The Scarlet Letter Scaffold Essay, Research Paper

The Centering Link

Nathaniel Hawthorne & # 8217 ; s The Scarlet Letter, centers its secret plan, scene, and characters around the consolidative scaffold. With each brush at the scaffold, the four chief characters, Hester, Pearl, Rev. Dimmesdale, and Mr. Chillingworth, go more emotionally connected to one another. Each of the three meetings symbolizes a major turning point in the novel where a wickedness is confessed and/or developed. All four chief characters interact together merely at the scaffold.

During the first scaffold scene, Hester climbs the scaffold to expose her vermilion missive? A? to the populace. The townspeople become cognizant of her wickedness of criminal conversation, and position her otherwise after this event. In the 2nd scene, Reverend Dimmesdale climbs the scaffold to squeal his wickedness during the dark, and Hester and Pearl join him. & # 8220 ; God flashes & # 8221 ; a great missive? A? in the sky to demo his disapproval toward the Reverend? s overall behaviour. The 3rd and concluding scaffold scene sends the Reverend to heaven and leaves Hester and Pearl on Earth to sorrow. Reverend Dimmesdale utilizations his concluding flicker of energy to squeal to the townsfolk his wickedness that hid deep in his psyche. Mr. Chillingworth watches Hester, Pearl, and Reverend Dimmesdale in each scene with incredulity. Major alterations occur on the scaffold that signify a turning point in each character every bit good as the entireness of the novel.

Overall, the scaffold symbolizes shame, confession, and decease. After the first clip Hester climbs the scaffold, the townsfolk shun her from their town. Hester forcefully confesses her wickedness by blinking her vermilion missive & # 8220 ; A, & # 8221 ; and Rev. Dimmesdale confesses his wickedness by stating the townsfolk the truth about himself. The deceases of Governor Winthrop and Rev. Dimmesdale both occur during confessions on the scaffold. All major turning points for the chief characters occur here.

The four characters unite at the scaffold bearing many similarities throughout each confrontation. Hester and Pearl ever attach to one another piece on the scaffold. Hester holds Pearl & # 8217 ; s organic structure or her manus so that she is near to the one thing she has. From the first scaffold scene to the last, Rev. Dimmesdale ever holds his bosom with his manus to demo his weak and troubled psyche. Mr. Chillingworth takes full advantage of the Reverend & # 8217 ; s failing and makes it his mission to destroy Rev. Dimmesdale & # 8217 ; s life. During each scaffold scene, Mr. Chillingworth ever looks up from the land at the three atop the wooden construction. He ne’er likes what he sees. Mr. Chillingworth changes with each scene every bit good as the other characters.

During the first scaffold scene, Hester confesses her wickedness to the town. She displays herself for everyone to justice. Before she climbs the scaffold, Hester seems inexorable and weak because of being in gaol. However, by exposing her attractively embroidered & # 8220 ; A & # 8221 ; , Hester proves her strength to everyone judging her. Everyone in the town still shuns Hester from their society even though she demonstrated great strength. Up until Hester & # 8217 ; s show, Pearl lives as an guiltless babe and after it, she symbolizes a life wickedness. Rev. Dimmesdale stands with his reverends above Hester and Pearl. He interrogates Hester as to who male parents Pearl, but realizes Hester & # 8217 ; s strength by her refusal to expose his name. This scene alterations Dimmesdale because he feels improbably guilty for coercing Hester to cover with the shame and load entirely. He demonstrates his shame and heartache by seizing his thorax with his manus, a physiological reaction that occurs more often as the novel progresses. Mr. Chillingworth eyes Hester and the Reverend from afar and below. He arrives in the new universe trusting to eventually see his married woman after two old ages apart, merely he finds her with her babe that evidently did non come from him. After this brush he makes it his exclusive mission to destroy the lif

vitamin E of the baby’s male parent. In this first scene, all four characters seem distanced from one another.

In the 2nd scene, Reverend Dimmesdale confesses his wickedness. He ventures to the scaffold, weak and inexorable, during the dark. As Hester and Pearl make their manner place from Governor Winthrop & # 8217 ; s deathbed, Dimmesdale calls out to them. After wheedling the two on the scaffold with him, they form an & # 8220 ; electric concatenation & # 8221 ; by keeping custodies together. New life and energy haste through Rev. Dimmesdale during this bonding. Pearl, the symbol of love and the merchandise of wickedness, connects Hester and the Reverend. Pearl realizes the truth about Dimmesdale when she asks him to stand with her and her female parent at noontide the following twenty-four hours and he refuses by stating that he merely will on opinion twenty-four hours. Hester alterations because she sees what hurting and enduring the Reverend experiences and realizes that he excessively feels atrocious about the state of affairs. When Mr. Chillingworth walks by the scaffold, Dimmesdale expresses his hatred toward the adult male. Hester feels bad for non stating Dimmesdale the truth about Chillingworth and his program to destroy Dimmesdale & # 8217 ; s life. Mr. Chillingworth changes because he realizes that Mr. Dimmesdale wants to squeal his wickedness, hence go forthing Chillingworth with no mission in life. With his manus over his bosom, Mr. Dimmesdale confesses his heaven-defying guilt and vain penitence to no 1. A few people walked by him due to the location of the scaffold in the centre of the town, but Hester, Pearl, and Chillingworth are the lone people who see. Ironically, Dimmesdale feels slightly relieved after his & # 8220 ; confession. & # 8221 ; When the Sexton tells Rev. Dimmesdale that the missive & # 8220 ; A & # 8221 ; flashed in the sky at dark, stands for Angel, non Adultery, it makes the Reverend experience even worse about the state of affairs. Since no one hears Rev. Dimesdale & # 8217 ; s confession, he knows that he must mount the scaffold once more to squeal another clip.

The 3rd scaffold scene occurs after the Reverend gives his thrilling Election Day sermon. With a death-like chromaticity to his face, Rev. Dimmesdale climbs the scaffold for the last clip with Hester and Pearl. With his manus gripping his bosom, Dimmesdale uses all his strength to step off from Hester and Pearl & # 8217 ; s support and squeal his wickedness that he feels obligated to state. When Dimmesdale tears off his ministerial set, for an blink of an eye he feels like he won a triumph, but rapidly he sinks upon the scaffold. Before this scene, Hester plans on go forthing aboard a Spanish ship with Pearl and the Reverend to get down a new, happy life. When atop the scaffold, keeping the deceasing curate, Hester merely wishes to cognize if they will pass their ageless life together. Her hope for a new life dies with Rev. Dimmesdale. Above on the scaffold Pearl kisses the weak adult male to interrupt the enchantment of her typifying wickedness. Pearl pledges to populate as a strong adult female in the universe and non a conflict in it. Mr. Chillingworth tries to halt Dimmesdale from mounting the scaffold and seting shame on himself. This is the lone topographic point in the universe Dimmesdale can get away Chillingworth. After Dimmesdale confesses, Chillingworth possesses no mission or way in his hapless, suffering life and he dies. God, the angels, and Satan know Dimmesdale & # 8217 ; s secret, but non the townsfolk. After stating the people, Dimmesdale knows that he can non populate any longer. The Reverend, male parent, lover, and wise man passes off with a clean psyche because he confessed.

All major turning points and confessions center around the scaffold. This wooden symbol of wickedness and hatred is the most powerful landmark in the metropolis. Located in the centre of the metropolis allows everyone a position of what occurs. From the first scaffold scene to the last, the townsfolk ever shun Hester and Pearl. Merely at the terminal do they recognize the individuality of Hester & # 8217 ; s iniquitous spouse. The scaffold unites the novel because drastic alterations occur at that place and the metropolis every bit good as the book centre around it.