Weak Character Of Hester Prynne

It has been suggested, by critics of The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne, that despite the fact that Hester Prynne is the most evident major character, perhaps Arthur Dimmesdale, although weak, is the less realized central character of the novel. They propose that the minister is the one who is truly persecuted and tempted. However, while providing a true statement in the fact that Dimmesdale is an incredibly weak character, he does not experience more prejudice or temptation than Hester. Being a woman in the Puritanical society, Hester was already oppressed to begin with. Although their religion believed that everyone was stained with original sin, women were viewed as more sinful due to Eve’s action in the Garden of Eden that is …show more content…
Hester was mocked, shunned, and publicly shamed for her act while Dimmesdale faced no repercussions other than those inflicted by his own mind. The public persecution of Hester Prynne made the residents of the town despise both her and her daughter. Even the children of the town disliked them, saying “Let us fling mud at them!” (Hawthorne 67) Arthur Dimmesdale faced no outside persecution from the townspeople or anybody. Even as he finally admitted to his crime right before his death, the people still remained fond of Dimmesdale and he died a saint in their …show more content…
His weakness of character is shown by the way he responds to his sin. Unlike Hester, his cowardice causes him to flee from the public eye and hide his faults from the world. Along with a weakness of character, his guilt also causes his body to deteriorate because of the heavy burden that his conscious carries. “[Dimmesdale] looked haggard and feeble, and betrayed a nerveless despondency in his air, which had never so remarkably characterized him in his walks about the settlement” (Hawthorne 126). This quote shows that the weight his sin has on him is more than just in the mind. It causes him to physically become frail and delicate. This suffering that Dimmesdale endures lends him some reality to his situation. He realized that he is a sinner just like the rest of the townspeople, but his infidelity along with his dishonesty cause confusion as to who or what he actually is. He is so caught up in living a lie that all he is sure of is that Hester loves him, and he is in extreme pain.
Dimmesdale is not the central character of The Scarlet Letter, nor is he the true figure. He is simply a character that provides contrast to Hester’s unwavering, responsible, and brave nature. Where Hester succeeds, Arthur continuously fails. Time and time again he has opportunities to confess what he has done and neglects to do so. Even though Hester