Scarlet Letter Theme Essay

The two-century-old novel, The Scarlet Letter, written by Nathaniel Hawthorne, is about two lovers who commit a horrible sin. Only one is punished for the sin, though. The woman’s [Hester Prynne] husband—believed to be dead—comes back to town to find her being gawked at by her community. He tells her not to say anything about his identity, and instead goes to find her silent lover. Said lover is too scared to confess his part in the sin, and instead lets the guilt eat him from the inside out. Hawthorne uses real-life and still very present situations to create a feeling of sorrow and suspense within the pages. Throughout The Scarlet Letter, Hawthorne employs the character of Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale to illustrate the themes of secret sin

Guilt alone burns inside him, and he wants so badly to confess. He knows that telling people is something he cannot do, though, because of his position within the Puritan community. In addition, Hawthorne points out, “More than once, Mr. Dimmesdale had gone into the pulpit, with a purpose never to come down its steps until he should have spoken the words...” (Hawthorne 129) This means that while he knows that telling of his sin is the right thing to do, he is afraid. Hawthorne goes on to add that Dimmesdale only goes to the pulpit at night, when no one is outside or can see him. Dimmesdale tells Hester if she does not tell the people he is the father of Pearl, their child, then he will remain silent as well. (Pimple, Studies in the Novel) Both proven statements make him seem very cowardly, then again he is a reverend. Since reverends are very honest and truthful, it is very hard for him to keep quiet about it. It is even harder for him to come out with it and say something, it seems.