Essay, Research Paper: The Scarlet Letter

In most stories with very few characters there are one or two good characters and several evil characters as well. Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter is a novel with no clear knight in shining armor and witch of the forest. Hawthorne makes a much more subtle conflict between characters. He plays with the individual's judgment and moral standards. If the story is analyzed however, it can be discovered that the Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale is accountable for much of the suffering that occurs in this novel. Dimmesdale's lack of responsibility in Hester Prynne's life leads to misery for Hester as well as for himself.
In the earliest scenes of the book Dimmesdale is shown as one of the men placing blame on Hester and not admitting his own guilt. As we meet Hester standing on the platform in front of the throngs of Puritan people Dimmesdale is accusing her, "I charge thee to speak out the name of thy fellow-sinner and fellow-sufferer!" (p. 73). Dimmesdale is obviously aware of his wrongdoing by not confessing while Hester is on the scaffold. He knows the confessing will ease his suffering, yet he decides to suffer personally and let Hester suffer publicly. He leaves Hester and his child standing on the scaffold throughout the day, pretending to wait for the child's father to come forth. True, he does come forth eventually and stand publicly with Hester and Pearl on the infamous scaffold, but this is not until just before his death. Had he of confessed earlier, Hester would have had someone to share her pain and rejection with. It is a work of procrastination that Dimmesdale does not unburden himself until his final moment. He realized it was necessary that he confess at some point, and by doing it immediately before death he does not have to live with the public knowledge of his sin as Hester does.
Arthur Dimmesdale lives his entire life hypocritically after his encounter with Hester Prynne. His deceptive actions deny Hester and the Puritan people of his true self. Had he of been more honest, he could have spent time with Hester and possibly even have been respected for his honest behavior. Throughout the book so much of Dimmesdale's life is covered up in hypocrisy mainly because of his position as a preacher. His sin is hidden within himself, and he forces himself to act as if Hester is less of a person than he. He is conscious and ashamed of his false demeanor, and he makes them evident to the observant reader, "The young minister, on ceasing to speak, had withdrawn a few steps from the group and stood with his face partially concealed in the heavy folds of the window curtain..." (p. 115).
Admirers of Reverend Dimmesdale might claim that his experience with sin allows him to give more meaningful speeches to his parishioners, and that had he confessed with Hester, he would have ruined the lives of others. By not knowing the truth, Dimmesdale's followers receive a false impression. They believe Dimmesdale is an innocent, holy man. This belief causes them to compare their behavior with his and they find that they must be truly awful people because if Dimmesdale spoke of having sin, their sin must be pure evil since such a holy man felt he had sin within himself. The Puritan people were truly mislead as they followed Dimmesdale with such emotion, "They deemed the young clergyman a miracle of holiness. In their eyes, the very ground on which he trod was sanctified." (p. 139). Dimmesdale does not consider the shock these people will receive when he finally decides to confess his crime. Or perhaps he does, but he realizes he will not be around to see the faces of the people who feel they have been cheated.
It is surprising to us, in a time where women speak out their feelings freely, that Hester does not become disturbed with Dimmesdale's lack of involvement in her life. However in the time of the Puritans it was not her place to ask for assistance from Dimmesdale. Out of his own regret for what was happening to Hester and the realization that he was being excluded from public humiliation, he should have tried in some way to comfort Hester. Dimmesdale was not mentioned as being very wealthy, but he had to have been better off than Hester, considering she had a child to take care of and surely a Puritan preacher made more than a seamstress. Still Dimmesdale made no attempt to offer Hester any financial aid. Of course money is no substitute for loving care and comfort. But at this point, it's obvious that such things are beyond Dimmesdale. Apparently he did not consider offering Hester some money to at least allow himself to feel as if he helped her somehow. Hester establishes herself in a small lakefront cottage that is "not in close vicinity to any other habitation...out of the sphere of that social activity which already marked the habits of the emigrants." (p. 84). This location would make it easy for Dimmesdale to visit as often as he liked without being noticed. However in Dimmesdale's dearth of compassion for Hester and Pearl, he neglected this opportunity most likely out the apprehension he might be caught.
Another element Dimmesdale manages to botch in Hester's life is Pearl. Dimmesdale makes no motion whatsoever to care for his own child. Again his motive for not participating in Hester's life is fear of being found out. It is in fact Hester that must come to Dimmesdale for help when the governor wishes to take Pearl from her. After pleading with him, "Look thou to it! I will not lose the child! Look thou to it!" (p. 113) she is able to have him convince his colleagues that removing Pearl from her care is unnecessary. When Dimmesdale meets Hester in the forest he announces he has been missing from Pearl's life, "I have even been afraid of little Pearl!" (p. 193). Maybe Dimmesdale is to blame for Pearl's fiendish behavior. In the 17th century it was an odd occurrence that a young child would be without a father. In our 20th century lives it is seen as commonplace, and it is normal for children to be raised in such a manner. However, in Pearl's time, living without a father figure was a shameful position to be in, and without having the influence of a father her behavior might be explained.
The Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale felt he was justified in abandoning Hester and his child, Pearl, because of the agony and torture he put himself through and that he confessed at his final moment. However, his inadequate treatment of Pearl through lack of responsibility in her life may be a greater sin then the one he committed originally. The Reverend was given an opportunity, as Hester was, to redeem himself. Hester managed to do so with her good deeds and public showing of her letter "A". Dimmesdale felt that he had too much to lose and instead misled his people with hypocrisy. The only participation Dimmesdale had in Hester's life was forced; he made no open attempt to care. Sadly enough this knowledge of wrongdoing burned inside him and was prodded at by Dr. Chillingworth until the point where it brought him an early demise. His death was a final denial of activity in Hester's life and he even questioned his union with her in the afterlife.

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