ipl-logo

Scarlet Letter Guilt Quotes

540 Words3 Pages

In The Scarlet Letter, Hawthorne links the mind and body together in order to demonstrate the hierarchical relationship the two have by implanting an abstract form of sin into the mind and revealing its tangible effects on the body. As guilt slowly torments Hawthorne and Hester’s spiritual mind and soul, the mental deterioration trickles down into their physical well-being. The two characters exemplify the two polarities of overcoming shame and guilt; Hawthorne represents those who cannot cope while Hester characterizes the able and strong-willed. By crafting these opposite personalities, Hawthorne implies that the mind resides on a higher tier than the body and conditions that affect the mind will subsequently affect the body. However, he suggests that …show more content…

While Hester has a prominent “letter of infamy wrought into… [the] garment”, Dimmesdale “bears…it on his heart” (Hawthorne 19). As Dimmesdale hides his guilt and shame to the point of mental depreciation, Hester wears her sin on her breast and weaves her guilt into her identity. The minister’s buried shame within his soul acts as “black weeds…sprung up out of a buried heart” and begins to destroy his physical body (Hawthorne 53). He tortures himself through starving, whippings, and prolonged vigils. Ultimately, Dimmesdale’s mental and spiritual health’s degradation consequently allowed for “its appropriate manifestation in… [the] bodily frame”, proving the body to have a direct link to the mind. (Hawthorne 57). Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter proves to be a “tale of human frailty and sorrow” by demonstrating that mistakes define human nature and portraying the idea that those mistakes also act as blessings (Hawthorne 2). He argues that sins are inevitable, natural forces that cannot be suppressed, but must be expressed in order to learn from them. The human frailty is represented by sin,

Show More
Related

  • Scarlet Letter Sinner Quotes

    381 Words  | 2 Pages

    “Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry./Because of these, the wrath of God is coming.” (Colossians 3:5-6). Throughout The Scarlet Letter the main characters are both sinners, but over time they vindicate the reputation that they had once made with helping others and coming clean for the cleanse of their souls. Hester, the reason for this book has on one of the most simple things, she has committed adultery. At times Hester, the reason for this book has on one of the most simple things, she has committed adultery.

    Read More

  • Scarlet Letter Revenge Quotes

    527 Words  | 3 Pages

    It is not really explored in the book “The Scarlet Letter” how Roger Chillingsworth plans to take revenge. But by reading you can see how Roger is getting revenge on the lovers. Simply by being a shadow over them Roger seems to get his revenge. If he is always there to remind them of their sin then that seems good enough for him. He seeks revenge on Dimmesdale’s mind, by constant torment.

    Read More

  • Scarlet Letter Sinful Quotes

    1842 Words  | 8 Pages

    Avenging and vengeful is the man who is wronged! This statement could be applied to several characters throughout the novel The Scarlet Letter, written by American author Nathaniel Hawthorne. Sinful acts are inflicted upon many of the minute cast of characters, which impose a riveting journey for the reader to endure. Even more so are the reactions these prominent characters have toward their anguish and adversities as they heave themselves into the depths of solitariness, self-inflicted agony, and woe. Among these richly intriguing personalities is the town’s sinful stain, Hester Prynne, who has committed adultery; the demon-child, Pearl, who was a product to her mother’s adultery; the unholy clergyman, Arthur Dimmesdale, the other adulterer; and the implacable Doctor, Roger Chillingworth.

    Read More

  • Scarlet Letter Guilt Quotes

    800 Words  | 4 Pages

    In The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne, the illustration of guilt as portrayed as a feeling of responsibility or remorse for a wrong doing. In the novel, it exemplifies different types of guilt, such as guilt being cause by physical activity, someone doing wrong to God or religion, and a situation of something having intentions on doing harm to someone. For example, Dimmesdale commits a sinful act of adultery with Hester, who later leaves Hester and Pearl to suffer alone while he remains known as a hero in his village. By Dimmesdale not confessing his guilt and internalizing it for a long period of time, he ultimately ends up impairing his life for not confessing and admitting his deadly sin. Guilt has three attributes as to how it can

    Read More

  • Scarlet Letter Guilt Quotes

    1423 Words  | 6 Pages

    As he takes his last breaths in Hester's arms, Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale exclaims, “God knows; and He is merciful! He hath proved his mercy, most of all, in my afflictions. Had either of these agonies been wanting, I had been lost for ever”. Throughout The Scarlet Letter, Dimmesdale is tormented endlessly by remorse and the repression of his sin. Because of this, in his final moments, he is driven to reveal to the townspeople that he is the father of Pearl, finally relieving the guilt he burdened himself with for seven years.

    Read More

  • How Is Diction Used In The Scarlet Letter

    1368 Words  | 6 Pages

    During the time at which the novel The Scarlet Letter, by Nathaniel Hawthorne, was written, people were help to higher standards regarding what was viewed as acceptable in a society, mostly shown through religious moral standards. Hawthorne was also able to show the effects of guilt specifically during that time, following a sin that was seen as completely unacceptable in this society, and how it would affect someone in their life, especially if kept private. Hawthorne uses literary devices to show how private guilt causes more personal damage than public guilt and how it can become an everlasting punishment. Through the use of diction, Hawthorne is able to show how private guilt causes more personal damage and can have a great internal punishment

    Read More

  • Scarlet Letter Guilt Quotes

    1643 Words  | 7 Pages

    Guilty is one of two possible verdicts in court, yet shame often follows the person who committed the crime. Guilt and shame usually go hand in hand, yet, many deal with these similar feelings in different ways. Because of their differing personalities and roles in society, Hester and Dimmesdale from the novel “The Scarlet Letter” by Nathaniel Hawthorne approach guilt and shame in contrasting and respective ways. In Hawthorne’s novel, we are told the story of Hester, an adulteress whom cheated on her husband, and Roger Chillingworth, who had not yet arrived to the new world. Hester, on the other hand, had arrived early.

    Read More

  • Scarlet Letter Revenge Quotes

    656 Words  | 3 Pages

    In “The Scarlet Letter,” the author, Nathaniel Hawthorne, depicts Roger Chillingworth as a man that is out for revenge. Chillingworth comes into the story and immediately comes to realize that his ex-wife has betrayed him by sleeping with another man. Chillingworth wants to avenge his pride by finding the man that did him wrong by sneaking into his personal life and torturing him under his nose. Throughout this book, Chillingworth changes in many different ways, physically and emotionally. Driven by his lust for revenge, Roger Chillingworth uses his personal background to hide his intent of torturing his wife’s hidden lover, and changes his being throughout the book.

    Read More

  • Function Of The Human Heart In The Scarlet Letter By Nathaniel Hawthorne

    84 Words  | 1 Pages

    In other words, ideas of the inherently flawed human can be compared to the importance of the human heart, and why it cannot be underestimated in The Scarlet Letter. Its function is to connect the individual to the world of nature and to common humanity. Hawthorne suggests that by fully accepting and honoring the human heart, man can find a balance between nature and society. “When man can live an existence which will allow nature and society to be in concord rather than conflict”.

    Read More

  • Conformity Revealed By Arthur Dimmesdale In The Scarlet Letter By Nathaniel Hawthorne

    836 Words  | 4 Pages

    (82) Ever since Hester Prynne received the scarlet letter on her chest as punishment, Dimmesdale developed an impulse to cover up his chest with his hands from the guilt of not sharing the public shame with Hester. He is punishing himself for that and the gesture is a way of reminding himself of his cowardice. Even with ominous signs of impairment and culpability as the consequence of his sin, Dimmesdale still conforms to the rest of the Puritan society and even receives praise for his powerful sermons. However, since he has not confronted his sin, Dimmesdale is slowly dying

    Read More

  • How Does Nathaniel Hawthorne Use Biblical Allusions In The Scarlet Letter

    1458 Words  | 6 Pages

    However, he also uses these allusions to create a new side to his narrative as evident when he describes Hester’s resilience, and to create a new element in the plot as evident in his description of Dimmesdale’s penance and need for redemption. Therefore, Hawthorne demonstrates an effective use of allusions to craft a religious and detailed narrative for The Scarlet Letter by reviewing on parallels between the Bible and the novel’s main characters. There’s more to The Scarlet Letter than these allusions though, and there are many questions to answer about this book. These questions may never be answered fully, but by reading the novel itself, we might find the right places to start searching for answers and formulate our own opinions on the matter. What’s important from this novel is the realistic warning about what might happens when an individual place themselves too highly among others, a message Hawthorne writes to warn against the fervor of transcendentalism of his time.

    Read More

  • Scarlet Letter Hypocrisy Quotes

    890 Words  | 4 Pages

    Aiden Christianson Pugmire/Maack 11th Grade ELA 1/10/2023 Scarlet Letter Nathaniel Hawthorne’s “The Scarlet Letter” is a novel talking about the puritan lifestyle, and how seriously they took their society. This story delves into themes of “hypocrisy” and “sin”, the biggest offender being Arthur Dimmesdale. Dimmesdale is the biggest hypocrite in this story, he committed adultery alongside Hester, but he stayed anonymous, keeping his job as the Puritan minister. He kept preaching about Puritan beliefs even though he himself was a sinner.

    Read More

  • Scarlet Letter Clothing Quotes

    535 Words  | 3 Pages

    In the novel, ‘The Scarlet Letter’, Hawthorne writes chapter 5, “Hester and Her Needle”, to show the uses of Hester’s clothing to reveal Hester’s self-perception, releases the attitude of Hester’s neighbors, and explains the nature of her daughter’s conception in different rhetorical devices. In the 7th paragraph of chapter 5, it states that Hester didn’t wear the finest of clothing. She simply wears plain dresses and basic materials. Hawthorne describes Hester’s attire as “Her own dress was of the coarsest materials and the most somber hue; with only that one ornament,--the scarlet letter--which it was her doom to wear.”(86).

    Read More

  • Chillingworth Is The Greatest Sinner

    902 Words  | 4 Pages

    “One of the many steps in order to accomplish a positive vibe in your life is to cease dwelling on the negative thoughts and memories from your past, and to quit limiting your potential by pondering on what you’ve done poorly”, as my mother repeatedly told me. In the Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne sets out his main characters to reveal the different aspects of an individual that may occur when placed in difficult situations. Hawthorne’s main characters: Hester, Dimmesdale, and Chillingworth, each take a different pathway in the method that they would set free themselves from their prisons. Hawthorne presents Chillingworth as the greatest sinner because Chillingworth sought for evilness without admitting to fault, and commits most of the seven deadly sins until the end of his days. In the beginning, Chillingworth desires to seek revenge, and fills his soul with wrath.

    Read More

  • Theme Of Guilt In The Scarlet Letter

    867 Words  | 4 Pages

    Hawthorne writes,”... the outward guise of purity was a lie, and that if truth were everywhere to be shown, a Scarlet Letter would blaze forth on many a bosom other than Hester Prynne 's”(Hawthorn 80)? Now when other people look at Hester’s Letter they feel guilty themselves because they have also sinned, but have not been shamed in

    Read More

More about Scarlet Letter Guilt Quotes

Open Document