The words penance and penitence are often associated together, and even sound similar, but it does not mean they have the same meaning. Penance is a punishment for a sin- a physical act showing repentance, but penitence is the feeling of sorrow for committing a sin. Therefore, it is possible to commit an oct of penance, but not truly feel penitence. In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter, the main character, Hester Prynne is forced by her Puritan community to wear a lavishly decorated scarlet colored “A”, which stands for adulterer. It was her punishment for committing adultery, getting pregnant and having an illegitimate child with an unknown father, whilst married to another man. Later in the novel, it is revealed that the young, popular, …show more content…
The guilt eats away at Dimmesdale so much, that on the his biggest day of his career, he confesses to being the father of Pearl, and dies on the scaffold. Promptly after he dies, Hester flees with Pearl to places unknown to the narrator. In almost an epilogue ending, Hester returns many years later, alone, wearing her scarlet letter, for ambiguous reasons. There is a main theme in this novel, about the difference of completing penance and truly repenting. Hester served penance without true penitence, like Dimmesdale says he did. Hester only stayed in Boston because Dimmesdale was …show more content…
It is almost as if his secret is keeping him alive, and once he releases it, his torture and suffering ends, and he is able to pass away peacefully; none of which would be able to occur without Pearl. He constantly whips himself, performs vigils preventing him from sleep, and fasts; almost in a Bartleby “I would prefer not to” (Melville, 310) sense he resembles Bartleby’s attitude of not wanting to indulge in mundane life - except he does all of these things in order to make his body feel more pure, for over seven years. This is deplenishing his health, and it shows physically. After all of these acts he commits, he himself says he does not feel any penitence. It can be argued that he does though, because he gruels on for so long with his sin and punishing himself, even when Hester says that it is enough and will be forgiven. As Dimmesdale gives his sermon, his health begins diminishing and it’s apparent he will die, but he’s at peace with it. He confesses and through it, displays true penitence, an action he has been struggling to do for many years. After he completes it, Pearl finally accepts him; the real scarlet letter accepting both his penance and penitence. Unlike Dimmesdale, Hester does not see the bigger picture. She asks Dimmesdale if they will be together in Heaven and he
The two of them, after Dimmesdale dies, continue with their plans to go back to England where they hope for a better life. Once in England, the two are able to change their lives around for the better. Pearl is even found to have a family of her own: “Mr. Surveyor Pue, who made investigations a century later, … Pearl was not only alive, but married, and happy, and mindful of her mother; and that she would most joyfully have entertained that sad and lonely mother at her fireside” ( Hawthorne 392). Pearl was able to overcome her old life and create a new one, a better one, one that was just for her. Even though her mother was no longer around she tried her best to kept in touch with her. She also kept her and her mother’s experience in mind never to let herself go back to that life. After spending many years in England, Hester finally returns to New England. When she returns she is full of sorrow and regret; however, she continues to wear her A on upon her chest as a reminder of her pain. With returning to the land of sin, people came to Hester, mostly women, with problems of their own. They hope by talking to someone who has been through so much will help them, or give them insight on what life is like to be on the outside: “And, as Hester Prynne had no selfish ends, nor lived in any measure for her own profit and enjoyment, people brought all their sorrows and perplexities, and besought her counsel, as one who had herself gone through a mighty trouble. Women, more especially,—in the continually recurring trials of wounded, wasted, wronged, misplaced, or erring and sinful passion,—or with the dreary burden of a heart unyielded, because unvalued and unsought,—came to Hester’s cottage, demanding why they were so wretched, and what the remedy! Hester comforted and counseled them, as best she might” (Hawthorne 392-393). Even though Hester was miserable and thought that no
Pearl is a symbol of Hester’s transgressions and even has similar qualities as the sin which she represents. Pearl’s life and behavior directly reflects the unacceptable and abnormal nature of Hester’s adulterous sin. Hester is plagued with more than just a letter “A”; she is given a child from her affair who is just as much a reminder of her sin as the scarlet letter. Ultimately Hester overcomes the shame associated the scarlet letter and creates a sense of family for herself and Pearl. This relationship is integral to the theme of this novel and the development of its characters.
Not only in this story of the Scarlet Letter, but throughout the early churches, we often see religious leaders in this predicament of coming forward or not coming forward with the truth of their role within certain situations. Hester, on the other hand, is portrayed as strong but also abandoned, because she is standing alone for the sins she could not have committed alone. Dimmesdale also struggles with confessing to Pearl the truth and keeping it from her. At first he is regarded as being selfish for not confessing right away and as a result, when he does confess, it is not well received from Pearl at all. This is not only because she is flustered from finding out, but Pearl knows that Dimmesdale abandoned them at first as he weighed the options.
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.
As soon as Hester stands on the stocks with Pearl for a day without him, Dimmesdale becomes forever haunted from his guilty conscience. He self-inflicts a great deal of harm upon himself both physically and mentally. “And thus, while standing on the scaffold, in this vain show of expiation, Mr. Dimmesdale was overcome with a great horror of mind, as if the universe were gazing at a scarlet token on his naked breast, right over his heart. On that spot, in very truth, there was, and there had long been, the gnawing and poisonous tooth of bodily pain. Without any effort of his will, or power to restrain himself, he shrieked aloud; an outcry that went pealing through the night, and was beaten back from one house to another, and reverberated from the hills in the background; as if a company of devils detecting so much misery and terror in it, had made a plaything of the sound, and were bandying it to and fro” (Hawthorne 128). Dimmesdale comes close to confession many times, but cowardice and self-preservation come into play, affecting his decision. He is unable to summon the power to confess, but instead tortures himself and engraves an “A” by his heart. He quickly realizes that he will not survive long in his current situation.
Throughout The Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne attempted to expose the varying ways in which different people deal with lingering guilt from sins they have perpetrated. The contrasting characters of Hester Prynne and Arthur Dimmesdale ideally exemplified the differences in thought and behavior people have for guilt. Although they were both guilty of committing the same crime, these two individuals differed in that one punished themselves with physical and mental torture and the other chose to continue on with their life, devoting it to those less fortunate than they.
Hester thinks about the mercy of God herself in the story and comes to the conclusion that “man had marked [her] sin by a scarlet letter, which had such potent and disastrous efficacy that no human sympathy could reach her, save it were sinful like herself. God, as a direct consequence of the sin [...] had given her a lovely child” (86). Society decides to punish Hester by public humiliation and eternal shame, while God decides to let nature take its own path, and blesses‒or rather curses‒Hester with her own child. Although this is a more merciful consequence, children are still a large challenge in themselves. Young children are difficult, and Pearl especially seemed to be “a demon offspring; such as, since old Catholic times, had occasionally been seen on earth, through the agency of their mother’s sin” (95). Through having to raise Pearl, Hester is still being disciplined for her rash actions, but in a way that will better teach her the lessons she needs to learn from her mistake. When one observes the behaviors of both Hester and Dimmesdale, it becomes clear that Dimmesdale has failed to learn completely from his
The first theme expressed in The Scarlet Letter is that even well meaning deceptions and secrets can lead to destruction. Dimmesdale is a prime example of this; he meant well by concealing his secret relationship with Hester, however, keeping it bound up was deteriorating his health. Over the course of the book this fact is made to stand out by Dimmesdale’s changing appearance. Over the course of the novel Dimmesdale becomes more pale, and emaciated. Hester prevents herself from suffer the same fate. She is open about her sin but stays loyal to her lover by not telling who is the father of Pearl. Hester matures in the book; becomes a stronger character.
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...
Hester, Dimmesdale, and Chillingworth are all sinners, but they each handle their guilt in different ways. Hester tries to earn forgiveness by acts of service. Dimmesdale allows his guilt to build up to the point that it kills him. Chillingworth becomes obsessed with getting revenge. None of them receive the benefit of forgiveness. There is no true redemption, because there is no Savior in The Scarlet Letter. Without a merciful, loving, and gracious Savior, there can not be forgiveness of sin and reconciliation of broken relationships. This barren hopelessness leaves the characters desperate, alone, and in need of a Rescuer.
The Scarlet Letter is a novel about a Puritan woman who has committed adultery and must pay for her sin by wearing a scarlet “A'; on her bosom. The woman, Hester Prynne, must struggle through everyday life with the guilt of her sin. The novel is also about the suffering that is endured by not admitting to one’s wrongs. Reverend Mister Dimmesdale learns that secrecy only makes the guilt increase. Nathaniel Hawthorne is trying to display how guilt is the everlasting payment for sinful actions. The theme of guilt as reparation for sin in The Scarlet Letter is revealed through Nathaniel Hawthorne’s use of northeastern, colonial settings, various conflicts, and characters that must live with guilt for the sins they have committed.
While Hester tries to protect Dimmesdale by not giving the name of Pearl's father, she actually condemns him to a long road of suffering, self torture and disappointment. She does this by letting him keep the sin he committed in secret while he watches her being publicly punished. Chillingworth observes Dimmesdale's desire to confess, as well as his lack of willpower to do so. Dimmesdale rationalizes not confessing; all the while Chillingworth is torturing with constant reminders of his hypocrisy. Hester never voluntarily confesses to committing adultery, and never feels any remorse for it. Her public punishment comes not as a result of her having any contrition, but rather her apparent pregnancy. She stays in the town to be close to Dimmesdale, as a reader would find on page 84, "There dwelt...the feet of one with whom she deemed herself connected in a union..." She also stays in town to convince others, as well as herself, that she is actually regretful for her sin even though she knows in her heart she is not. She does this to appease her guilt. As Hawthorne puts it on page 84, "Here...had been the scene of her guilt...
In the beginning of The Scarlet Letter, the letter is understood as a label of punishment and sin being publicized. Hester Prynne bears the label of “A” signifining adulterer upon her chest. Because of this scorching red color label she becomes the outcast of her society. She wears this symbol of punishment and it become a burden throughout her life. The letter “produces only a reflection of her scarlet letter; likewise, the townspeople's image of Hester revolves around her sin. The evil associated with Hester's actions and the letter on her chest consume all aspects of her life, concealing her true beauty, mind, and soul” (R. Warfel 421-425). Society pushed blame upon Hester Prynne, and these events lead to the change of her life. The Puritans whom Prynne is surround by view the letter as a symbol from the devil, controversially some individuals look upon the letter, sigh and fell sympathy towards her because they have or are involved in this same situation. Nonetheless the haunting torture Hester Prynne battles daily drags on, Nathaniel Hawthorne shows this torture “of an impulse and passionate nature. She had fortified herself to encounter the stings and venomous stabs of public contumely wreaking itself in every variety of insult but...
Elizabeth Kubler-Ross once said, “Guilt is perhaps the most painful companion of death.” This quote truly captures Dimmesdale’s death and journey to death, it is guilt that drives him to the grave and it accompanies him throughout all five grieving stages. Dimmesdale is one of many characters in The Scarlet Letter that is faced with problems both personally and spiritually. The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne is a romantic novel about a young woman, Hester Prynne, who is permanently marked with her sin by a scarlet A she must bare on her chest and also by her daughter Pearl. Hester committed adultery with the young minister of Boston, Arthur Dimmesdale. Hester, and her beloved child Pearl, learn to over come the A and change the meaning of it from adulterer to able, while they are changing the way society views them, Dimmesdale is withering away under the “care” of Rodger Chillingworth, Hester’s past husband. Chillingworth knows about the sin and seeks revenge on Dimmesdale. Dimmesdale is helpless and in a downward spiral. He let the sin become who he is, even though the towns people don’t know of his adultery until his dying breath. The Scarlet Letter is a story about overcoming the darkness that hangs above you and stepping out of the sin or gloom that controls you. For characters like Hester this is a fairly easy thing to handle, but on the flip side characters like Dimmesdale struggle and can not seem to escape their heinous acts and don’t find peace of mind until they die. The Scarlet Letter mainly focuses on the process of overcoming these troubling times and how each individual character handles the pressure, stress, and guilt that come along with it differently. Arthur Dimmesdale is a lost soul after his sin, he expe...
Hester throughout the Scarlet Letter has a variety of reactions to sin. At first the community shames and alienates Hester, this enables Hester to become a freethinker. Her loneliness lets her often ponder and question many aspects of the community. However, later in the story, Hester becomes a compassionate and maternal figure. She makes sure her choices won’t get Pearl taken away from her. When Hester makes decisions, she puts Pearl into consideration and this shows the readers Hester’s maternal figure come forth. Hester also shows a maternal figure towards her community. She does a lot of charity work by bringing food and clothes for the poor. Hester throughout the book feels guilty and gets used to blaming herself. For example, when Hesters sees Chillingworth she blames herself for causing Chillingsworth for becoming an evil man. Hester before she sinned with Dimmesdale had traces of compassion, defiance, and honesty but the scarlet letter brings it out in a greater extent. Hester ends up agreeing to run away with Dimmesdale and start a new life. However, things don't work out the way they expected and Hester leaves Boston for a short time but comes back and is seen as a bold figure in the community.Towards the end of the seven year time period, the women ignore her sin and comes to her for shelter against many inequalities they face. The scarlet letter’s meanin...