Sin in The Scarlet Letter :: Scarlet Letter essays

Sin in The Scarlet Letter Since the dawn of time people have read, studied and enjoyed books in which the hero or heroes fall from grace. No matter who those heroes are- the human race in The Bible,the demon prince Lestat in Anne Rice's "Vampire Chronicles"or a certain Thane of Cawdor in "Macbeth"- sin plays a greatpart in all of their downfalls and subsequent ressurections.And the three main characters in Hawthorne's "The Scarlet Letter"-Dimmesdale, Chillingsworth, and Hester Prynne- are no different. All three characters are flung from the normal rolesthat society has laid upon them- minister, housewife, doctor-into new roles- sinner, whore, and vengance crazed sadist.These new roles are not necessarily apparent to all in town.However, even though the townspeople do not know of thesinners, God does. And in God's eyes, whose sin was greater?That, I cannot answer. But in this mere mortal's opinion, the sin of Chillingsworth far outdid the sin of Dimmesdale or Hester Prynne, for Chillingsworth's sin was one of revengeand one of secrecy. He was not driven by an anger at his ownsin, but by the sin of others. He used deception andmanipulation to make the life of another miserable. He wasnot flung from society's view as if he were a dirty secretlike Hester was; he was embraced by it. However, his sin didtake it's toll. He was disfigured horribly and became atwisted man, scarred by sin. He also was robbed of thepleasure of destroying Dimmesdale which was his reason forliving. He died shortly after Dimmesdale. Hester Prynne, however, was the complete opposite of Chillingworth in that her sin gave her life, not destroyed it. She took her punishment and embraced it, using it to rebuild herself not as a pathetic sinner, but as a pseudo-saint. At first, the town shunned her as a sinner. However,after they saw that she was good, and her sin was of love,the same town embraced and loved her. Her sin drew her moredeeply into the society of Boston than she ever was before.And when her time to die came, she did so with honor. HesterPrynne - sinner and saint. However, Hester's sin was shared. Whereas she was asinner on the outside and a saint on the inside, ArthurDimmesdale is the reverse, both literally and figuratively.