" Nevertheless, time went on; a kind of intimacy, as we have said, grew up between these two cultivated minds, which had as wide a field as the whole sphere of human thought and to meet upon; they discussed every topic of ethics and religion, of public affairs, and private character; they talked much, on both sides, of matters that seemed personal to themselves; and yet no secret, such as the physician fancied must exist there, ever stole out of the minister's consciousness into his companion's ear." (123) The Scarlet Letter
In Chapter nine- The Leech- Hawthorne increases the plot of his novel by including one more relationship, this one between Roger Chillingworth- only mentioned a couple of times- husband of Hester Prynne whom she committed adultery against and Mr. Dimmesdale- the young minister who defended Hester when the Governor and other religious leaders wished to take Pearl away from her. And so the relationship between Chillingworth and Dimmesdale is described as a strong one, with sincerity and brotherly love, both seem to appreciate each other's company respectfully and both enjoy each other's company; as it is great to engage in intellectual conversations and to spend time with another who thinks as one does.. This quote is significant because it contains vital foreshadowing hints, it is an eye-opener to future events and it gives the audience a clue about who may be Prynne's secret lover.. Also this passage succeeds in furthermore describing personality traits, belonging to Chillingworth and Dimmesdale, both whom are very similar.. The author uses Litotes, to deny the contrary which may be true... His purpose for doing so, may be to stir thoughts into his audience and to make the story more exciting.. Hawthorne in addition, uses Polysyndeton in order to conjoin sentences, and perhaps make a complex sentence on purpose so that the longer the sentence, the more thinking, the reader must use..
Questions:
1. Why do you think Roger Chillingworth seeks to have a relationship with Mr. Arthur Dimmesdale, or vise versa?
2. Will Arthur Dimmesdale die because of his illness? What do you suggest has caused this illness?
3. Am I wrong, for making predictions early? Jumping to conclusions?
I am sure that karma is taking its toll on Mr.Dimmesdale if our predictions are right and he was the one who had relations with Hester. Being that he not only sinned by having an affair with Hester, but sinned in holding back his secret, he is now being punished for it through disease and through everyone else's curiosity (especially Chillingworth) to seek the truth. Then again, though, with Chillingworth as his physician, he might just be able to live, yet Chillingworth's motives are still unclear. We do know, though, that he wants to get Dimmesdale to reveal his secret to him by slowly getting into his mind.
ReplyDeleteNo its not wrong to make these predictions early on. I also made the same conclusions based on evidence throughout the previous chapter, but in discussing whether the predictions are true is still unknown, since Hawthorne hasn't uncovered these mysteries yet and because its still early in the book (we still have more chapters to go). Nevertheless I definitely agree with you. Based on the facts that Hester had known him before, he had defended her in the debate with the clergymen and Hester over the care of Pearl, the "secret" he holds back that Chillingworth is trying to get him to reveal, his sudden illness at a young age, and his emotions; the way he always seems rather nervous around Hester and the way he responds to Pearl,I do think Dimmesdale could have been "that man" but again we still don't know for sure. We just have to keep on reading to see! :D
Thats what i thought about the Dimmesdale illness. Dimmesdale's illness could be a sort of punishment for the alleged sin he committed. Though most oof us have drawn the conclusion Hawthorne could easily create a scenario saying that Roger Chillingworth was the father but wanted tot cause fuss in the town. Honestly I don't kno. Of course ur not wrong to make infrences while you read, it's part of the whole experiance we all indulge ourselves in.
ReplyDeleteKeep it Nabokov! :)
you are not wrong for jumpping to conclusions, that is what Hawthorne wants you to do, as Lori has mentioned "keep it nabokov"... you can jump to conclusions but dont put yourself in the story. Keep an open mind and heart to what you are reading. The reason that Roger is becoming so close to Dimmesdale is because Roger wants to discover Dimmesdale's secret. If Dimmesdale does not die from his illness, he will probally die by the hands of Roger if my/our prediction is right.
ReplyDeleteRoger obviously wants to seek a friendship with Dimmesdale because he believes that he is the father of Pearl and in the earlier conversation with Hester he was adamant about finding the man she had an affair with. He also said the guilt will radiate from his soul and after the interactions in the eighth chapter, his reasoning for the connection is evident. I'm not sure if Dimmesdale will die from the illness or as Kesley said at the hands of Roger but the illness is probably a result of his refusal to take part in Hester's guilt. She has her consequences and maybe this is his.
ReplyDeleteSorry so late, i worked today :p