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The scarlett letter

            According to Anne Marie MacNamara, Arthur Dimmesdale in The Scarlet .
             Letter goes through several stages of spiritual growth; preparation, communication, transformation and finally revelation.
             To further understand why Dimmesdale is so hard on himself we must first .
             Learn a little back ground on Puritanism. Puritanism was a move influenced by the Reformation, but whose main objective was to purify the Church of England. The most out going of the puritans wanted to return to primitive Christianity. One thing to remember about Puritanism is that it was movement that was with in the Church of England. Some of the major idea's that the puritans had were; that the sermon was of up most importance, that all believers were equal in the sight of god, that the church should decide its leader's democratically and finally that it would be of great importance to read scripture (Hudson 62-64).
             This relates to Dimmesdale because the puritans believed very strongly in a strict catholic church. They were very mean and harsh to people they thought or knew sinned. They had very strong faith in the church and followed the examples of the leaders of the church (Hudson 65). So to have a leader of the church commit such a sin as adultery in the church would upset the community very much. Dimmesdale knew the people would become very mad and that he would either be kicked out the village or hung. .
             Dimmesdale knew this and knew the consequences for what he had done. .
             He realized that he would be very unpopular through out the town and be shunned on for the rest of his life. He would start to live a life full of darkness and loneliness. So because of this Dimmesdale hid his secret and just watched as Hester was ridiculed through out the town. Dimmesdale wanted to reveal him self; he just couldn't bring him self to do it, which brings us to the first stage of his spiritual growth; preparation.
             Dimmesdale knew that if word of what he had done got out he would be .


Essays Related to The scarlett letter

1. The Tremendous Sinner in The Scarlett Letter

... were repaying God. The least a sinner could do to not feel the sensation of feeling overwhelmed is by coming clean of all their actions they have done that has caused a chaos. We are all sinners, some of them do it intentionally and some don't. But Chillingworth is made of pure evil. He is the worst sinner of all characters in The Scarlett Letter. There is a quote ... that makes the whole book together, when Hester and Dimmesdale comments to Hester, "We are not, Hester, the worst sinners in the world. There is one worse than even the polluted priest! That old man's revenge has been blac...

  • Word Count: 794
  • Approx Pages: 3
  • Grade Level: High School

2. Scarlett Letter

... society. Today we publicize the effects of our judicial system to a great extent, whether it is an open courtroom, or a televised execution, people tend to feel some type of relif watching the hand of the law in action. In the begining of the book The Scarlett Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne, when Hester is upon the scaffold in the marketplace in front of the whole town, women in the crowd are heard gossiping ... . They remark about the fact that Hester has received a reduced sentence: "At the very least, they should have put the brand of a hot iron on Hester ... ...

  • Word Count: 245
  • Approx Pages: 1
  • Grade Level: High School

3. The Scarlett A

The Scarlet A Multiple meanings and discussion providing insight into the letter The letter "A" was to be worn as a punishment, to be worn in shame, to be worn as "adulteress." This may not have been clearly and directly stated to the reader, but throughout reading the book, you gather possible hidden meanings of Hester's scarlet letter. Although the sense of the meaning "adulteress" is constant, the metaphoric, emotional, and moralistic meanings of the scarlet letter vary from positive to negative interpretations throughout the novel The Scarlet Letter. The Puritan community was a dark, stric...

  • Word Count: 1352
  • Approx Pages: 5
  • Grade Level: High School

4. Identity and Reputation in The Scarlett Letter

In Nathaniel Hawthorn's, "The Scarlet Letter," the main characters undergo tribulations that help highlight the major issues of American identity. Hester Prynne, the woman who commits a sin that forces her into ignominious solitude, uses her crime as leverage for her own personal development. Arthur Dimmesdale, believed to be a pious reverend, is provided as an example of conformity. He rejects his sin and is constrained to what the puritanical society believes to be as orthodox. And Pearl, who is the offspring of Hester and Dimmesdale, is unlike either of the two. She does not face the dilemm...

  • Word Count: 1053
  • Approx Pages: 4
  • Grade Level: High School

5. Remorse in The Scarlett Letter

In many stories there is always that one character that changes throughout the course of the book. In The Scarlet Letter the main character that changes is Hester. Throughout the book Hester changes from being an arrogant, unremorseful woman to a nicer and helpful woman. Even though Hester seems to have learned a lesson from her sin and punishment, has she really changed from her sinful ways? If so, is she going to leave for Europe with Dimmesdale? Towards the beginning of The Scarlet Letter, we see Hester being punished publicly for the sin she has committed with Dimmesdale. In chapter 2, Haw...

  • Word Count: 944
  • Approx Pages: 4
  • Grade Level: High School

6. The Scarlett LEtter

Symbolism in the Scarlet Letter The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne contains abundant symbolism, which is used to unify the novel and add deeper meaning. Although the actual "A" is the most obvious symbol, there are several others which have great importance as well. The most important symbol in the novel is the scarlet letter, which affects each character in a different way. The characters who are affected by the letter are Arthur Dimmesdale, Roger Chillingworth, Pearl, and Hester Prynne (Schneider). The scarlet letter is a sign by which the colonial authority seeks to fix the crime of ...

  • Word Count: 1366
  • Approx Pages: 5
  • Grade Level: High School

7. Scarlett Letter The Symbol Of Pearl

The Symbol of Pearl In Nathaniel Hawthorne's, The Scarlet Letter, Pearl, is the human symbol of the sin of adultery in the fact that she leads her mother, Hester Prynne, and Arthur Dimmesdale to accept and admit to their sin. Pearl is the beautiful daughter of Hester and Dimmesdale. She is the living symbol of the scarlet letter and has unique traits that make her sometimes appear as a demon. Her love for nature and freedom, her spirit, her wildness, her loneliness and separation from the world, her curiosity, and her innocent but symbolic comments reveal her distinct personality. Pearl senses...

  • Word Count: 1030
  • Approx Pages: 4
  • Grade Level: High School

8. The Scarlett Letter

In Nathaniel Hawthorne: The Man, His Tales and Romances, published by the Continuum in 1989, Edward Wagenknecht gives the following analysis of The Scarlet Letter: "Because Hawthorne did not believe that law can deal with sin as distinct from crime, he makes a whole paragraph of the sentence: "The scarlet letter had not done its office." He seems to have felt that in placing it upon Hester's breast, the magistrates had blasphemously usurped the function of God, as Chillingworth later usurps it in his plot against Dimmesdale. Yet it serves her well in freeing her from all danger of trying to li...

  • Word Count: 942
  • Approx Pages: 4
  • Grade Level: High School

9. The Scarlett Letter

The Scarlet Letter To the naked eye, the story of The Scarlet Letter appears to just be a well-written love story within a puritan society full of unexpected flips and turns. Upon closer examination, The Scarlet Letter is really filled with obsession, guilt, and morals. The author, Nathaniel Hawthorne, uses a twisted physician, a minister, and a very independent character to express the theme of revenge among his three main characters. Throughout the novel, Hawthorne uses his very different characters to show that no matter what type of person one may be, human nature is absorbed with revenge...

  • Word Count: 1480
  • Approx Pages: 6
  • Grade Level: High School

10. Religious Corruption in the Scarlett Letter

Jake Smith Mrs. Cunningham Honors English 10 (4) 19 October 2014 Religious Corruption The Scarlet Letter, by Nathaniel Hawthorne, is a historical novel that takes place in Boston, Massachusetts. In the story, the town emphasizes religion over everything else, and its citizens treat the Bible as not only a guide for life but as the rulebook for law. The strict religious beliefs of the characters cause them to shun and condemn a young woman by the name of Hester Prynne for committing adultery. They force Hester to wear a scarlet letter A on her chest as a constant reminder of her wrongdoing, and...

  • Word Count: 1403
  • Approx Pages: 6
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: High School

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