Intro: In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s novel The Scarlet Letter, the Reverend Mr. Dimmesdale wears no outside symbol of shame, yet buries it deep within. He has no law that condemned him to bear a letter marking him as sinful -- like the A pinned to Hester -- however, he is constantly reminded by his roommate. As the victim of Hester and Dimmesdale's affairs, Roger Chillingworth devotes his remaining life to forever remind Arthur of his sin. He tells Hester “few secrets can escape an investigator, who has opportunity and license to undertake such a quest, and skill to follow it up” (113). To follow through on his lifetime commitment, he formed an agreement become roommates with the Minister. To add to the torment, the apartment is situated next to
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The true pain generated from this originates from the great contrast between the God-loving churchman and the ever-present image of death/punishment. We first realize the grave’s close proximity as Hawthorne writes about Dimmesdale with “His elbow on the sill of the open window, that looked towards the graveyard” while talking to Roger. At the time, Roger had been gathering “dark” herbs he found in the graveyard. He found them on someone's grave and claimed they represented “some hideous secret that was buried with him, and which he had done better to confess during his lifetime”(page). Hawthorne used foreboding diction here to quickly establish the dismal atmosphere manifested by both the graveyard and Chillingworth’s presence. Words like “dark”, “hideous secret”, and “confess” hint at the minister's own dark secret he has yet to reveal. Moreover, Chillingworth’s comment amplifies the graveyards already ominous feeling. He suggests the dead man’s sin resulted in the flowering of the dark flowers on his grave, which strikes fear in the minister who realized he -- like the dead man -- is choosing to hide the sin and that it will inevitably be revealed. Roger furthers this sinister presence during some of their …show more content…
Dimmesdale's roommate has had such an effect that he has literally made the sin visible on the minister. As Chillingworth became increasingly devoted to exposing the ministers hiding sin, he had figured some marking had been made manifest on his body to depict it. Eventually, during one of the minster’s naps, Roger “ laid his hand upon his bosom, and thrust aside the vestment” (124) and reacted with a “wild look of wonder, joy, and horror!” that would indicate success. At this point, the “black man's” presence was so afflicting to the holy man that the letter A had manifested itself on his chest. Roger finds this a joyous accomplishment because “a precious human soul is lost to heaven, and won into his kingdom” (125). This serves as part of the conclusion of the chapter and truly stresses what a lasting effect Chillingworth’s presence from this chapter would have on the
The true pain generated from this originates from the great contrast between the God-loving churchman and the ever-present image of death/punishment. We first realize the grave’s close proximity as Hawthorne writes about Dimmesdale with “His elbow on the sill of the open window, that looked towards the graveyard” while talking to Roger. At the time, Roger had been gathering “dark” herbs he found in the graveyard. He found them on someone's grave and claimed they represented “some hideous secret that was buried with him, and which he had done better to confess during his lifetime”(page). Hawthorne used foreboding diction here to quickly establish the dismal atmosphere manifested by both the graveyard and Chillingworth’s presence. Words like “dark”, “hideous secret”, and “confess” hint at the minister's own dark secret he has yet to reveal. Moreover, Chillingworth’s comment amplifies the graveyards already ominous feeling. He suggests the dead man’s sin resulted in the flowering of the dark flowers on his grave, which strikes fear in the minister who realized he -- like the dead man -- is choosing to hide the sin and that it will inevitably be revealed. Roger furthers this sinister presence during some of their …show more content…
Dimmesdale's roommate has had such an effect that he has literally made the sin visible on the minister. As Chillingworth became increasingly devoted to exposing the ministers hiding sin, he had figured some marking had been made manifest on his body to depict it. Eventually, during one of the minster’s naps, Roger “ laid his hand upon his bosom, and thrust aside the vestment” (124) and reacted with a “wild look of wonder, joy, and horror!” that would indicate success. At this point, the “black man's” presence was so afflicting to the holy man that the letter A had manifested itself on his chest. Roger finds this a joyous accomplishment because “a precious human soul is lost to heaven, and won into his kingdom” (125). This serves as part of the conclusion of the chapter and truly stresses what a lasting effect Chillingworth’s presence from this chapter would have on the