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 .
Punishment has always revolved around the same ideas, to discipline an individual, and to set an example for the rest of society, discouraging them from following in a convict's footprints. Either way, the end result is to set a criminal apart from the rest of society. Today we publicize the effe...
Morales 8 Alex Morales Melinda Shingler Honor English 20 October 2014 A Tremendous Sinner "Never support two weaknesses at the same time. It's your combination sinners - your lecherous liars and your miserly drunkards - who dishonor the vices and bring them into bad repute." ― Thornton Wilder...
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. ... This in turn causes the Puritan view of her letter "A" to change from adultery to ability. ... In the center of the novel's action, a meteor passes across the sky in the shape of the letter "A". ... (Bloom 91-92) Pearl is also greatly affected by the scarlet letter, but in another way. ... (Novelguide) Nathaniel Hawthorne uses symbols very well in his novel The Scarlet Letter. ...
She goes on to say that if her sentence to wear the scarlet letter was over, the letter would disappear naturally. ... Although the scarlet letter may not be the sentence of God, it does help Pearl redeem her soul. ... Dimmesdale says, "Happy are you, Hester, that wear the scarlet letter openly upon your bosom! ... I agree with the statements that Wagenknecht made about The Scarlet Letter. He says that the scarlet letter was not the punishment of God, but of the Puritan citizens; that Chillingworth and the Puritans that punished Hester stole one of the duties of God; and that by wearing t...
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. ... Hawthorne's ultimate theme in The Scarlet Letter is vengeance amongst all of mankind. ... The breathtaking letter had now become a part of her. ... Pearl was just a smaller version of the scarlet letter. ...
The Scarlet Letter can be considered a satire of Puritan beliefs because the book is full of angry people who mock and ridicule the unfortunate one who bears the letter "A" on her chest. ... The Scarlet Letter could have been written to show others of Puritan ways and beliefs but one who reads this would go on believing the people led their lives in a completely different way. ... Such people were punished in such ways as the scarlet letter, or in The Crucible, the Salem Witch Trials. ... In conclusion, The Scarlet Letter is a satire because, although it does prove the characteristic...
In Nathanial Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter Hawthorne uses the theme sin and concealment. ... They sentenced her to wear the scarlet letter and to stand on the scaffold in front of everyone. ... As Hester has the scarlet letter on her bosom, Dimmesdale's holds his heart like a scarlet letter burns in secret there. ... Dimmesdale sees the "A" in the sky and he interprets it as standing for adultery (the scarlet letter.) ... This is how Nathanial Hawthorne connected the theme of The Scarlet Letter. ...
In the novel, The scarlet letter, by Nathaniel Hawthorne, Hester Prynne arrives at colony where she is accused of adultery due to a love affair with minister Dimmesdale. ... She is sentenced to wear a scarlet letter, which symbolizes her sin. ... Hester proves her courage when the chance to flee her sentence and remove the scarlet letter, is presented to her . If she would reveal her daughter's father, all shame would be removed, but decides to see the letter as a moment of the past. ... Unlike Dimmesdale, Hester is able to accept her sin by wearing the Scarlet Letter....
The Metamorphosis of Dimmesdale in The Scarlet Letter In The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne, there are many characters that transform; one of them is Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale. ... He also clutches his chest a lot in away that reminds Pearl of her mother, Hester's scarlet letter "A" By this point in time Hester Prynne's husband has found out about Dimmesdale's secret and has been tormenting Dimmesdale with it. ... In The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne Dimmesdale makes many changes - especially at the scaffold scenes. ...
