Internal Conflict In The Scarlet Letter

Nathaniel Hawthorne’s novel The Scarlet Letter has a very wide cast of characters, but settles upon three distinct main ones. These three characters are all very different, but still suffer from the same internal conflict regarding their relationships with one another. One theme can be associated with each individual character, but a single trait is common among all three. Love, fear, and revenge are all primary themes present in The Scarlet Letter, but no other emotion is as prevalent to the characters’ developments than their guilt. These themes give us a sense of how different, but also how similar, these characters are. The very heart of the novel’s conflict begins with the protagonist, Hester Prynne. Her crime of adultery is presented

I longed to kindle one! It seemed not so wild a dream, old as I was, and sombre as I was, and misshapen as I was, that the simple bliss… for all mankind to gather up, might yet be mine. And so, Hester, I drew thee into my heart…and sought to warm thee by the warmth which thy presence made there” (59-60)! Hester is greatly affected by Rodger’s confession of his feelings, invoking the beginning of her everlasting feeling of guilt. This guilt is influenced not only by her crime, but by having stated that she never love Rodger to begin with. She responds to Rodger’s words with a single phrase; “’I have greatly wronged thee,” murmured Hester” (60). Her association with Arthur Dimmesdale also invokes strong feelings of guilt when she meets him in the forest to speak with him. She sees how his mental and physical condition has greatly declined, and feels as though she is to blame for his despair. Her keeping of Rodger’s secret also drove her towards guilt, especially after seeing how he has mistreated Dimmesdale. “’O Arthur,” cried she, “forgive me! In all things else, I have striven to be true! Truth was one virtue

In chapter 3, he is introduced to us for the first time as the revered minister. Later on, we learn that his public appearance hides his true identity as Hester’s fellow consort. His guilt was ultimately a result of his fear to confess to what he did. On the day of Hester’s punishment, he speaks to her, attempting to have her reveal the name of whom she was associated with. “Woman, transgress not beyond the limits of Heaven’s mercy!” cried the Reverend, more harshly than before…”Speak out the name! That, and thy repentance, may avail to take the scarlet letter off thy breast” (54). She did not give away Dimmesdale’s name. “I will not speak!” answered Hester, turning pale as death but responding to this voice, which she too surely recognized. “And my child must seek a heavenly Father; she shall never know an earthly one” (55)! As a result, this was both a blessing and a curse for him. The people who looked up to him as a religious leader did not loose their faith in him, but it also left him with awful guilt that plagued his life for seven years. During this time, Rodger also worked his way towards discovering whom Hester had been involved with, and narrowed his search down to Dimmesdale. After seeing his declining health, Rodger was assigned to Dimmesdale as his personal physician. This only led to more problems for Dimmesdale, as Rodger took advantage