Scarlet Letter

Dimmesdale’s Arguments:
1.
In chapter 8, Dimmesdale, Mr. Wilson, and Governor Bellingham are visited by Hester and Pearl at the Governor’s mansion. When pearl is asked “who made thee?”, she responds that she was not made, but rather "plucked . . . off the bush of wild roses that grew by the prison door.". This causes the governor and Mr. Wilson to immediately become horrified and ready to take Pearl from Hester’s custody. As Pearl protests her God given right for Pearls custody, she pleads that Dimmesdale speak for her. Dimmesdale uses religious appeal to convince the governor and Mr. Wilson that God gave Pearl to Hester and it is not their right to take the child away. He says that God gave Pearl to Hester as both “a blessing and a reminder of her sin”, which is the leading argument that convinces Bellingham and Mr. Wilson to leave Pearl in Hester’s custody. Dimmesdale uses a religious allusion in chapter 8 to convince them that they should leave Pearl to Hester’s custody and he is indeed successful in doing so. By Dimmesdale sticking up for Hester so easily and powerfully, it reveals that he has deep feelings for her and he is in some way responsible for he sin.

2.
In the first scaffold scene, as Dimmesdale try’s to persuade Hester to reveal the identity of her fellow sinner, he also at the same time convinces the townspeople that he surely is not the one who committed the sin with her by not revealing that he was in fact the man responsible. By publicly stating to Hester that she should not protect the man’s identity out of pity or tenderness, Dimmesdale is using logos to convince his audience that there is no way he could be her lover, why would he want her to reveal him as her lover? Furthermore when Hester refuses to reveal the identity of her lover, Dimmesdale doesn’t question her any further, causing the crowd to use logical reasoning in assuming that he can not be the lover of Hester. Although Reverend Dimmesdale does not convince Hester to reveal her secrets, he uses this to his advantage to convince the townspeople that there is no chance he could be her lover. In this act of persuasion that Dimmesdale uses, the reader is revealed to a heavy guilt that now weighs on the shoulders of Dimmesdale. They become aware of his hypocrisy and therefore the internal conflict he is faced with for the rest of the novel. Hester’s Arguments:
1.
In chapter three Hester argues with Chillingsworth about the identity of Pearl’s father. Chillingworth insists that Hester reveal to him the identity of the man and should not protect him out of tenderness. Hester responds, saying that Pearl should not know an earthly father, but rather only a heavenly one. Hester uses mainly pathos for the course of this argument. Chillingworth pathologically appeals to Hester when he tells her not to protect the man out of pitiness or tenderness. Hester also uses pathos when she states that Pearl should only know a heavenly father because this makes Chillingworth realize that Hester only cares for the well being of Pearl and not her lover. Hester tightly refuses to name the man and Chillingworth presses no further. From this argument the reader can infer that Hester is protecting herself and Pearl more than the identity of the father, thus playing with the emotions of Chillingworth. From Hester’s unyielding denial to name the father we can determine that she feels a powerful commitment towards Dimmesdale and has strong feelings for him to the extent in which she should have to suffer alone for him. 2.
As similar to Dimmesdale’s argument in chapter 8, Hester also tries to convince the governor and Mr. Wilson to let her keep Pearl. Hester argues that she should maintain custody of Pearl because she could teach Pearl a valuable lesson, similar to the one she has learned herself. Hester uses logos because she infers that no emotional appeal will affect the decision of men who view her as a sinner in a puritan society. Hester’s argument is adequately effective but the true turning stone of the governors decision arises when Dimmesdale steps in and speaks for Hester. A biblical allusion to God is present when Hester says that God gave her Pearl, this helps Hester because the Governor is a very religious man and Hester is implying that taking Pearl away would be going against God. Due to the fact that Hester fights for the custody of Pearl, the reader realizes that Hester truly loves Pearl and cares about her. This shows the might and self-determination Hester possesses as well as the feelings she has for Dimmesdale because she puts up a compelling and influential dispute while at the same time showing that she loves Pearl and in turn that she does not have a bitter attitude about the events that led to her birth as someone who doesn’t care about the would.

Dimmesdale’s Internal Conflict:

One of the major themes of “The Scarlet Letter” deals directly with the internal conflict Reverend Mr. Dimmesdale is faced with for much of the book; Dimmesdale tries to convince himself to stay true to himself and is successful in the end. He is torn between the obligation he has with his lover Hester Prynne and the judgment of his congregation. Dimmesdale can’t decide whether to confess his sins to the public because he is afraid of the judgment he will receive by not only his congregation, but the townspeople as well. For this reason, Dimmesdale finds himself deciding between two decisions he cannot make, thus he tortures himself in hope that he will be relieved of his sins. This only further drives Dimmesdale into insanity and furthermore weighing down the internal conflict he faces even more. Over the course of 7 years, Dimmesdale drives himself to madness and is burdened by the emotional state he has summoned for himself. In order to finally attain inner peace and emotional freedom within himself, Dimmesdale successfully convinces himself to confess his sins to the public. However it is only in his final moments of life in which he confesses, justifying that yes, he was successful in convincing himself to the act, but it reveals truly how much inner anguish he was dealing with due to the fact that he died from it.

Hester’s Internal Conflict:

Hester’s internal conflict throughout the book is that of if she should reveal the true identity of Pearl’s father. Hester uses both pathos and logos to make her argument convincing. She uses pathos when protecting the identity of Dimmesdale from Chillingworth but Chillingworth finds out Dimmesdale's identity and so in this part Hester in a way fails but later Hester gathers the bravery from within to confront Chillingsworth and pleas for him to relent on his anguish on Dimmesdale due to her passionate love for the man as well as the duty and obligation she feels to protect him. Hester thoughtfully uses logos when conflicting what would happen to Dimmesdale’s reputation among the town. In due course Hester’s commitment to Dimmesdale and her love for him win over in her decision to keep his identity a secret from all others besides Chillingsworth in order to protect him. Hester is effective in that she keeps the identity of Dimmesdale secret, however this works against her because Chillingworth uses this to torture Dimmesdale mentally. This suggests that Hester is in Love with Dimmesdale and will protect him till the end. This also seems to foreshadow a new life with Dimmesdale and Pearl. She even speaks of a fantasy in which they would all live in England, further implying that she is deeply in love with Dimmesdale.

Chillingworth’s Arguments:

1. One character that Chiilingworth has a major argument with is Reverend Mr. Dimmesdale. In search of revenge on the man that committed the adulterous sin with his wife, Chillingworth finds that Dimmesdale is the man who committed the deed and uses devious logic to torture Dimmesdale mentally. Through deep pondering into Dimmesdale’s soul, Chillingworth finds that the reverend is facing an internal conflict with guilt and sin. Chillingworth uses this logically to his advantage in convincing Dimmesdale that his sickness is “a sickness of the soul” and that he should confess whatever inner guilt he is keeping secret. Through his use of logos, Chillingworth cuts into the fragile emotions of Dimmesdale and successfully convinces him that he should confess his sins if he wants to become cured. This only adds to the internal conflict that Dimmesdale is dealing with, making the evil work of Chillingworth’s vengeance plan a major success. This reveals that Chillingworth is a man of evil spirit and has characteristics similar to that of a leech, sucking whatever life there is left out of Dimmesdale. With respect to Dimmesdale, more is revealed about how great of an impact his internal conflict is having on himself, especially due to the insidious probing of Chillingworth.

2.
In chapter fourteen, there is a significant argument between Hester and Chillingeworth about his revenge on Dimmesdale. Chillingworth uses logos to justify his argument made for torturing Dimmesdale, he states that his revenge and Hester’s mute attitude are “fate” and to “let the black flower blossom as it may!” Chillingworth also allusively appeals to Hester when he states that it is the path that God has created for both of them. This is especially effective, considering the fact that in Puritan society during this time, God was tied into to almost everything. Despite the fact that Chillingworth did not in any way make Hester okay with his revenge he made it clear to her that it was “fate” and his destiny and that she could not stop him from doing continuing what he is living for which was vengeance. This reveals the true identity beneath the skin of Chillingworth, a man with a cold hear and relentless attitude who will stop at nothing to get what he wants.

Scarlet Letter Essay:
Nathaniel Hawthorne uses the tool of characterization with respect to both his character’s internal and external conflicts in order to structure the concrete personalities of the protagonists that make “The Scarlet Letter” the involving book that it is. Similarly in one of the most recognized films of our time, “Blow”, directed by Ted Demme, explores both internal and external conflicts of characters engulfed by a business that seems endlessly profitable, further solidifying their “true” character role in the film. In both “Blow” and “The Scarlet Letter”, the authors explore the emotional development of main characters through inner and outer discord.
In The Scarlet Letter, Hawthorne develops his characters by exploring the conflicts they have with others around them. For example, one major argument that helps portray the development is the inner conflict Reverend Mr. Dimmesdale has with himself. Dimmesdale is torn by the overwhelming guilt and hypocrisy he feels for the majority of the book, which ultimately leads to his madness and death. Almost instantly the reader can infer from the first couple of chapters that Dimmesdale is in fact the lover of Hester, suddenly creating a major conflict within the book. Hawthorne strategically presents Dimmesdale as a man who has committed a sinful deed in the eyes of puritan society, but wishes to redeem his soul and clear his conscience. Through Dimmesdale’s inner conflict, the reader begins to place him as an important character who has a fragile personality. As the book is nearing its climax, Dimmesdale’s inner conflict truly starts to become apparent, thus solidifying who he has become as a character in the novel. The reader sees that Dimmesdale has been driven to absolute madness due to his inner argument and gets a sense of Hawthorne’s genius in using conflict to develop his characters. By Dimmesdale’s death, the reader sees that Hawthorne illustrated Dimmesdale’s argument in such a way that made it completely understandable why he died. Through the dispute that Chillingworth has with Hester about their “fate”, Hawthorne brilliantly uses characterization to show the transformation Chillingworth undergoes from a seemingly normal citizen to an insidious devil doctor who wants vengeance on Dimmesdale. Chillingworth argues with Hester that it is his fate to torture Dimmesdale to madness and he must finish what he started. From this conflict, the reader can see that Chillingworth has turned into a relentless evil spirit who will stop at nothing, and thus proving the powerful characterization work of Hawthorne throughout the book.
In the film “Blow”, Demme uses similar techniques to those of Nathaniel Hawthorne by introducing his main character, George Jung (Johnny Depp), as an innocent man just looking to start making some income. As George and his friend Tuna (Ethan Suplee) move into a drug populated city in California in the late 70’s, they discover that selling marijuana has potential to make them quite a significant amount of money. Now at first, Demme introduces the dispute between George and Tuna about whether or not what they are doing is a good idea, providing a backbone to the rest of events that take place in the movie. As the plot continues, George becomes more independent about his “business sales” and starts to create a large reputation for himself. This acts a gateway for substantially greater amounts of money for George in the film and presents him with a new set of arguments that the viewer duly notes. For example, once George begins to involve himself into the wide distribution/sale of cocaine, he meets a man who will eventually become his short term business partner. This mans name was Diego Delgado (Jordi Molla). As the two work together in the film, they start making hundreds of thousands of dollars, which instantly creates high tension between them when dealing with that amount of money. Demme uses the argument between the two men to bring the movie to one of its climaxes, which is them separating and becoming enemies. Due to this argument between the two drug dealers, Demme establishes a precise illustration of what the character’s intentions truly are. By showing that Diego Dlegado has become obsessed with drug and filled with greed for more money, Demme not only portrays Diego Delgado as a man corrupt with power, but also expresses the righteous intentions of Geroge Jung. Through the use of argument between major characters, Ted Demme successfully expresses the development and true characteristics of the main men in the film.
Characterization, or the growth and development of characters over time, is very existent in both “The Scarlet Letter” by Nathaniel Hawthorne as well as “Blow” directed by Ted Demme. In both Hawthornes novel and Demme’s film, the true characteristics of the protagonists are exemplified through the employment of disagreement. It is clear through both of these works of art, that authors make simple seemingly insignificant changes in the development of characters through the use of argument periodically throughout there works, in order to create a dynamically round new character that has changed significantly since the beginning. Authors use this powerful method of character development in order to not only get across thematic statements about their work, but also to make their effort generally appealing and engaging to the point where the audience almost feels like they personally know the characters the authors describe.