ipl-logo

The Guilt Of Dimmesdale In Nathaniel Hawthorne's 'The Scarlet Letter'

319 Words2 Pages

Erin Joel
Mrs. Janosy
English 2H P 5
22 October 2015
Quote Explication
Dimmesdale is trying to overcome a conflict within his own soul, defying his own religion, and choosing to do wrong by keeping his sin to himself. In a theocracy type community like Dimmesdale's, God is known as the supreme civil ruler, and a crime would be known as a sin. On the other hand, Hester’s sin was made known to the public, receiving the public shame and ridicule she deserved. During the duration of time when the public knew Dimmesdale was hiding his sin, “the agony with which this public tortured him” (Hawthorne 119). causing Dimmesdale to feel terribly ill inside, knowing he is hiding his secret. When Dimmesdale says he is “ill,” it is his soul and emotions that are ill, knowing that he has a huge secret hidden and that the townspeople know, but he does not have a real sickness. Dimmesdale’s greatest fear is what other people’s opinion of him are, causing him to continually be living in fear. The guilt that Dimmesdale encounters is holding him back from letting out his sin because of his fear of what people will think of him. Defying his own beliefs, Dimmesdale shares his guilt through his sermons by saying “to reckon all things shadow-like, and utterly devoid of weight or value, that had not its divine essence and the life within their life” ( Hawthorne 119). Dimmesdale saying that to …show more content…

By Dimmesdale's hand always on his chest, everyone makes the connection that he is the father of Pearl because of the Scarlet Letter on Hester’s

Show More
Related

  • Scarlet Letter: Dimmesdale's Identity

    349 Words  | 2 Pages

    Personally I believe that Hester should have revealed who was the father of Pearl for three reasons: Dimmesdale deserved punishment, the pressing people, and Dimmesdale's guilt. The first reason why Hester should have revealed Dimmesdale's identity was Dimmesdale deserved punishment. I found on desiringgod.org that Puritan pastors took vows of celibacy and Dimmesdale broke that vow. Not only did he break his word but he also slept with a woman who was married.

    Read More

  • Does Nathaniel Hawthorne Use Physiognomy In The Scarlet Letter

    707 Words  | 3 Pages

    (113) “What can thy silence do for him, except it tempt him—yea, compel him, as it were—to add hypocrisy to sin?” (62) These passages emphasize the internal conflict within Dimmesdale, he is a man who is desperately trying to hide his sins from the public. The physical description of Dimmesdale emphasizes his physical weakness and fragility, which reflects his moral weakness, linked with his unfaithfulness which brings him to fulfill sinful acts.

    Read More

  • Who Is Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale In The Scarlet Letter

    693 Words  | 3 Pages

    Dimmesdale’s feelings were clearin that he explained that “it must needs be better for the sufferer to be free to show his pain, as this poor woman Hester is, than to cover it all up in his heart”(93). Dimmesdale said that once the extra sin of concealing the original sin is gone the load on the conscience lessens relieving the guilt and suffering. Hester did not have these additional burdens of guilt and suffering as Dimmesdale

    Read More

  • Scarlet Letter Guilt Quotes

    1423 Words  | 6 Pages

    Hawthorne exemplifies how it degrades Dimmesdale's psyche, describing the effects the varying methods have on him. In the times that the reverend stares at himself in the mirror, Hawthorne suggests that he does so for long periods of time, reflecting on himself and his misdeeds, resulting in hallucinations. Hawthorne also embeds strong diction such as “constant introspection” and “tortured” to assert the extent to which Dimmesdale is punishing himself. Despite how much he forces himself to endure, he’s unsatisfied. Hawthorne explicitly mentions this with one clause, “but could not purify”.

    Read More

  • Who Is Dimmesdale's Suffering In The Scarlet Letter

    522 Words  | 3 Pages

    Dimmesdale and Hester suffers because of the sin they did. Dimmesdale feels guilt even though he never confesses that he is the farther. He would go to the scaffold at night and stand there screaming trying to get the people to come outside to see him but it was just all in his head when she would stand on the scaffold during the day with the red A on her chest she felt guilt even though she would not tell anyone who the farther is and for having an affair while her husband was missing for years. For example, Dimmesdale does not want to confess about his sin because he does not want to face the consequences. This is illustrated when Dimmesdale says, “then and there before the judgment-seat, thy mother and thou, and I must stand together” (Dimmesdale 139).

    Read More

  • How Does Hawthorne Use Cliches In The Scarlet Letter

    445 Words  | 2 Pages

    Arthur Dimmesdale, the minister, a clergyman had committed the horrid sin of adultery, the same sin as Hester. Dimmesdale’s holy affiliation gave him a kind and pure disposition and this was solidified by his dimwittedness, making him seem almost childlike. By having a character with these qualities, Hawthorne contradicts the stereotype he has set up by having Dimmesdale be “unworth... [y] to [complete his] humblest mission” (71), a quality virtually unheard of among ministers. The author then has Dimmesdale confess his “sin so awfully revealed!”(211) in order for both Hester and Dimmesdale to redeem themselves of sin and restore the goodness.

    Read More

  • The Scarlet Letter Penance Vs. Penitence

    604 Words  | 3 Pages

    He knows that if he reveals what he has done, then his followers will lose their respect for him. He is burdened with his sin; therefore, he inflicts pain upon himself for his wrongdoing. Dimmesdale goes as far as having vigils all night, being tortured by “diabolic shapes,” and emaciating and whipping himself. Dimmesdale punishes himself because he wants to repent for the sin that he has committed.

    Read More

  • Arthur Dimmesdale's Guilt Quotes

    1158 Words  | 5 Pages

    Mentally, his guilt strains his mind, which causes his physical deterioration, and the weakening of his body. As Dimmesdale finally admits his sin to the townspeople, his guilt is lifted, and he is able to release himself from his captivity. Though he deteriorated both mind and body from his guilt, by telling the townspeople of his sin, it was as if “a spell was broken” (238). He no longer needed to force himself to hide his sin, which was what was hurting him. By finally dealing with his sin in a similar way to Hester, Dimmesdale was able to free himself of his self-imposed captivity and

    Read More

  • The Scarlet Letter Dimmesdale's Transformation

    523 Words  | 3 Pages

    Dimmesdale starts living with Chillingworth so the doctor can keep the feeble minister ‘healthy’; the doctor, reversely, tries to make Dimmesdale feel conflicted about his morals which leads to Dimmesdale obsessively whipping himself “...on his own shoulders” and“... fast[ing]...in order to purify [his] body… rigorously...until his knees trembled beneath him[self]...” (132). He is enveloped in his sin, and cannot escape it unless he tells the truth. In fact, Dimmesdale could not stop thinking about his sin which “...continued to give Mr. Dimmesdale a real existence [which] was the anguish in his inmost soul” (133).

    Read More

  • Dimmesdale And Chillingworth's Secrets In Scarlet Letter

    361 Words  | 2 Pages

    Dimmesdale and Chillingworth both have secrets that make them look and act differently, their secrets affect their character and how they do their job. Dimmesdale is the father of Pearl but he doesn 't want to face the same humiliation as Hester did for his sins. Because of his secret he self punishes and fasts, he also preaches better than he did before although his health is failing. Chillingworth’s secret is that he was the husband of Hester while he was away, before she cheated on him. Chillingworth gets uglier and uglier driven by the need to get revenge on Pearl’s father.

    Read More

  • Arthur Dimmesdale's Marking Quotes

    561 Words  | 3 Pages

    It is revealed that there is something on Dimmesdale’s chest after the physician, Roger Chillingworth, moves aside Dimmesdale’s shirt revealing his chest; (Hawthorne 78) the reader is then led to believe that there is something important about this interaction. The mark, again, is not directly stated so the reader does not know what the mark is. The mark is finally beginning to show itself, so the guilt is starting to work its way outward. At this point there is no way that Dimmesdale will be able to hide his shame forever. Over time the guilt will continue to build up and eventually will consume

    Read More

  • Arthur Dimmesdale's Moral Development In Scarlet Letter

    978 Words  | 4 Pages

    In 1964, Lawrence Kohlberg, a psychologist introduced the idea that humans evolved through different stages of morality. In the novel, The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne male characters exemplify a moral development as the story unfolds. In particular, Arthur Dimmesdale’s morality differs from the beginning of the novel to the ending of the novel. His morality undergoes continuity and change by constantly changing from selfishness, social order, and social contract. Dimmesdale undergoes the morality maintaining the social order and being considerate of others to eventually being selfish and only thinks about himself.

    Read More

  • Hester And Dimmesdale In The Scarlet Letter

    743 Words  | 3 Pages

    In Dimmesdale not confessing and facing a punishment in the eyes of the church as well as the townspeople, causing him to take to his own means, while Hester is able to face a punishment. Dimmesdale does what he believes is right for his punishment by doing acts that damaged his mind and body. Dimmesdale, in creating his own punishment, holds vigils that last all night, fasted to the point that he barely ate anything at all, beat himself, and lost the will to live. Dimmesdale's sin stays with him throughout the book, and the readers see his mind and body deteriorate through his mysterious sickness, while the readers see Hester become a closed off outcast trying to repent. The townspeople in the book see DImmesdale's sickness, and how devoted he is to his faith and begin to believe that he is holy, and an angel sent to sent to save them, while Hester has repented and become able, as well as an

    Read More

  • The Sin Of Dimmesdale In The Scarlet Letter

    1404 Words  | 6 Pages

    Because of the effects that Dimmesdale’s sin has on Chillingworth, the town suffers as well. The betrayal of their pastor leads them to refuse to see the truth when he pleads for the public to see his guilt at the end of the novel, and his secrecy from the people that adore him is one of the slyest and vile parts of his sin. The blind faith that the public has in their reverend is mislead by his deceit, which causes his sin to grow to a scale that Hester’s never did. Dimmesdale also harmed Pearl, by not standing with her and Hester on the day they were condemned. When she is grown, she asks, “Doth

    Read More

  • The Hidden Sin In The Scarlet Letter

    686 Words  | 3 Pages

    The Hidden Sin and The Revealed Sin As humans, we live in the that are brimming with sins and evil desire. As the creator of all the creatures, God, sent his only son to save the people from the control of devil. The only thing we have to do is to acknowledge our mistake. Bible teach us that we should tell the truth to God and your neighbors, and God will forgive you. But people are worse, they not only hide the sin and their evil behaviors but also try to deny it.

    Read More

More about The Guilt Of Dimmesdale In Nathaniel Hawthorne's 'The Scarlet Letter'

Open Document