The Scarlet Letter, written by Nathaniel Hawthorne, portrays a character by the name of Roger chillingworth who is overtaken by the presence of evil. In another American gothic novel, Herman Melville’s Moby Dick contains Captain Ahab, who is seen in a similar situation to that of Chillingworth. Roger Chillingworth and Captain Ahab are both evil characters with many similarities based on their situations. The presence of evil in both of these characters manifests itself to lead the men to acts of cruelty.
In Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter, the presence of evil within Roger Chillingworth is presented throughout the story. The evil that is shown through the acts of Roger Chillingworth come in forms of revenge. Chillingworth wishes to seek revenge on his wife’s unholy partner, with whom she bears a child. Chillingworth later attempts to kill Arthur Dimmesdale through ways of medicine. Dimmesdale soon dies of natural causes, escaping the …show more content…
Ahab, determined to find this whale, risked his life and the lives of his entire crew just to chase Moby Dick, who he is not likely to catch. Throughout the story, the evil within Ahab grows and gains power through the wild goose chase at sea. Ahab was ever so determined to capture this what that he led his unprepared ship into arctic waters, and even dangerously thick ice. Along with this chase, Captain Ahab had a growing passion to hunt this whale, and would not trade the world for Moby Dick’s corpse on the deck of his ship. This burning desire to pursue the great whale grew within Ahab, and eventually led to his own death. Captain Ahab does not present his religion, or in that matter anything to do with religion. However, he is a reference to an evil being in the Bible. Captain Ahab represents King Ahab from the Bible; he was one of the most powerful rulers, and was considered by many the worst ruler Israel ever
In Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter, the presence of evil within Roger Chillingworth is presented throughout the story. The evil that is shown through the acts of Roger Chillingworth come in forms of revenge. Chillingworth wishes to seek revenge on his wife’s unholy partner, with whom she bears a child. Chillingworth later attempts to kill Arthur Dimmesdale through ways of medicine. Dimmesdale soon dies of natural causes, escaping the …show more content…
Ahab, determined to find this whale, risked his life and the lives of his entire crew just to chase Moby Dick, who he is not likely to catch. Throughout the story, the evil within Ahab grows and gains power through the wild goose chase at sea. Ahab was ever so determined to capture this what that he led his unprepared ship into arctic waters, and even dangerously thick ice. Along with this chase, Captain Ahab had a growing passion to hunt this whale, and would not trade the world for Moby Dick’s corpse on the deck of his ship. This burning desire to pursue the great whale grew within Ahab, and eventually led to his own death. Captain Ahab does not present his religion, or in that matter anything to do with religion. However, he is a reference to an evil being in the Bible. Captain Ahab represents King Ahab from the Bible; he was one of the most powerful rulers, and was considered by many the worst ruler Israel ever