Monday, January 6, 2020

Essay on The Greater Sin in Hawthornes The Scarlet Letter

The Greater Sin in The Scarlet Letter In essence, there were three main sins committed in The Scarlet Letter, the sins of Hester, the Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale, and Roger Chillingworth. Roger Chillingworth committed the greatest sin because he let himself be ruled by hatred and the consuming desire for vengeance. The overpowering vengeance and hatred felt by Chillingworth caused his life to be centered on demeaning Dimmesdale and tormenting him until the end of time. Both Hester Prynne and Arthur Dimmesdale committed sins for which they were deeply remorseful, Roger Chillingworth, however, committed the greater sin because he felt no guilt. Unknowingly, Hester Prynne sailed from Europe to the Americas betrayed and tricked.†¦show more content†¦Reverend Dimmesdale was a renowned, prideful man stricken with sin and extreme guilt. From the time Hester and Dimmesdale made love, he was grievous of his sin but he also felt a great love towards her. Dimmesdales stubborn pride troubled him greatly, and although he tried many times, he could not confess his sin to his religious followers. Dimmesdale felt guilt so strongly that he scourged himself on his breast and patterned an â€Å"A† into his own flesh, yet he could not confess his sin until his grief grew so great it caused him to perish. Reverend Dimmesdales sin was greater than Hesters because he let his pride conflict with his repentance, and let his life be ruined by his anguish. Physically deformed and mysterious, Roger Chillingworth finally met his wife after being separated from her for almost two years. He showed no great anger towards her and took upon himself some of the accountability saying it was â€Å"...my folly and thy weakness,† (Hawthorne 52) which was the cause of Hesters sin. Chillingworths only feeling was one of revenge towards the man who had been Hesters lover. Chillingworth was obsessed by hate and revenge so much that when Dimmesdale died â€Å"... the life seemed to have departed...† (Hawthorne 72) from him and he died within a year of Dimmesdales death. Chillingworth never felt guilt or attempted repentance because he â€Å"... violated, in cold blood, the sanctity of a human heart.† (Hawthorne 133). He sought to destroy DimmesdalesShow MoreRelated Justice Explored in Nathaniel Hawthornes The Scarlet Letter1043 Words   |  5 Pages Justice Explored in The Scarlet Letter nbsp; Nathaniel Hawthorne created themes in The Scarlet Letter just as significant as the obvious ideas pertaining to sin and Puritan society. Roger Chillingworth is a character through which one of these themes resonates, and a character that is often underplayed in analysis. His weakness and path of destruction of himself and others are summed up in one of Chillingworths last sentences in the novel, to Arthur Dimmesdale: Hadst thou sought the wholeRead MoreMahek Mehta Ap Preparation Guide : The Scarlet Letter1175 Words   |  5 PagesMahek Mehta AP Preparation Guide: The Scarlet Letter Introduction: The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne is the most famous of the American romanticist’s works, which often centered on the topic of America’s Puritan history. Led by John Winthrop, the Puritans formed a theology in Massachusetts in the 1630s. They were English Protestants who migrated to the New World and demanded greater religious discipline than their English counterparts. Romanticism was divided intoRead MoreJohn Proctor And The Scarlett Letter1299 Words   |  6 PagesDuring the 16th and 17th century a group of reformed protestant called Puritans had a profound effect on the establishment of Religion, this influenced early American society. Arthur Miller’s, The Crucible and Nathaniel Hawthorne’s, The Scarlett Letter texts prevail the theme of Religion and Adultery. These particular authors wrote during the Puritan times and conveyed this time period in their texts while exploring the similarities and difference of Religion and Adulter y in the Puritan CommunityRead MoreNathaniel Hawthorne s The Scarlet Letter1896 Words   |  8 PagesIn a surface examination of the work of Nathaniel Hawthorne, it is quickly evident that no good things come from the wilderness. Therein, the wilderness is often associated with the savages and the devil. In his work The Scarlet Letter, Hester Prynne finds herself exiled by society for having an adulterous affair with the town reverend which brought forth the child known as Pearl. Pearl is quickly established as the child of the wilderness: wild, capricious, and thought by the town to be a demon-childRead MorePublic Humiliation2337 Words   |  10 Pageshand, as a result of Reverend Dimmesdale withholding his sin, a hard-hitting sickness secretly hits the reverend. The scarlet letter located on Hester’s chest is a constant reminder of her wrong decision. In the novel The Scarlet Letter, author Nathaniel Hawthorne expresses the effects of sin in many ways, including public hu miliation, Hester and the scarlet letter and Dimmesdale’s sickness. Maria Stromberg, who wrote the article â€Å"Hawthorne’s Black Man: Image of Social Evil† expresses the danger ofRead MoreNathaniel Hawthorne s The Scarlet Letter2037 Words   |  9 PagesScarlet Letter Final Essay In The Scarlet Letter, author Nathaniel Hawthorne examines the moral consequences of sin, or an offense against religious or moral law, and poses the question to his readers; can individuals be redeemed for their sins? The two central characters in the novel, Hester Prynne and Arthur Dimmesdale, both commit the sin of adultery. However, each character deals with their wrongdoing in opposite ways. Initially it seems that Hester Prynne’s sin is worse than that of ReverendRead MoreAnalytical Essay on the Scarlet Letter2040 Words   |  9 PagesIn his book, The Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne tells of a story where a young woman has had an adulterous relationship with a respected priest in a Puritan community. Typical of Hawthornes writings is the use of imagery and symbolism. In Chapter 12, The Ministers Vigil, there are several uses of imagery when Dimmesdale, the priest, is battling with confessing his sin, which has plagued him for seven years. Three evident technique s used to personify symbolism in this chapter are the useRead MoreNathaniel Hawthornes Literature During Early America1560 Words   |  7 PagesNathaniel Hawthornes literature exhibits the influence of many factors. Much of his literature addresses Puritan culture in early America, commonly focusing on the shortcomings and hypocrisies that became apparent during the numerous witch hunts. Many of his works are allegorical, using the Puritan setting to portray his own ideas about ancestry, history, and religion. While The Scarlet Letter and House of the Seven Gables are among Hawthornes most known works, he produced a large sum of workRead MoreThe History of American Literature3501 Words   |  15 PagesGeorgia, East and West Florida, the Cherokee Country, etc (1791) by William Bartram . Travel stories often blended observations on nature and landscape with tales of personal courage and achievement. The first American newspaper, the Boston News-Letter, was founded in 1704, an d joined by the Boston Gazette in 1719. At a time when newspaper journalism was concerned primarily with reporting political events, the New-England Courant, started by James Franklin in 1721, became the first newspaper toRead MoreThe House of the Seven Gables by Nathaniel Hawthorne Essay6806 Words   |  28 PagesJaffrey. And that was the end of the Pyncheon - Maule dispute. The story presents us with several themes. Firstly, that the sins of the forefathers are passed on to the next generations, and they become branded for life. Although one cannot undo what have already been done, he can still strive to break the curse, and free himself from the spiral of sin. Secondly, man cannot live alone. Isolation can draw out life from a being. Clifford and Hepzibah who had been living n seclusion

No comments:

Post a Comment

Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.