Secret Sin And Guilt In The Scarlet Letter

Secret Sin and Guilt 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

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. Furthermore, Dimmesdale strangely seems to find a bit of humor within his situation. This is inferred because Dimmesdale says with a mordant smile, “I have laughed in bitterness and agony of heart, at the contrast between what I seem and what I am.” (Hawthorne 174) He laughs at this to make his situation in the least bit lighter on his failing heart. His heart literally begins to fail. As it explains in the novel, “About this period, however, the health of Mr. Dimmesdale had evidently begun to fail.” (Hawthorne 107) The “period” it speaks of is in which Chillingworth, Hester’s mentioned husband, chooses Dimmesdale as his spiritual guide upon arriving in the community. The reader may find it a bit sketchy, because Chillingworth claims to be a physician. He was roomed with Dimmesdale after