The Scarlet Letter Group

Question:

shawn131
shawn131
Student
High School - 12th Grade

Scarlet Letter Chapter 22, the suggestion is that both Dimmesdale and Hester share the same scorching brand of shame. What do you think this means?

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Posted by shawn131 on Sunday November 8, 2009 at 4:13 PM and tagged with scarlet letter, the scarlet letter.

Answers:

  1. ask996
    ask996 Teacher
    High School - 10th Grade

    eNotes Editor

    Hester has been unable to hide her sin throughout the years, and it is public knowledge that she has sinned. She has been shamed by the "scarlet letter" with which she has been marked. This has lead to years of isolation by the community that has forced her to recognize her sin if not admit to it. Dimmesdale, however, has had his own sin to recognize. Unfortunately as a true man of God, he has been forced to recognize this sin in the eyes of how God views it. Perhaps his shame is more, as Hawthorne makes such a note of revealing how much healthier Dimmesdale looks since he and Hester started making plans.

    I would say that his shame is not as "scorching" as Hester's as he has been able to go about publicly doing what he wants to do. If his shame were so great, as a man of God, he would probably of confessed it before God and man alike. Regardless of the repercussions.

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    Posted by ask996 on Monday November 9, 2009 at 5:22 AM