Preview

The Black Man Of The Forest In Scarlet Letter

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
1254 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
The Black Man Of The Forest In Scarlet Letter
The Black Man of the Forest: A Literary Analysis Essay Of The Scarlet Letter In almost every story there are forces of good and evil that are in conflict. The most dangerous of these evils are those that are not obvious. In Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter, the Black Man of the forest is none other than Roger Chillingworth. Some may read the novel and assume that Dimmesdale is the Black Man. It may be viewed that Dimmesdale’s affair with Hester is the cause for the scarlet letter, but this is untrue. To assume that there was no mutual relationship between Dimmesdale and Hester is a large mistake, as both had affection for each other. Another mistake is to assume Hester is the only one who has a mark placed upon her, as Dimmesdale …show more content…
He is led to confide in his trusted companion and physician, who moves in with him. The two share an intimacy as a result of this, and Chillingworth proceeds to probe Dimmesdale’s soul. When Pearl and Hester walk by the house containing Dimmesdale and Chillingworth, Pearl yells to Hester, “Come away or yonder Black Man will catch you! He hath got the minister already. Come away mother or he will catch you, but he cannot catch little Pearl.” That night when Dimmesdale is asleep, Chillingworth creeps over, unbuttons Dimmesdale’s shirt, and places his hand on Arthur Dimmesdale’s chest. He then jumps back and lets out a devilish cry, which is compared to Satan stealing a soul from heaven and casting it into hell. By applying his trade, the evil doctor helps bring about the invisible burning mark Dimmesdale is forced to bear. Now Arthur often feels discomfort and is seen with his hand on his chest. When he encounters Hester and Pearl, Pearl again makes a profound statement when she says, “Is it the black man?” To which Hester replies, “It is no Black Man! Thou canst see him now through the trees. It is the minister!” Pearl then remarks, “And so it is! And, mother, he has his hand over his heart! It is because the minister wrote his name in the book, the Black Man set his mark in that place? But why does he not wear it outside his busom, as dost thou mother?” Both Dimmesdale and Hester, by signing the Chillingworth’s book, have come to suffer at the Black Man’s

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    This chapter mainly focuses on Hester and Dimmesdale communicating with eachother. They are able to escape the public eye by talking in the forest. This is when Hester breaks the news to Dimmesdale the Chillingworth is her husband. At first Dimmesdale is infuriated. He begins to blame Hester for all of his suffering. During the middle of his rant Hester pulls him into her chest and embraces him. After this Dimmesdale comes to his senses and begins to realize that Chillingworth is the biggest sinner of them all. Hester and Dimmesdale plan to escape the town by catching a boat to Europe, where they can live with Pearl as a family.…

    • 710 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Authur Dimmesdale, a puritan reverend in Boston, fell in love with Hester Prynne, a young woman married to Roger Chillingworth. His inability to control his feelings led to an adulterous relationship between himself and Hester, resulting in the birth of Pearl. Both Hester and Authur lived guiltily, and Dimmesdale punished himself for the sin he committed. When Chillingworth arrived in America and realized his wife’s affair, he sought to discover Pearl’s father and take vengeance. Since Dimmesdale felt ill, Chillingworth utilized this opportunity to disguise himself as Dimmesdale’s physician since he has knowledge about medicine. Suspecting Dimmesdale as the father of Pearl, Chillingworth, with a maleficent personality, exploited Dimmesdale and tortured him psychologically. Critics argue about who committed the greater sin since Hester and Dimmesdale committed adultery while Chillingworth took revenge and tortured Dimmesdale.…

    • 552 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The Scarlet Letter, a beautifully embroidered “A” that represented sin and now ability, was constantly the focus of Pearl’s eyes. While Hester has an encounter with Roger Chillingworth, she tells Pearl to go play while she speaks with him. Pearl gets distracted by all of the elements of nature as she entertains herself. “Pearl took some eelgrass, and imitated, as best she could, on her own bosom, the decoration with which she was so familiar on her mother’s. A letter--the letter A--but freshly green, instead of scarlet!” Since she does this, she will not stop pestering Hester about what the “A” actually means. Ironically, She later makes the connection of Hesters “A”, and Reverend Dimmesdale always holding his chest.…

    • 393 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Richard Perle, a political advisor of the 1940s, once said, “Sometimes the things we...do seem objectionable in the eyes of others” (“Brainy Quote” 7). This is true of people and situations we encounter in our everyday lives, and all of us are most likely deemed objectionable more frequently than we realize. Our behaviors can appear undesirable, offensive, or scornful to others, while we may not conceive it ourselves. This is certainly true of the way readers perceive Dimmesdale’s actions to be in The Scarlet Letter, an acclaimed novel by Nathaniel Hawthorne. The story is a romance involving characters that have been embroidered so intricately…

    • 1474 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Irony in Scarlet Letter

    • 705 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Nathaniel Hawthrone’s Scarlet Letter is praised as one of the most revolutionary and compelling literary works in modern American history. The narrator’s omniscient, descriptive lingustics enfore the story’s captivating plot as well as invokes insights on the moral fiber of each character. For some, the novel is an inspiration to readers in regard to the powerful protagonist, Hester Prynne, with her feminism and strength in the face of adversity; or by her daughter’s pure spirit, or even the devotion of the minister Dimmesdale to his congregation. As popular and coveted is the complex plot, Hawthorne’s literary talents excel within each paragraph. The story is historical in its characters and what they represent, but is exciting because of its constantly misleading irony. The author uses irony systematically throughout the book to keep the reader guessing, whether verbal irony in Chillingworth’s words, situational irony - Hester and Dimmesdale’s burst of joy before a tradgic ending - or the dramatic irony of Dimmesdale’s secret relationship with Hester. The deceptive techniques used by Hawthorne are what makes this elderly tale so relevant today.…

    • 705 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Dimmesdale practiced self-punishment as a substitute to public humiliation that was a common discipline in The Scarlet Letter. The forest was home of the Black Man and a place to be free. Although the forest is a place to be safe, Dimmesdale became tempted to sin effortlessly. Therefore, the forest and the Black Man aroused man's…

    • 628 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In the Scarlet Letter two of the primary characters are provided by the author to show us a kind of foil. The one character, Reverend Dimmesdale, seems as if he is kind, but he has been living with a terrible burden, hindering him everywhere he goes. Chillingworth is his opposite, you would assume him to be nice when really he is quite evil. Dimmesdale and Chillingworth bring out each other's characteristics and bring out the characteristics of other characters around them. Dimmesdale and Chillingworth but heads in every aspect of their lives especially when it comes to Hester, who just so happens to be the only thing they have in common.…

    • 1267 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Sometimes, Dimmesdale seems like a coward. However, all he is trying to do is be an admirable pastor to his people, yet Dimmesdale has his unconfessed sins still burdening him. The reader can understand Dimmesdale’s desolation when Dimmesdale found out who Roger Chillingworth really was. As Hawthorne says in The Scarlet Letter, “ The minister looked at her for an instant, with all that violence of passion, which - intermixed in more shapes than one his higher, purer, softer qualities - was, in fact, the portion of him which the devil claimed, and through which he sought to win the rest.” (Hawthorne 214). In that excerpt of the book, the reader can grasp Dimmesdale’s rage. He feels betrayed by Hester because she did not tell him who Roger Chillingworth really was. Dimmesdale is also very upset that even with all of the torture he has put himself through, that he still does not regret his sin. Hawthorne also adds ,” Of penance, I have had enough! Of penitence, there has been none!” (Hawthorne 212) He feels that he has tortured himself enough, but he feels no guilt for his sins. Even though Dimmesdale knows that telling the people his thoughts are erroneous, he still wants everyone to know. In fact, he feels guilty for not saying anything and letting Hester take the fall for the punishment. Hawthorne includes, “ Else, I should long ago have thrown off these garments of mock holiness, and have…

    • 927 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    One of the main considerations while reading The Scarlet Letter, is who seems to be the guiltiest character. The three prime targets are Hester, Dimmesdale, and Chillingworth. While all of them have questionable morality and have committed "sin", Dimmesdale, the puritan minister, is the guiltiest character. He initiates a physical relationship with Hester, knowing she is married, he fails at the fatherly responsibility of taking care of his daughter, Pearl, and he selfishly cares more about himself than his secret family.…

    • 501 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    People are not always what they seem to be. Roger Chillingworth in The Scarlet Letter shows that everyone sins but some people’s sins are worse than others.The Scarlet Letter shows Chillingworth’s sins throughout the book. One of Hawthorne’s intentions was having Chillingworth as the worst sinner, because he used his herbs to keep Dimmesdale alive-he prolonged Dimmesdale’s torture, he used “black medicine”, and when Dimmesdale stopped taking the herbs, he passed away.…

    • 650 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Dimmesdale experiences a worse outcome. One day, Hester and Dimmesdale meet in a forest. Hester wants him to forget about his sin and move on. However, he hesitates to do so because he is the one who holds his people and honors God. Eventually, after his speech on Election Day, he confesses. He stands on the scaffold with Hester and his daughter, Pearl. Now, everyone sees the scarlet letter on the Reverend’s chest. Then, he dies on the scaffold. This is a tragic consequence of the sin. Although it can be thought that Dimmesdale doesn’t get much pain, he is fighting with himself inside him(“What”). On the other hand, after several years, Hester leaves and returns to Boston alone. Hester lives in a small cottage and is still isolated from the society. However, she continues her needlework. She works hard and tries to contribute to her society. At last, she begins to be accepted and known as a hard worker. This is when her letter A changes its meaning. At first, the scarlet letter A means adultery. Later, it becomes a symbol of able. After many years, Hester dies and is buried next to Dimmesdale, sharing a scarlet A. Hester and Dimmesdale have very different outcomes. Though Hester is publicly known for her sin, she accepts it and moves on. She works hard with her job and is always brave. On the other hand, Dimmesdale keeps everything in himself and ends up dying…

    • 901 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Nathaniel Hawthorne in the novel, the scarlet letter, portrays the level of wickedness that lives within humans. Pyle proves this to his audience by his precise and various strategies. Hawthorns dramatic irony both helps build suspense while foreshadowing how blind the Puritans are towards Chillingsworth true character, he foreshadows the pain and suffering Chillingworth will soon unravel upon dimmesdale; he does this through foreshadow, hyperbole and point of view.…

    • 764 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    During the conversation between Hester and the physician, Chillingworth is aware of his continuing torture of Dimmesdale when he says “[Dimmesdale] has been conscious of me. He has felt an influence dwelling always upon him like a curse” (Hawthorne 155). This proves that he enjoys his obsession with the minister. He continues to cold-heartedly torment the frailing Dimmesdale. On the night that Chillingworth sees Dimmesdale’s chest, Chillingworth has a moment of “ecstasy” during which he understands “how Satan comports himself when a precious human soul is lost to heaven” (Hawthorne 126). Chillingworth begins to develop an understanding of the way the devil feels when he successfully tortures his victims in hell. His ability to empathize with Satan explains why Hester and the rest of the town views him as a psychopath. Throughout this section of the book, the ex-husband who was wronged now embodies…

    • 986 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    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…

    • 971 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In Nathaniel Hawthorne's Scarlet Letter, the forest means different things to different people. To the honorable and respectable members of Puritan , the forest is an evil and frightening place where witches lurk and the devil resides. To Hester Prynne and Arthur Dimmesdale, two people unable to speak their minds in Puritan community, the forest offers a place of refuge where they can be true with each other. To Pearl, the forest . The symbolism of the forest setting’s inherently good and bad natures offer a deeper insight into the emotional complexity of Hawthrone’s characters.…

    • 859 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays