Justice Explored in Nathaniel Hawthornes The Scarlet Letter

Justice Explored in The Scarlet Letter nbsp; Nathaniel Hawthorne created themes in The Scarlet Letter just as significant as the obvious ideas pertaining to sin and Puritan society. Roger Chillingworth is a character through which one of these themes resonates, and a character that is often underplayed in analysis. His weakness and path of destruction of himself and others are summed up in one of Chillingworths last sentences in the novel, to Arthur Dimmesdale: Hadst thou sought the whole earth over... there were no place so secret, no high place nor lowly place, where thou couldst have escaped me, save on this very scaffold! (171). nbsp; This powerful line from Chillingworth holds three meanings. First, Dimmesdale can save†¦show more content†¦A writhing horror twisted itself across his features, like a snake gliding swiftly over them, and making one little pause, with all its wreathed intervolutions in open sight. His face darkened with some powerful emotion... (44) nbsp; Soon after, Chillingworth makes it evident in his conversation with Hester that he is not after her, but simply wants to seek revenge on the man she slept with. At the end of their conversation, Hester sees an even darker side of Roger after her pact to keep his identity a secret. She says, Art thou like the Black Man that haunts the forest round about us? Hast thou enticed me into a bond that will prove the ruin of my soul? Hesters comparing Roger to the Black Man, a devil figure, foreshadows Rogers power not only over Dimmesdale, but also Hester herself. nbsp; Chillingworth taking on Dimmesdale as his patient for the next seven years is a parallel to the method of punishment the Puritans used at the time, namely with the scarlet letter. Both use a slow, indirect punishment to make the guilty punish themselves. As Chillingworth aids Dimmesdale with medicines, he also prods Dimmesdale to remind him of his crime. By dragging this process along, Chillingworth becomes a scarlet letter to Dimmesdale much in the way Pearl was to Hester. nbsp; When Hester meets with Roger again much later, he admits to hisShow MoreRelatedSpring Awakenings : Hester Prynne And Pearl, The Apprehensive Feminists Essay2317 Words   |  10 PagesSpring Awakenings: Hester Prynne and Pearl, The Apprehensive Feminists The Scarlet Letter, published in 1850, is one of Nathaniel Hawthorne’s most renowned novels. The matter of subject in the novel is revered almost 170 years after publication. Hawthorne walks his readers through the fate of Hester Prynne. He exhibits a woman who has been condemned by Puritan law to wear a scarlet A on her breast as a reflection of her punishment for adultery. Not only is Hester the protagonist of the novel, butRead MoreANALIZ TEXT INTERPRETATION AND ANALYSIS28843 Words   |  116 Pagesto provide essential clues that aid in characterization. Some characters are given names that suggest their dominant or controlling traits, as, for example, Edward Murdstone (in Dickens’ David Copperfield) and Roger Chillingsworth (in Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter). Both men are cold-hearted villains their names suggest. Other characters are given names that reinforce (or sometimes are in contrast to) their physical appearance, much in the way that Ichabod Crane, the gangling schoolmaster in Irving’s