In Nathaniel Hawthorne'S The Scarlet Letter, There Are

The third most important scene, which has a great impact in The Scarlet Letter is when Hester and Dimmesdale meet in the forest and talk about making plans to run away from Boston and live together. Dimmesdale is getting very weak from his own guilt and Hester thinks it is best for them to just go away from everything. Also Dimmesdale is noticing that Pearl is starting to resemble him and people will soon start finding out. Hester shows a change in character when she decides to take off her scarlet letter, throw it across the forest, and take off her head cap to let down her beautiful hair once more. It has not been since the beginning of the novel since Hester has had her hair down and showing her beauty on the scaffold. Meanwhile, Pearl is getting upset and throwing a fit towards Hester because she does not recognize her mother without her hair up and the Scarlet Letter, since it has been there her whole life. She refuses to do anything her mother says until she puts the scarlet letter back onto her bosom. “Will he go back with us, hand in hand, we three together, into

So, as Hester did before, he stands on the scaffold with her and their child, Pearl. Dimmesdale confesses to the townspeople, “The sin here so awfully revealed… Had either these agonies been waiting, I had

In Chapter 9, Chillingworth 's evil nature starts to show. As Dimmesdale suffers with the guilt of being Pearl 's father, Chillingworth acts as a physician who seems to be taking the life out of Dimmesdale even more. The townspeople are beginning to notice that there is"something ugly and evil starting in his face" (Hawthorne, 124). In chapter 10, this theme of evil continues with Chillingworth, for he continues to get worse. In this chapter, it is clear that Chillingworth 's goal of revenge is to increase Dimmesdale’s inner pain. Hawthorne describes Chillingworth as a "thief entering a chamber where a man lies only half asleep" (Hawthorne, 126) as a way to further symbolize his evilness. Chillingworth harasses Dimmesdale constantly about his secrets asking, "why not reveal them here?" (Hawthorne, 128). But even with all the nagging, Dimmesdale refuses to reveal what 's been making him sick on the inside. In chapter 11, Dimmesdale 's suffering only increases. His sermons hint at his sinful nature, but everyone is being mislead by them for they seem to think that Dimmesdale is even more holy. Dimmesdale is "tortured by some black trouble of the soul"(Hawthorne, 137) and yet, his hidden public confessions are misunderstood. However, Dimmesdale is aware of this, for "the minister well knew- subtle, but remorseful hypocrite- that he was"(Hawthorne, 141). In chapter 12, during the night, Dimmesdale stands on the scaffold, in which it can clearly be seen that

Dimmesdale realizes that he must confess his sin and face whatever consequences may lie ahead of him, whether or not his confession is seven years past due. Before reaching the “well-remembered and weather-darkened scaffold,” where Hester Prynne had encountered the “world’s ignominious stare,” Arthur Dimmesdale cautiously comes to a pause (246). Only two people in the crowd, Roger Chillingworth (Hester’s husband) and Hester Prynne, understand why Dimmesdale halts before ascending up the scaffold. He will finally reveal his identity to the town and release the guilt that has built inside of him for seven years. As Hester and Pearl are about to accompany Dimmesdale up to the scaffold, Chillingworth “trusts himself through the crowd” – or, from Hawthorne’s description, “so dark, disturbed, and evil was his look,” Chillingworth “rose up out of some nether region to snatch back his victim from what he sought to do” (247). Ignoring Chillingworth’s effort to stop Dimmesdale, the three mount the scaffold and face the eager crowd. In one of Dimmesdale’s final speeches, he claims that Hester’s scarlet letter “is but the shadow of what he bears on his own breast” (250). The moment after Dimmesdale reveals his ‘scarlet letter’, he stood “with a flush of triumph in his face as one who had won a victory” (251). As Dimmesdale had wished, his remorse and internal pain is forgotten once he reveals his true identity, allowing his soul to experience its elapsed freedom.

During Dimmesdale's sermon, Hester is taken from her piteous thoughts when Dimmesdale calls out for her and Pearl to join him on the scaffold. Hester knows that her worst fear is about to come true as she approaches the scaffold "slowly, as if impelled by inevitable fate, and against her strongest will" (Hawthorne 282). Hester did not want to go on to the scaffold because she never wanted to relive that nightmare again, but she knew that Dimmesdale needed her strength, yet all of Hester’s power and pride were drained. But because Hester loved Dimmesdale so, she stood at Dimmesdale's side, as he confessed his sin to the townspeople (Hawthorne 283). After confessing his sin, all was done for Dimmesdale, and he begins to sink to the floor, as

The settings in which Dimmesdale’s public and private lives are set are distinguished. The scaffold is considered the public setting in the novel; not only is this where Hester was humiliated in front of the community, but it is also where Dimmesdale makes his final plea for the townspeople takes place. Generally, the forest is where the private conversations occur; it is where Hester and Dimmesdale talked to each other in privacy for the first time since their affair and where their sinning happened.

Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter is a study of the effects of sin on the hearts and minds of the main characters, Hester Prynne, Arthur Dimmesdale, Roger Chillingworth. Hester, Dimmesdale, and Chillingworth. Sin strengthens Hester, humanizes Dimmesdale, and turns Chillingworth into a demon.

In the second scaffold scene, it seems as if Hester has changed from sinner into a citizen who now has a job in society, and that she no longer yearns for Dimmesdale and Dimmesdale no longer covets her. However, this is not true. Hawthorne writes, “The moment that he did so, there came what seemed a tumultuous rush of new life, other life than his own, pouring like a torrent into his heart, and hurrying through all his veins…The three formed an electric chain.'; (page 105) The reader learns from this quote that Dimmesdale and Hester still have a great love for each other. It is also from this quote that the “A'; on Hester has not worked as well as it was intended. Hester still has a great love for the man with whom she had an affair and this may never change. Furthermore, her banishment has given her time to focus on her love for Dimmesdale. Here the scaffold represents Hester’s unwillingness to not love Dimmesdale.

It was Election Day and Dimmesdale was giving his sermon inside the church. This sermon was his most powerful sermon that he had given. As Dimmesdale was inside the church giving his sermon, Hester was standing outside the church next to the scaffold with Pearl. When Dimmesdale finished his sermon, there was a procession to the town hall. However he did not proceed with the procession. He went to climb the scaffold and called Hester and Pearl to join him. Chillingworth tried to stop him because he knew what he was going to do so he said that he could still save him. Dimmesdale brushed him off and continued to climb the scaffold. Malcolm Cowley states, “Facing the crowd he tears open his ministerial band and shows that there is a scarlet A imprinted on his own flesh” (Cowley 16). He exposed his sin because he wanted to be free of his sin and be with Hester and Pearl. This scene also describes Dimmesdale’s dying words and actions. He asked God to forgive Chillingworth and asked if Pearl would kiss him. So Pearl kissed him on the lips. This was significant because it showed that she accepted and forgave him. Hester also asked him if they would ever see each other again, but he does not think they will because of their

On three distinct occasions, Pearl, Hester, Dimmesdale, and Chillingworth convene at the scaffold as Hawthorne uses it to mark the passage of time between the characters’ lives and the changes they go through as the scarlet letter effects play out. The initial event depicted in the beginning of the novel is the unforgettable

As Hester meets with the Governor to return the embroidered gloves he had ordered, she inquires him of the rumor that he had planned to take away Pearl from her, and as it turns out the rumor had been true (106-107). From this scene, Dimmesdale takes up for Hester and Pearl, and Hester is then allowed to keep control over her child. Hester’s character develops into one that now lusts for and wants to thank Dimmesdale for his act of kindness, and wants to help him in any way possible. From her countless encounters of harassment from

The Scarlet Letter displays a theme of sin throughout the novel through multiple major events. To start off, in chapter seven, “The Governor’s Hall”, Hester observes herself in a convex shaped mirror, and realizes that the scarlet letter was exaggerated in size. The second major event is the entrance of Roger Chillingworth. He was quickly accepted into the Puritan society as an excellent physician, but as time passed, a few puritans started to suspect Chillingworth of using the skill of black art from the Indians. Hester also starts to realize a change, which goes into another major event to display the theme of sin. As Hester and Chillingworth were talking, she started to recognize a change in him, similar to a demon that had possessed him. But Hester wasn’t the only one to notice, Chillingworth noticed himself. In chapter nine and ten, Chillingworth is given the opportunity to cure Mr. Dimmesdale and to discover all of Dimmesdale’s hidden secrets. The final major event to represent sin is in chapter fifteen, “Hester and Pearl”, when Hester rids herself of the scarlet letter and realizes the freedom from the weight of her sin and shame. In The Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne uses appearance versus reality to illustrate sin.

Like any novel, The Scarlet Letter, develops tone, mood, and foreshadowing through chapter titles. In the chapter, "The Market-Place", the setting is defined by the ominous tone Hawthorne uses in the beginning of the novel. Despite, "market-place" indicating a lively and bustling community it instead reveals a solemn and condemnatory town. This contrast awakens the reader to the cultural setting with the unlikely disheartening tone. However, the second chapter, "The Recognition", is far more visible as to what the author might lead into. Hester recognizes her husband, Robert Chillingworth as she stands on the scaffolding judged by the religious community. Yet again the foreshadowing is prominent in the third chapter: "The Interview". Using

In contrast to the first scaffold scene, the second one happened during the night, completely unseen by the other villagers. Again, we see Dimmesdale and Hester (and Pearl), but this time, the lovers appeared to be both on the platform of shame. In this passage, Dimmesdale finally decided to act upon his guilt since he “had been driven hither (to the scaffold) by the impulse that Remorse which dogged him everywhere” (132-133). This scene symbolizes a moment of great insight for the minister because he started to understand a way to repent himself. As Dimmesdale touched his little girl’s hand, he experienced “[an]other life than his own, pouring like a torrent into his heart and hurrying through all his veins, as if the mother and the child were communicating their vital warmth to his half-torpid system” (137). The miserable sinner, who lived in utter darkness and despair for such a long time, at last began to grasp his responsibility towards Hester and Pearl and his role in the redemption of all three characters. However, Dimmesdale’s insight was not complete because he was still bounded with fear. When Pearl asked him to expose his sin to the public and admit her as his legitimate child, his courage

In Nathaniel Hawethorne’s The Scarlet Letter, five scenes stand above the rest in the entirety of the book. Each of these scenes focusing on one of the main characters, Hester Prynne and her daughter, Pearl, Arthur Dimmesdale, and Roger Chillingworth, who’s real name has never been revealed. In order of occurrence, the scenes which have been deemed most important include, Hester on the scaffold holding Pearl as an infant, and Roger Chillingworth visiting Hester while she is still in the prison being two examples. Another being what many would consider the climax of story is when Dimmesdale stands on the scaffold with Hester and Pearl in the darkness. The final two being Dimmesdale and Hester’s meeting in the forest, and the day upon which Arthur confesses his sins and passes on. Though these are all strictly opinion, they are key points in the novel.