Dimmesdale. Author Nathaniel Hawthorne writes of a puritan society‚ and it is the laws of that society‚ both written and unwritten‚ that Dimmesdale breaks and which causes the changes to occur. He commits the sin of adultery‚ and by sleeping with Hester Prynne‚ breaks the laws that he is supposed to represent. He cannot admit his sin because he is a holy man‚ and admitting his sin would mean losing the faith of his congregation. Instead he struggles with his sin and tortures himself in an effort to gain
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place‚ wehre thou couldst have escaped me‚ - save on this very scaffold.” 10. “Be true! Be true! Be true! Show freely to the world‚ if not your worst‚ yet some trait whereby the worst may be inferred.” Here are some of the answers. 1. Hester is speaking. She is refusing to name the father of her child while on the scaffold. Her reply to the clergymen reveals her strength of character and loyalty to Dimmesdale. Although she feels shame‚ she is prepared to endure it alone. She is so
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a force that the poor babe uttered another cry of pain. But the mother did not seem to hear it.” This passage shows the fear that Hester Prynne has of the people that are in the crowd. It shows that by holding the infant close to her bosom is a symbol of shame and embarrassment which she is trying to hide from her child. Also‚ when it says that basically Hester ignored her infants cry as she held her closer it shows that she feels it is more important to shelter the infant from reality. Also‚
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of recovery‚ until he confesses his sin and forgives himself. Dimmesdale is perceived as a sinless‚ superior and an upstanding man however; the culpability of his sin emerges from the beginning. As the town is out to witness the punishment of Hester Prynne‚ the people say‚ “that the Reverend Master Dimmesdale‚ her godly pastor‚ takes it very grievously to heart that such a scandal should have come upon his congregation” (49). The community sees Dimmesdale as a godly man who does not commit sin. The
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in society‚ the reader can conclude that Hawthorne does not believe Puritans are necessarily civilized. Hester Prynne and Arthur Dimmesdale scrutinize their own shame on a daily basis. In contrast‚ the Puritan counsel views this sin as a threat to the community‚ as it show-cases the role of shame in society and should be punished. In the Puritan elders’ eyes‚ shaming such behavior as Hester has committed purifies a community‚ as Hawthorne states‚ “The scene was not without a mixture of awe‚ such
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heart… like a sexton delving into a grave…” (Hawthorne 117). Like his guilt‚ Chillingworth is tearing apart Dimmesdale from the inside out. Later in the story Hester confronts Chillingworth about his diabolical actions against Dimmesdale‚ in a hope to relieve the poor reverend of the bloodsucking leech that Chillingworth has become. Hester exclaims‚ “You tread behind his every footstep. You are beside him‚ sleeping and waking… you burrow and rankle in his heart… you cause him to die daily a living
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Major Themes Individual vs. Society The Scarlet Letter is a novel that describes the psychological anguish of two principle characters‚ Hester Prynne and Arthur Dimondale. They are both suffering under‚ while attempting to come to terms with‚ their mutual sin of adultery in a strict Puritan society. As critics immediately recognized upon publication of the novel in 1850‚ one of its principal themes involved conflict between the individual and society. Hawthorne represents the stern and threatening
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*Main Character: Hester Prynne Hester is the book’s protagonist and the wearer of the scarlet letter that gives the book its title. The letter‚ a patch of fabric in the shape of an “A‚” signifies that Hester is an “adulterer.” As a young woman‚ Hester married an elderly scholar‚ Chillingworth‚ who sent her ahead to America to live but never followed her. While waiting for him‚ she had an affair with a Puritan minister named Dimmesdale‚ after which she gave birth to Pearl. Hester is passionate but
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The book the Scarlet Letter written by Nathaniel Hawthorne‚ follows the story of Hester Prynne who is punished for the crime of adultery. The story starts off when Hester and her three month old baby‚ Pearl‚ is being brought out of prison and put on a scaffold and publicly humiliated. While she is standing there she spots her husband. Two years prior‚ he has sent her ahead to Massachusetts and was planning on coming later but never made it. He signals to her to keep quiet. While on the stage‚
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As I was debating topics to discuss in my Scarlet Letter paper‚ I stumbled across one more than intriguing concept: the modern “scarlet letter.” Though societal expectations have changed over time‚ the authority that we allow society to hold over us has remained constant. Today‚ social media has become what used to be a literal scarlet letter “A” as seen in Nathaniel Hawthorne’s novel. To me‚ this is an extremely interesting topic‚ as I also find myself succumbing to behavioral pressures that society
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