The Scarlet Letter is a book written by Nathaniel Hawthorne about a young lady named Hester and her life when she is sent to New England by her husband to establish their life while he is wrapping unfinished affairs back in Europe. While in New England she stumbles upon Puritans, people who are believe deeply in sin and not having a way out of being damned to hell. Hester eventually runs into one of the worst she sins possible, adultery. Then the villagers stumble upon an accomplice in Hester’s sin, Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale who cannot confess to his wrongdoings. Finally there is Roger Chillingworth, Hester’s former husband who swears revenge upon the man in which his wife had slept with, ...view middle of the document...
The quote is stating that Hester has a haughty vibe upon her for she wears the embroidered “A” on her chest with what seems to not have an effect. Although she is to stand up on a scaffold with her three month old in chapter 2: The Market Place , she simply has a moment when she finally realizes what has happened is real, with phantasmagoria visions, and the man most responsible for this is the one that no one would have expected, the man who everyone so closely linked to God.
Now, Dimmesdale is a man of high power, and looked upon by all the people of the village.Since he is the Reverend, everyone thinks of him as a man who can do no wrong what-so-ever, but little did they know, he has a secret so dark, it literally is killing him. All of the villagers believed that Dimmesdale was an unadulterated soul and was meant to help the people keep pure and try to possibly save Hester from damnation. When Hester is first standing on the scaffold with little Pearl, he says: “thou hearest what this good man says, and seest the accountability under which I labor. If thou feelest it to be for thy soul’s peace, and that thy earthly punishment will thereby be made more effectual to salvation, I charge thee to speak out the name of thy fellow-sinner and fellow-sufferer! Be not silent from any mistaken pity and tenderness for him; for, believe me, Hester, though he were to step down from a high place, and stand there beside thee, on thy pedestal of shame, yet better were it so, than to hide a guilty heart through life. What can thy silence do for him, except it tempt him,—yea, compel him, as it were—to add hypocrisy to sin? Heaven hath granted thee an open ignominy, that thereby thou mayest work out an open triumph over the evil within thee, and the sorrow without. Take heed how thou deniest to him—who, perchance, hath not the courage to grasp it for himself—the bitter, but wholesome, cup that is now presented to thy lips!” in chapter 3: The Recognition. In this chapter Dimmesdale is making an intimation at Hester to get her to admit he is the father of her child because he himself is too scared to admit he has done wrong. Soon the ministers and villagers become aware of a caprice change in Dimmesdale’s attitude and figure. Dimmesdale falls ill due to the guilt of his concealed sin of adultery. In chapter 12: The Minister's Vigil, in one of the passages it is stated: “Come up here, Hester, you and little Pearl,” said the Reverend Mr. Dimmesdale. “You have been here before, but I was not with you. Come up here once more, and we will stand all three together.” With this being said it shows that he is willing to accept his wrongdoing and hold hands with Hester and Pearl but he states “on the Great Judgement Day.” This is when he says he will admit his destiny. Though while he is sick, the man who takes care of him most...
