What Is Imposed Punishment In The Scarlet Letter

Chillingworth’s desire for revenge for Dimmesdale in The Scarlet Letter greatly conflicts his moral duty as a self-proclaimed physician in Puritan Boston. This revenge began once Chillingworth suspected Dimmesdale of having intimate relations with Hester, although he never confronted him. Dimmesdale’s physical and mental health began to deteriorate once Chillingworth relentlessly tormented him, conveying the significance behind internal guilt and poor external health. It was also quite ironic how Chillingworth was seen as Dimmesdale’s mentor to the public, and although he was a physician whose friend was in failing health, his credibility was never questioned. This revenge was fueled by the betrayal of Hester, who was Chillingworth’s wife before he claimed a new identity and persona. According to Chillingworth, Dimmesdale could never suffer enough for what he’d done unless he’d faced it publicly, but once he did, Chillingworth had nothing to motivate his devious acts. The repugnant acts committed by Chillingworth claiming to be provoking Dimmesdale’s confession are absolutely influential to his failing health and significance in the book, "Better had he died at once! Never

In The Scarlet Letter Arthur Dimmesdale’s sin of concealment leads to his downfall. Arthur Dimmesdale had an excellent reputation in town as a Puritan minister, however Dimmesdale himself bore a lot of guilt because he was keeping his sin, his affair with Hester Prynne, a secret. Dimmesdale and Hester had a baby. Hester was punished as an adulterer, however she refused to say who the baby’s father was. Dimmesdale knew that his reputation would be ruined if the Puritan people found out his sin.

In chapters 9-16 of Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter, the story shifts more towards the plights and character interactions of the young minister, Arthur Dimmesdale, and Roger Chillingworth. Due to the poor health of Dimmesdale, Chillingworth, as the town physician, had come to live with him, and the two had become close friends. For seven years, Chillingworth did his best to tend to the minister while simultaneously tormenting him with psychological barbs by expounding on the necessity of confessing one's sins. Dimmesdale is not aware that Chillingworth is Hester's husband or that he knows Dimmesdale was her lover, but he does not need this incentive to be plagued by guilt. The man routinely attempts to atone for his sins by self-flagellation, starvation, and sleep-deprivation, all in

Dimmesdale who is one of the main character in the Scarlet letter by Nathaniel hawthorne, appeared to be sick and haved sinned. Dimmesdale and hester prynne both have commit the sin adultery. Hester was punished but Dimmesdale had hid his sin for only Hester knew until her husband came and found out.

Dimmesdale could have stayed away from the powerful people in the community and made himself seem as if he was ashamed of something he had done. An argument that may go against him demoting himself from the higher powers of the community is that he might then be recognized as Pearl’s father because he is avoiding the situation. Although that is a valid point, that would just help the argument of him being a coward because he is acting as if he is still better than the

Arthur Dimmesdale has continually suffered because of the sin he has committed. He is tortured by his only friend who is really his enemy. He grows weaker day by day because he will not confess his sin. He starves himself and whips himself. He has a daughter but no one can know. People look up to him and he does not want to let them down. If only people knew that he committed adultery with Hester Prynne. In Nathaniel Hawthorne's, The Scarlet Letter, the author writes, “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 the scarlet token on his naked breast, right over his heart. On that spot, in very truth was, and there had long been,

The theme is revealed through Dimmesdale’s ailment, Hester’s exposed sin, and Hester’s oath to Chillingworth. The most discussed portrayal of guilt in The Scarlet Letter is Dimmesdale’s remorse for the affair he had with Hester. He is not only ashamed of the affair in itself, but he is also too cowardly to come forward and take the blame alongside Hester. This shame and self-loathing is what causes his

In The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne, both Dimmesdale and Hester have grievously sinned in the eyes of the Puritan community. However, while Hester lives with her guilt publicly displayed in the form of the scarlet letter and Pearl, Dimmesdale hides his sin from the community and tries to continue as their saintly pastor. Yet, this concealment is not without consequences, as Dimmesdale suffers from horrible guilt as he denies his sin from his community, and thus denies himself forgiveness for his sin. Finally resolving to tell the truth on his deathbed, Dimmesdale dies after triumphantly punishment of having Chillingworth and Pearl as his personal tormentors. However, though Dimmesdale manages to overcome Chillingworth and Pearl, he

In Nathaniel Hawthorne's novel, The Scarlet Letter, he asserts that one can never escape the consequences of their actions. Therefore, Arthur Dimmesdale, a priest cannot escape his sin of adultery with Hester Prynne. Thus, he finds himself being sought out by Roger Chillingworth, Hester’s husband, and Dimmesdale leads to his own demise. Chillingworth finds himself not guilty of Dimmesdale’s death due to the priest's own self sabotage. Dimmesdale sees himself as a loyal preacher of God therefore his inability to forgive himself has caused him great harm and sickness.

Arthur Dimmesdale in the Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne is one of the most quickly judged characters. Many readers originally dislike the man who Hester cheated on her husband with. Questions arise from his absence in the beginning of the book of why he did not reveal himself or help Hester escape from Salem. When Arthur Dimmesdale is revealed as the man Hester had an affair with, readers may judge him as an evil man. As the book speaks about Arthur’s experience, Hawthorne makes his story so tragic that readers may pity Dimmesdale instead of hating him, based on the evidence that Dimmesdale is physically affected by his sin, how he is being tortured by Hester’s ex-husband, and how he wants to confess but is unable to.

In The Scarlet Letter, the characters are consumed with guilt over their sins, when Dimmesdale does not accept responsibility, it causes him to suffer and die. When given with the option to repent and suffer the consequences or to keep their secrets hidden, Hester and Dimmesdale choose different options. Hester Prynne choose the option to repent and to accept responsibility for her sins. Afterwords she lives on with peace. Since Dimmesdale did not accept responsibility, he lost his sanity, and ultimately died. The guilt from his sins had consumed his well

Another effect on Dimmesdale, seen as his guilt slowly wears him down, is how he compares his actions to those of Roger Chillingworth. This is clearly seen when Dimmesdale claims to Hester, "We are not, Hester, the worst sinners in the world. There is one worse than even the polluted priest! That old man 's revenge has been blacker than my sin. He has violated, in cold blood, the sanctity of a human heart. Thou and I, Hester, never did so!” (Hawthorne 185). Even in the privacy of the forest, he did not want to accept the full reality of his actions. This is a step forward for him, however, because he chooses to actually say aloud that what he did was wrong, just not as wrong as Chillingworth’s terrorizing of him. Eventually, Dimmesdale is able to confess to the public his sin, and this is due to his longing to escape the torture Chillingworth has been putting him through. Dimmesdale is no longer affected by the guilt that his actions brought about, so Chillingworth has no reason to aggravate him anymore. Sadly for the reverend, the shame

Mr. Dimmesdale is an almost perfect example of the contrast between public and private truth in The Scarlet Letter. The young clergyman is often seen as saint by the public. Many of his sermons throughout the book bring dozens to Christ in the small town. The people of the town even began to say,“The saint on earth! Alas, if he discern such sinfulness in his own white soul, what horrid spectacle would he behold in thine or mine!”(Hawthorne 246). In private though, Mr. Dimmesdale is actually being eaten alive by the guilt that his sin with Hester gave him. Mr. Dimmesdale’s adulterous act caused

The Scarlet Letter, by Nathaniel Hawthorne, is the story of an adulterous relationship between Hester Prynne and Reverend Dimmesdale. However, Professor Nancy Stade argues that there is a deeper meaning saying, “The Scarlet Letter is not so much about an adulterous affair as about a severe punishment inflicted by the Boston community and the psychological consequences for the central characters.” The first part of Stade’s statement tackles the idea of punishment in Puritan society. While her analysis references the sole penalty of the scarlet letter that Hester wears, punishment as a whole can be seen and discussed in Chapter 11. One of the clearest examples of punishment in this chapter is Dimmesdale hiding and using a whip as self-punishment.

The guilt that plagues Arthur Dimmesdale, leads to the climax of the novel, in which Dimmesdale overcomes his inner conflict. Throughout the entire book, Dimmesdale has struggled with trying to reveal what he has done. At first he is to cowardly to do this, but eventually Dimmesdale realizes the only way to redeem himself is to confess his sins and repent. Knowing it is the only way to redemption, Dimmesdale goes before the whole town, with Hester and Pearl, and reveals his sin to the people. Dimmesdale’s