To begin, the sin committed by Proctor and Dimmesdale is an illegal act in the Puritan society. According to the Puritans, the goal in life is to go to Heaven in the …show more content…
afterlife, which one can achieve by living a dull life and praying in Church every day. When Proctor needs to recite the 10 commandments to Reverend Hale, he “forgets” the most essential one. Elizabeth, his wife, then reminds him by saying, “Adultery, John” (Miller 67). One of the most essential parts in the Bible is the Ten Commandments, which are ten rules that each person should follow to go to Heaven. By “forgetting” to mention one of the Ten Commandments, Proctor goes against both the Puritan laws and his religious beliefs. Similarly, Dimmesdale secretly committed adultery with Hester, but he did not face a penalty for his crime. The Puritans praise Dimmesdale because he is the minister of Salem. Although Dimmesdale knows he committed an illegal act, he wants to keep it a secret to save his reputation. By breaking Puritan and religious laws, Proctor and Dimmesdale caused their lovers to suffer like they did.
Additionally, the sin made Hester feel shame and Elizabeth feel like an unwanted wife.
In The Scarlet Letter, Hester unwillingly wears the letter A on her chest as a sign of her sin, which made her feel guilty and ashamed. Since Dimmesdale hid his sin, Hester received even more hatred because she did not want to expose Dimmesdale as her lover to the Puritans, who believed she could have a less severe punishment if she revealed her Pearl’s father. In The Crucible, Proctor has an affair with Abigail, even though Proctor has a wife. In Act II of the play, Elizabeth says to Proctor, “It is her dearest hope, John, I know it. There be a thousand names; why does she call mine? There be a certain danger in calling such a nam- I am no Goody Good that sleeps in ditches, nor Osburn, drunk and half- witted. She’d dare not call out such a farmer’s wife but there be monstrous profit in it. She thinks to take my place, John” (Miller 61). Proctor’s affair causes Abigail to feel jealousy towards Elizabeth, which eventually lead her to accuse Elizabeth of witchcraft. As Dimmesdale and Proctor kept their sin hidden, their health starts to
decline.
Finally, Proctor’s sin led to his trial and Dimmesdale’s sin led to his illness. Proctor keeps his affair with Abigail a secret from everyone except Elizabeth. His act eventually led Abigail to seeking revenge on Elizabeth and Proctor by accusing them as witches. In order to save the people on trial for hanging, Proctor confesses his sin, but not in public. Shortly before his hanging, Proctor says to Danforth, “I have confessed myself! Is there no good penitence but to be public? God knows how black my sins are! It is enough!” (Miller 142). Proctor is not willing to admit his sin to everyone, which eventually leads him to be one of the victims of the trials. In The Scarlet Letter, Dimmesdale faced several mental problems, due to his guilt. For example, Dimmesdale tries to make up for his sin by going through vigils and fasting. Like some Puritans, Dimmesdale tried “to fast, - not, however, like them...but rigorously, and until his knees trembled beneath him, as an act of penance" (Hawthorne 132). Although Dimmesdale thinks he is saving his soul by fasting, he is damaging his body and reducing his health. Both Dimmesdale and Proctor’s deaths came a short time after they committed their sins.
Throughout the two books, Dimmesdale and Proctor’s sin ruins not only their lives, but also their lovers’. The narrator of The Scarlet Letter portrays Dimmesdale as a weak character, who caused both he and his wife to suffer. Proctor’s refusal to abide by the law by confessing his sin eventually led to the hanging of many innocent Puritans. By keeping an illegal sin a secret, Proctor and Dimmesdale destroyed their relationships with their lovers, right before their unfortunate deaths.