Suffering is a major theme in The Scarlet Letter; all the characters are affected by their own agony. Nathaniel Hawthorne suggests that suffering is necessary to be remorseful. Suffering ruins Roger Chillingworth, while it aids Hester Prynne in becoming rueful. When Arthur Dimmesdale finally confesses, his suffering assists him to be contrite as well.
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If Hester does not suffer, she will not become contrite or learn from her mistakes. Although her suffering is public, she experiences inward guilt comparable to Dimmesdale. The guilt is illustrated in the quote; "She never battled with the public, but submitted uncomplainingly to its worst usage- (127). At first, Hester only has penance because she has yet to be sorry for what she has done. She illustrates this in the making of her scarlet letter, " fantastically embroidered with gold thread, upon her bosom!" (45). She is very proud and dignified. This pride illustrates that she is not sorry, and not regretful for her sin. Her penitence comes after all the suffering she endures. Her atonement never gives her relief; it is only self-punishment and acts to erase the sin. From the suffering, as a whole, she learns to feel remorseful and repentant of her sin. .
Suffering and revenge are Chillingworth's downfall; he is unable to become penitent because he feels no remorse for his actions. The first thing Chillingworth sees when he comes to town is Hester's public shunning. After the shunning, Chillingworth visits Hester in jail and requests the father's name. Chillingworth vows to make the father pay for his sins. He finds the father when he " laid his hand upon his bosom, and thrust aside the vestment." seeing a symbol on Dimmesdale's chest that constitutes the sin of the scarlet letter. Chillingworth is so caught up in jealousy and hatred because, leech that he is, he's sucked the life out of poor Pearl's father. He makes it his sole purpose in life to cause Dimmesdale to suffer.
