’s his destiny to take revenge and thus would not stop until he does so.

    Read More

  • A Comparison of "The Scarlet Letter" and "The Minister's Black Veil"

    730 Words  | 2 Pages

    The central theme in The Scarlet Letter is that manifested sin will ostracize one from society and un-confessed sin will lead to the destruction of the inner spirit. Hawthorne uses the symbol of the scarlet letter to bring out this idea. In the novel, Hester is forced to wear the scarlet letter A (the symbol of her sin) because she committed adultery with the clergyman, Dimmesdale. Because the public's knowledge of her sin, Hester is excluded physically, mentally, and socially from the normal society of the Puritan settlement. She lives on the outskirts of town in a small cottage where she makes her living as a seamstress. Though she is known to be a great sewer amongst the people, Hester is still not able to sew certain items, such as a new bride's veil. Hester also has no interaction with others; instead she is taunted, if not completely ignored, by all that pass her by. Despite the ill treatment of the society, Hester's soul is not corrupted. Instead, she flourishes and improves herself in spite of the burden of wearing the scarlet letter and she repeatedly defies the conventional Puritan thoughts and values by showing what appears to us as strength of character. Her good works, such as helping the less fortunate, strengthen her inner spirit, and eventually partially welcome her back to the society that once shunned her.

    Read More

  • Roger Chillingworth: The Tiping Development Of Chillingworth

    1020 Words  | 3 Pages

    Chillingworth is trying to convince Dimmesdale not to confess he’s Hester’s lover because he’s afraid of losing his source of power. Once Dimmesdale refuses Chillingworth and confesses to everyone, “Old Roger Chillingworth knelt down beside him, with a blank, dull countenance, out of which the life seemed to have deported.” (Hawthorne p. 251) Chillingworth feels worthless and becomes lifeless once Dimmesdale confesses. It’s as if Chillingworth’s soul (or whatever was left of it) left his body and he became nothing. Chillingworth allowed his obsession to consume him so much that once he lost that source, he lost his life. After Dimmesdale’s death, Chillingworth shrivelled away because he no longer felt a need to stay. He’s described as, “This unhappy man [who] had made the very principle of his life to consist in the pursuit and systematic exercise of revenge, and when… there was no more devil’s work on earth for him to do, it only remained for the unhumanized mortal to betake himself whither his Master would find him tasks enough…” (Hawthorne p. 254) Chillingworth was wrapped in a cloak of corruption, and once his revenge was finished, he felt unfulfilled and empty. He allowed his obsession to become his only aspect in

    Read More

  • Vice or Virtue in The Scarlet Letter

    677 Words  | 2 Pages

    Hawthorn's Novel, The Scarlet Letter, is brimming with many vivid symbols, the most apparent of which is the scarlet letter "A", that Hester Prynne is made to wear upon her chest. Throughout the novel, hawthorn presents the scarlet letter to the reader in a variety of ways. Yet an important question emerges, as the life of Hester Prynne is described, which deals with the affects that both the scarlet letter and Hester have on each other. There is no clear-cut answer to this question, as many examples supporting both arguments can be found throughout the novel. The letter obviously causes Hester much grief, as she is mocked and ostracized by many of the townspeople, yet on the other hand, later in the novel Hester's courage and pride help to change the meaning of scarlet letter in the eyes of both herself and the public.

    Read More

  • Scarlet Letter Chapter 21 Answers

    1949 Words  | 4 Pages

    Chillingworth’s life’s purpose dies along with Dimmesdale. His strength and energy leaves him as he “shrivelled away.” He has made it his life's goal to get revenge on the man who had ruined his life but now that very person was no longer in the world. He wanted to punish Hester’s lover and Pearl’s father, who had wronged him too. With him gone, Chillingworth had no purpose to live and slowly withered away and died.

    Read More

  • Chillingworth's Demonic Actions

    1381 Words  | 3 Pages

    As a respected physician, Chillingworth was “a man of skill in all Christian modes of physical science, and li... ... middle of paper ... ... powerful grip over him, dies peacefully, and Chillingworth dies soon after. To plot revenge in any situation is harmful. Chillingworth’s plot of revenge brings the downfall of Dimmesdale, as well as his own.

    Read More

  • Scarlet Letter

    434 Words  | 1 Pages

    Nathaniel Hawthorne was a truly outstanding author. His detailed descriptions and imagery will surely keep people interested in reading The Scarlet Letter for years to come. In writing this book he used themes evident throughout the entirety of the novel. These themes are illustrated in what happens to the characters and how they react. By examining how these themes affect the main characters, Hester, Dimmesdale, and Chillingworth, one can obtain a better understanding of what Hawthorne was trying to impress upon his readers.

    Read More

  • The Gift of Evil in The Scarlett Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne

    751 Words  | 2 Pages

    Chillingworth found weeds in the graveyard making Dimmesdale memory reflect upon him about his secret. By Chillingworth going to graveyard it shows him doing satan's work picking weeds off the graves.

    Read More

  • Hester Prynne in Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter

    719 Words  | 2 Pages

    Even though many saw the difference in Hester there was still Chillingworth who still wanted his revenge. He becomes obsessed with the punishment of the "A" and does a devilish dance when he realizes the powerful effect it has had on Dimmesdale. (Blake, "Hester's Bewitched Triangle: Within the Spell of the "A") Chillingworth pretends to be a friend to Dimmesdale and becomes his physician. Dimmesdale becomes miserable because he hidden his true identity. Hester, hast thou found peace? Whatever of good capacity there originally was in me, all of God's gifts that were the choicest have become the ministers of spiritual torment. Hester, I am most miserable! ( Hawthorne 208–209) Dimmesdale begins to torment himself with all of his thoughts and tells Hester he wants to be apart of the family they’ve made together.

    Read More

  • The Scarlet Letter By Nathaniel Hawthorne

    2638 Words  | 6 Pages

    In The Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthrone masterfully weaves many themes and uses character development to format the plot of this novel. The themes of The Scarlet Letter are carried out through the four main characters -- Hester Prynne, Arthur Dimmesdale, Roger Chillingsworth, and Pearl -- and also through symbolism. In this novel, Hawthrone hoped to show that although Hester and Dimmesdale sinned, they achieved the wisdom of self knowledge and inner growth through their suffering.

    Read More

  • The Scarlet Letter 10

    1276 Words  | 3 Pages

    Hester's sin is that her passion and love were of more importance to her than the Puritan moral code, but she learns the error of her ways and slowly regains the adoration of the community. For instance, 'What we did had a consecration of its own. We felt it so! We said so to each other! Hast thou forgotten it?';(Ch.17: 179). Hester fully acknowledges her guilt and displays it with pride to the world. This was obvious by the way she displays the scarlet letter with elaborate designs showing that she is proud. Furthermore, she does not want to live a life of lies anymore when she states 'forgive me! In all things else, I have striven to be true! Truth was the one virtue which I might have held fast, and did hold fast, through all extremity save when thy good--the life--they fame--were put in question! Then I consented a deception. But a lie is never good, even though death threaten the other side!';(Ch.17: 177). Hester learns from her sin, and grows strong, a direct result from her punishment. The scarlet letter 'A' was as if a blessing to Hester changing her into an honest person with good virtues. Fittingly, she chooses to stay in Boston with Pearl although Hawthorne admits, ';…that this woman should still call that place her home, where, and where only, she must needs be the type of shame';(Ch.5: 73). She is trying to stay and face her consequences instead of running in the other direction. Most people would leave a town where they are looked upon as trash the scum of society. Finally, the colonists come to think of the scarlet letter as '…the cross on a nun's bosom';(Ch.

    Read More

  • The Scarlet Letter, by Nathaniel Hawthorne

    955 Words  | 2 Pages

    Choices that are made because of passion set the course of The Scarlet Letter, from Hester and Dimmesdale’s adultery to Chillingworth’s fierce hatred. The character’s emotions are the fire that fuels the plot of this novel, and without them there would be no story. The consequences each character must bear as a result of their emotions are also an essential part of the plot; they are their physical and emotional scars. The metaphor of fire as passion can be found in countless places in literature, but Hawthorne expands on the comparison to include every aspect of fire and an enormous range of human emotions. Although they may be consumed with love or hatred, joy or rage, the flame of passion shines through all the main characters of The Scarlet Letter.

    Read More

  • scarlet letter summary

    950 Words  | 2 Pages

    Chillingworth and Dimmesdale stood in the crowd watching her. Chillingworth is incensed over her sinfulness and vows to find out the identity of her partner so that he can have his revenge. is tormented by Chillingworth. As a result, Dimmesdale suffers from failing health as well as from guilt. He tries to confess and cannot find the courage to do it.

    Read More

  • Theme Of Revenge In The Scarlet Letter

    706 Words  | 2 Pages

    He wants to damage Dimmesdale more than anyone has ever wanted to hurt their enemy. This need for revenge destroys Chillingworth in the end. His body changes from the anger and he becomes deformed. His heart changes and he becomes miserable and only thinks of how he can ruin Dimmesdale. Chillingworth’s happiness depends on Dimmesdale and Hester’s suffering.

    Read More

More about Theme Of Choices In The Scarlett Letter '

Open Document