Take a second and think about what the word purity means to you. In most cases, it means trust, honesty, courage, and will power. However, is this really what we see in most of society? The Puritan community is a great example to this question because of the great reflection how even the purest can be full of destruction. In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s novel The Scarlet Letter, the character Dimmesdale is a very well respected minister who is known for his intelligence and name in society.
“Wherefore not; since all the powers of nature call so earnestly for the confession of sin, that these black weeds have sprung up out of a buried heart, to make manifest an unspoken crime?” This quote from Nathaniel Hawthorne’s, The Scarlet Letter, represents the truth upheld by a person, and how it carries with them through eternity. Hawthorne captures the truth of reality and sin in The Scarlet Letter. By using many literary devices, he reveals the truth of the Scarlet Letter and the characters in his novel. Being a novel during the romantic period, Hawthorne makes many symbolic and archetypical references to the power of nature, and the supernatural. Hawthorne uses these archetypes and symbols in addition to light motifs to demonstrate
He uses numerous words to express ideas and emotions instead of quickly being straight forward and conclusive. He uses diction in almost every sentence to boost our intellect; make it seem more real. In the passage Hawthorne writes “Although she hid the secret from herself, and grew pale whenever it struggled out of her heart, like a serpent from its hole,” instead of simply writing a conclusive passage such as “She hid the secret from her mind and grew sick to herself whenever she thought of her committed sin.” Hawthorne also uses devices such as syntax in his writing of The Scarlet Letter; his sentence structure is often very weighty. Hawthorne’s paragraph includes one-two drawn out sentences. With an abundance of asides, which the whole passage is, and bits of detail that create and amazingly complex set of ideas, Hawthorne manages to successfully conjure his image of Puritan society and how they treat Hester.
The Scarlet Letter, written by Nathaniel Hawthorne and published in 1850, was just what America was needing in his time. He composed a both beautiful and tragic story while still creating a deep symbolic novel that few could forget. He captivated his readers with his allegorical novel, depending on symbolism and characters heavily, in the style of true dark romanticism. The novel deals with many issues that were prominent at the time, such as the importance of society versus nature, human temptation versus society’s influence, and many others. In Hawthorne’s novel The Scarlet Letter, he focuses on the conflicting views of society and nature in the Puritan society and uses contrast, symbolism, and imagery to convey his beliefs.
He was quick to suppress any revolts and his punishments were almost always harsh to show that he was not to be betrayed. His sentences for those who betrayed him in the Streltsy Rebellion were brutal. Peter sentenced thousands for execution and used torture as a way of inflicting pain on those who had dishonored him, not only as a means to acquire a confession. His cruel ways were also shown when he brought his own sister Sophia under questioning and confined her permanently to a convent, held under watch of a hundred guards and allowed no visitors. [4] Peter's frequent travels left Russia unmanned, often for months at a time.
Being arrested for thought crime was greatly feared as people who were punished never returned, and their “existence was wiped” completely. Another way that Big Brother controlled the people was by signs he installed on the tall buildings. The sign manipulated people into thinking that “War is Peace, Freedom is Slavery, Ignorance is Strength.” Winston was determined to defy Big Brother’s control and he found a way around his watchful eyes. Winston began to write a diary in a secluded corner away from the telescreen writing Furthermore, Truman was also controlled and manipulated by his creator, Christof. Truman wasn’t just the only one being controlled by Christof, he also controlled everyone else around Truman.
For Dimmesdale, even though he does not reveal his sin to other people, he suffers great agony which eventually leads him to death by the end of the story; and he dutifully delivers meaningful sermons, given his personal struggle with sin. Chillingworth, on the contrary, neither expresses regret nor remorse, and never tries to atone for his actions. Instead of seeking to expiate his sin, he keeps strategizing revenge against the young minister. To achieve his design, Chillingworth moves into Dimmesdale’s house as a physician, and while in residence there, continuously harasses the psychologically weak minister like a “leech.” The physician ultimately becomes obsessed with his revenge. Hawthorne even emphasizes this obsession by describing Chillingworth’s transformation into an embodiment of evil.
Concealed Sin of Dimmesdale In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter, there is a stress on the conflict with concealed sin. Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale is a clear character of anguish that concealed sin can bring upon an individual. Dimmesdale lived his life as an exceedingly popularized character of innocence. He kept his troubles hidden from the townspeople. He lived with his troubles and was distressed by the thoughts of his sin on a daily basis throughout his life.
Which is why he remained silent for a decade after his voice was played over and over again on the news. Dennis Rader knew that strangling victims and binding them was wrong, he feared police catching him, and Dennis didn’t care if he lost the respect of his church, his scouts or family. Rader also let the sexual pleasure he gained from the crimes control his actions. It was his choice to plan out the murders and follow through with them. This is a perfect example of the rational choice theory (Siegel, 2008 p.84).
However he learns quickly that the police beat protesting Communists and Richard is forced to move from one outcast group to another, never truly escaping reality. This police brutality calls upon the lessons Richard learned as a child proving that violence did truly surround him and he could not escape it no matter where he ran. This realization that he could not escape violence was soon proven to Wright when he was forcefully thrown from the ranks of marching Communists during a parade. The individuals then proceeded to injure Richard in public even thought their movement espoused peace. From there Richard became completely convinced that the Communists were blinded by oppression and that he as an individual must build a bridge of words between himself and the outside world.