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Hester Prynne and Roger Chillingworth were initially husband and wife that had planned to move to Boston and he was to send Hester ahead of him and then he was to follow. He went missing before he could reach Boston and was later assumed dead. Hester, feeling lonely, sought comfort in Reverend Dimmesdale. They, for one night, have sexual intercourse and she becomes pregnant with Pearl. Hester was put on trial and was found guilty of adultery. The respected punishment in their puritan society was for people who commit such a sinful sin is to be executed. Instead she was sentenced to prison time and her own scarlet letter. She was to wear an “A” for adultery for the rest of her life, which was sown on the chest of her clothing and stand on a…
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Hester Prynne’s sin in the Scarlet Letter, was adultery. She committed adultery with Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale. This sin in particular was one of the more frowned upon of the Puritan faith. In result of this sin, she became pregnant and gave birth to Pearl, who becomes the highlight of Hester’s life. Dimmesdale’s sin as recently explained was adultery as well. He as the priest was looked upon as the most honorable man in the community and was supposed to be considered sinless.…
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In the novel The Scarlet Letter it was necessary to keep Hester Prynne’s adulteress lover Arthur Dimmesdale a secret because of their young daughter Pearl. Hester Prynne was married at the time Pearl was conceived, making the townspeople furious with her adultery. As her husband comes to town under an alias named physician Roger Chillingworth, he examines the Panic-stricken baby and bashes Hester for being deceitful. Moving to the outskirts of town and raising what many called a “devil baby” Pearl who brings both joy and reprimand to Hester. Soon after committing the sin Minister Arthur Dimmesdale becomes ill.…
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Roger Chillingworth stated this to Hester, “his spirit lacks the strength that could have borne up, as thine has, beneath a burden like thy scarlet letter” (343). Dimmesdale could preach the consequences of sin, but could neither keep himself from sinning nor own up to his sin. When Hester was put onto the scaffold, Dimmesdale spoke to her directly, as he was directed to do by the magistrates, in an effort to force her to speak of her sinner, and said, “Be not silent from any mistaken pity and tenderness for him...though he were to step down from a high place, and stand there beside thee, on thy pedestal of shame, yet better were it so, than to hide a guilty heart through life...Thy silence ...compel him...to add hypocrisy to sin?” (133). Dimmesdale argued that if her lover were to step down from his high status onto the scaffold beside Hester, it would be better than for him to hide his sin for eternity. Yet, Dimmesdale, the sinner, did not do this. Lastly, Dimmesdale stated when meeting with Hester, “I should long ago have thrown off these garments of mock holiness, and have shown myself to mankind as they will see me at the judgment-seat. Happy are you, Hester, that wear the scarlet letter openly upon your bosom! Mine burns in secret!” (383-385) and ultimately expressed to her…
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Hester was convicted of being an adulterer, and the novels follows her story in a 17th century Puritan town. The tale focuses on Hester, her daughter Pearl, her lover Dimmesdale, and her husband Chillingworth. They are all enduring their own battles with sin, some coming out of it better than others. Pearl is a physical version of Hester and Dimmesdale’s consciences. Pearl serves as a living version of the scarlet A on Hester’s chest. She torments Hester, and pushes Dimmesdale to acknowledge his sins. Pearl serves as a major character in this classic tragedy, and leaves the character better off than they…
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Given her past, Prynne’s genuinely good character is depicted through her kindness toward everyone, especially Reverend Dimmesdale, who did less than his duty as Pearl’s father because both Prynne and Dimmesdale wanted to save his reputation as a religious leader. The scarlet letter gains a new positive meaning, “But did your reverence hear of the portent that was seen last night? A great red letter in the sky—the letter A, which we interpret to stand for Angel” (193). The once-shameful scarlet letter that stained Hester Prynne’s chest now gives her new respect from the society she lives…
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Dimmesdale can be classified as a tragic hero, but also has qualities that do not fit. His tragic flaw is actually an action that occurred in the past, and resulted in Hester Prynne's pregnancy, rather than something he was born with or into. Arthur Dimmesdale accepts death, even though with honor since he was able to concede to his relationship with Hester and Pearl. His greatness and legend left with the Puritan society is proven with the quote, “After exhausting life in his efforts for mankind’s spiritual good, he had made the manner of his death a parable, in order to impress on his admirers the mighty and mournful lesson, that, in the view of Infinite Purity, we are sinners all alike” (Hawthorne 243). Hester manages to support herself and Pearl, through sewing and still manages to give to and tend to the poor, becoming a "self-ordained a Sister of Mercy" (Hawthorne 150). She even manages to win the grudging respect of the townspeople, because she's full of "helpfulness," and so much "power to do, and power to sympathize" (Hawthorne 150). Hester’s character traits sufficiently describe one that accurately fits Henry Ward Beecher’s quote since she truly does improve the lives of others around her by correctly using her strengths for…
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Hester can atone for her sin of adultery, but every day that she keeps the secret of her lover, and the true identity of Rodger Chillingworth a secret she is committing a sin. If Hester would have “Take heeds how thou deniest to him---who, perchance, hath not the courage to grasp it for himself---the bitter, but wholesome, cup that is now presented to thy lips!”(Dimmesdale 47) things would have been infinitely better for everyone. Everyone Hester Prynne loves, she does in a hypocritical way. She loves Pearl enough to sacrifice to feed and clothe her, but she does not love Pearl enough to give her a father. Hester loves Dimmesdale, but she does not love him enough to expose his sin publicly, and she conceals her knowledge of Chillingworth. Either you love something whole-heartedly, or you don’t. Hawthorne might have portrayed Hester in a more favorable light then the other characters, but still she should have to wear a scarlet H in addition to her…
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Dimmesdale deems it imperative to keep his secret, and it provides an insight to the possible harbinger of his momentous downfall throughout the novel. The townspeople cannot know he committed adultery with Hester Prynne. If detected, Dimmesdale would be an outcast and punished, especially because of his high honor. Since he cannot reveal his sin, the character must coexist with it, which continually clouds his thoughts and actions. Similarly, Hester Prynne, the wearer of the crimson emblem, whose secret has been revealed and publicly punished, often can be seen in the shadows.…
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Her standing in the town changed over the years to be known as ‘able’ and not ‘adulteress.’ “Such helpfulness was found in her--so much power to do, and power to sympathize--that many people refused to interpret the scarlet A by its original signification. They said that it meant Able, so strong was Hester Prynne, with a woman's strength,” (pg. 56, line 29). People changed their opinions because of the good Hester brought with her to the town. When others were in need, they could always count on Hester to help them out. If a disliked task needed done, Hester would employ her services; if someone needed a few extra hands, Hester’s would be…
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In the novel “The Scarlet Letter” by Nathaniel Hawthorne, Hawthorne makes Hester the most “free” character by showcasing her transformation from ostracized sinner to an able woman of her letter in order to display the idea that repressed sin destroys the soul while openness and honesty sets a soul free. Hester was not burdened with the internal guilt that consumed her “fellow sinner”, Arthur Dimmesdale, because she had to wear her sin openly on her chest, forcing her to confront her sin and the stigma that comes along with it. By confronting her sin, she was able to accept what she had done and be freed from the guilt that comes with secrecy and represented sin. Her freedom allowed her to be the least internally burdened of the main characters. Roger Chillingworth was a vengeful, obsessive man and was therefore burdened everyday by thoughts of his revenge on Dimmesdale. Pearl was too young to fully understand what was happening and was confined and controlled by society and her mother, and therefore, did not have the most freedom. Arthur Dimmesdale was suffering from illness caused by the internal burden of guilt that he had felt, so he was not the most free character. Hester received shame and punishment from society for her sin, but put very little guilt and sin on her own self, saving her from her guilt and pain other characters felt.…
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As she stood on the scaffold she held, Pearl, the child she bore because of her sin. Hester endured this horrible punishment, but where was her partner in all of this? Mr. Dimmesdale was standing beside the magistrates watching all of this silently, not wanting anyone to know that he was also a part of this crime. Yet, what if his name was spoken and revealed? Would his punishment have been this severe? At the end of the novel, when Dimmesdale reveals he also shares Hester’s sin many citizens afterward still did not believe that such a godly man would do this. In the novel it reads, “ ...spectators of the whole scene…denied that there was any mark whatever on his breast…Neither, by their report, had his dying words acknowledged… the slightest connection, on his part, with the guilt for which Hester Prynne had… worn the scarlet letter” (Hawthorne 285). They simply remained ignorant and refused to state that they saw the scarlet letter upon his breast. Many townspeople believed that his confession of the transgression was not a confession, but rather a passionate sermon on this subject. However, if Hester would have confessed it would have been easy to believe because women were seen as weak and the main culprits of adultery.…
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In The Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne utilizes Puritan ideology to convey a philosophical reflection on sin and redemption. Adulteress Hester Prynne must wear a scarlet A to mark her shame, and while her lover, Arthur Dimmesdale, remains unidentified and is wracked with guilt, her husband, Roger Chillingworth, seeks revenge. Although all three characters contemplate redemption, it is only Hester that chooses to confront her sin; Dimmesdale and Chillingworth refuse. This decision is heavily influenced by their respective morals. Hester’s morals of truth, forgiveness, and honesty allow her to be almost fully redeemed in the eyes of the public, whereas Dimmesdale's perverse loyalty to the morally corrupt society that hinders his love for…
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In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter, it was not conceivable when people commit adultery. In this novel set in a seventeenth century Puritan town, Hester Prynne, is a young woman who executes adultery with the town’s minister, Arthur Dimmesdale. In effect of doing this, Prynne suffers more than any other character in the novel. Prynne is seized for committing a sin which was intolerable during the Puritan times. She must undergo extreme punishment, including serving months in prison, and having to stand upon the scaffold and withstand immense public scrutiny from the townspeople. In the crowd, Prynne notices somebody, her husband, who changed his name to Roger Chillingworth, who signals to her to keep quiet. Prynne keeps Dimmesdale’s and Chillingworth’s name a secret, thus forcing her to bear the letter “A” on her chest for all to see.…
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Nathaniel Hawthorne finds in colonial New England a compelling setting for his dramatization of the paradox of individualism—America was founded on the principle that to be an individual is to be separate from the state, thus creating a community, or country in the United States’ case, formed completely of separatists. The Scarlet Letter dramatizes the individualistic dimensions as this tendency of democracy that “relieve(s) the darkening close of a tale of human frailty and sorrow” (Hawthorne 29). The Puritans were a group of dissident voluntary exiles who sought to strengthen and reform the Christian community in England by leaving it—setting out across the sea for a New World, a New England that would furnish a model for reconstructing the old one. “The Scarlet Letter agrees with the doctrines of the Puritans” and envisions this moral and political paradox in terms of individual…
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