When analyzing the countless number of religions world wide one can’t help but notice the recurrent belief in confession. Confession is defined as admitting or acknowledging some form of fault. Along with confession comes the freedom from one’s guilt and anxiety. In “The Scarlet Letter” by Nathaniel Hawthorne, Arthur Dimmesdale is a puritan minister who undergoes drastic changes physically and mentally because he would not confess to adultery.
In this 17th century society, public acknowledgement of sin is necessary by law and religion. Due to Dimmesdale’s type of sin he finds it difficult to confess to he public; this may be because of his position as a minister and his fear of his communities consequences. From the 17th century to the 21st, pastors have been viewed as the holiest figures. When one hears of a pastor that’s committing a sin, it slowly pecks away at the respect that they possess for that person. In the text, Arthur Dimmesdale is a pastor.
Because of this position that he has in society, everyone sort of holds him on a pedestal to be as close to perfection as a man can achieve, even though Dimmesdale sins just as much as them if not worse due to his recent partaking in adultery. In the text, it is stated, “Would not the people start up in their seats by a simultaneous impulse and tear him down out of the pulpit he defiled”(Hawthorne 140)? As a minister who preaches often on the importance of confession, Dimmesdale seems to lack the bravery to do it himself.
In the text, his fear of his members reactions withhold the truth that he desperately wishes to tell. Though he normally confesses his sins to his congregation, never has he confessed something so detrimental to his reputation. He cared more about his place in the church, rather than his followers. Of Course, as a preacher, Dimmesdale is also a believer in the teachings of the Bible. One main point in the bible is salvation by faith meaning you can do the most works and it still won’t be enough to get into heaven.
In the text, Pearl- Dimmesdale daughter from adultery- asked Dimmesdale to stand with her the next day in the public for the adulterous sin, in response, Dimmesdale declared, “Then, and there, before the judgement seat, thy mother, and thou, and I, must stand together”(Hawthorne 150). Dimmesdale refuses to stand with Pearl and his mistress Hester Prynne for their sins, but instead e claims that he would stand with them only before god himself. This supports his belief in salvation by faith rather than by works because he decides to only tell God of his sin and leave it a secret to the public.
By telling the public it would be seen as a work in his own eyes meaning that public confession would be against his own beliefs therefore disabling him from his own confession. Pastors which are expected to be holy people tend to stray from sin. In the event that they do sin, it is never major. As a highly respected minister, Dimmesdale’s sins seem to be ushed to the side. Instead of the pastors sins making him look bad, the congregation seems to flip it and make themselves look bad.
In the text, it is stated on behalf of his followers, “Alas, if he discern such sinfulness in his own white soul, what horrible spectacle would he behold in thine or mine”(Hawthorne 141)! The point that his church is trying to get across is that if such a great person like their pastor has so much sin, how does God view their own souls. Because they view Dimmesdale as such a Godly person, their own sinful lives now appear terrible. To add pon that, part of the puritan belief was predestination which said that god picked people before they were born to go to heaven.
Their whole lives are dedicated to convincing God that they are worth putting into heaven. When they find out that the holiest of their own is so stricken with a sinful nature they will see themselves as that much unworthy of heaven. This creates a probable cause for Dimmesdale not to confess, in order for the people to remain faithful and not let his own actions affect their eternity. Fear is often the main competitor in the decision making process. Dimmesdale, being a pastor, should not be subject to this feeling of fear, but because of his lack of confession it has slowly crept in.
The safety of Hester Prynne, his mistress, and her daughter Pearl is one thing that he could fear for. At this point in the text, Dimmesdale health is at a decline and Roger Chillingworth, a trained Herbal physician, has volunteered to care for Dimmesdale. While Chillingworth cares for Dimmesdale, Dimmesdale health rapidly declines. This causes rumors among the community about Chillingworth. They believe that Chillingworth is “Satan himself” or an “emissary” of Satan trying to win over Dimmesdale in his weak condition (Hawthorne 124).
The community has speculation that Chillingworth is trying to make Dimmesdale sin. This encourages them to develop a hatred for him. However, Hester prynne has already convinced Dimmesdale to sin with her. If Dimmesdale were to confess that he commit adultery with Prynne, the community would forget about accepting her and turn on her with who knows what kind of new consequences. He feared for the well-being of Prynne, which impaired his ability to confess. Not only does Dimmesdale fear for hester, but he also fears for is own life.
On the day of Prynne’s public judgement, she had to walk outside of the jail in front of all the people. A group of women waiting for her to exit decided they wanted to take control of her prosecution. They stated, “This women has brought shame upon us all, and ought to die” (Hawthorne 49). The community does not take lightly to sin. In their society religion equals law. Basically, any sin, if bad enough, is punishable by death. In this excerpt, the women symbolize the mindset of the rest of the community. Everyone wants to see Prynne die for what she did.
After seeing all that Prynne fought through, Dimmesdale becomes very reluctant to reveal the truth about his part in her sin. The fear for his own life keeps him from confessing that he commit adultery. Finally, Arthur Dimmesdale also fears the loss of his position in the community. At the public judgement of Prynne, Governor Bellingham, the most powerful man in the community seeked help from Dimmesdale. He stated to Dimmesdale, “The responsibility of this woman’s soul lies greatly with you” (Hawthorne 64). This excerpt allows one to infer that Dimmesdale’s position is almost qual to that of the governor.
If he were to have confessed his sins along with Hester, he may not have been able to help her in the council position and he would not have even possessed a spot on the council. Dimmesdale is a young man too. Everything he has accomplished to get to his current state of trust with the townspeople has been in a short amount time. By confessing, he would have lost his position of much power in the community, ultimately losing everyone’s trust. From the unthinkable actions of Arthur Dimmesdale resulted the lack of onfession; this could have been caused by his position as a minister or his fear of the communities harsh consequences.
From Dimmesdale’s rationales of not confessing one learns that letting fear and reputation get in the way your own morales can turn out very badly. In Dimmesdale’s case, it is obvious that he feels the other way. If Dimmesdale were to have confessed his sin sooner, much of his adversity throughout the text could have been dodged. He may have lost much of what he valued, including Hester Prynne, but the one thing that Dimmesdale forgot is that above all else, the truth sets you free.
