Morally Ambiguous Characters What does it mean to be morally ambiguous? The characters created by Nathaniel Hawthorne and Francis Bret Harte are divided between being purely good or purely evil. The environments that the characters live in are judgmental and hypocritical. While being isolated from society, they also deal with struggling to disassociate themselves from their pasts. The Scarlet Letter and “The Outcasts of Poker Flat” characters Hester Prynne, Arthur Dimmesdale, and John Oakhurst illustrate the theme of moral ambiguity through their struggles and actions.
Hester Prynne endured many things throughout her life. She was forced to be married to Roger Chillingworth, a man she did not love. Prynne was sent across the ocean without him to establish a home in the new world. She fell in love with Arthur Dimmesdale, a young, smart, and handsome Reverend. Hester Prynne soon became known as an adulteress because of her pregnancy with the absence of her husband, Roger-who she assumed was lost at sea-and was sent to jail. Prynne and her newborn daughter, Pearl, were shunned by the Puritan society seceding her release from jail.
Their home was On the outskirts of the town, within the verge of the peninsula, but not in close icinity to any other habitation, there was a small thatched cottage… It stood on the shore, looking across a basin of the sea at the forest-covered hills, toward the west. A clump of scrubby trees… did not do so much conceal the cottage from view, as seem to denote that here was some object which would fain have been, or at least ought to be concealed. (Hawthorne 61). They were forced to live outside of town to be safe from torture and humiliation. The women and men stared at Hester while their children taunted Pearl.
To redeem herself and be accepted in society, she began giving money and clothes to the poor. Prynne also helped during the pestilences, and the notorious scarlet A on her breast became known not for adulteress, but for able. Hester’s actions illustrated her ambiguity because she refused to reveal the name of her fellow sinner and sufferer, Arthur Dimmesdale. “The Scarlet Letter” article says she was “Unwilling to identify the child’s father, Hester is tried by the Puritan community, publicly shamed, and forced to wear a scarlet letter “A,” for adulteress, on her breast.
Because of her choice to keep Arthur’s name a secret, she sacrificed her lifestyle, talents, and identity. Hester Prynne is a defiant and etermined woman. Her battle with love and acceptance allowed her to become an excellent role model for her daughter, Pearl. She shares many similarities with Arthur Dimmesdale. The two are sinners and strong individuals. Hester was judged and tormented by the townspeople, yet she still persevered through the hate. Arthur preached to the entire town every Sunday about sinning, which is ironic because he was a sinner himself.
Minister and clergyman Arthur Dimmesdale is a role model to his congregation and the Puritan society. The idol considers himself a coward and an ignominy because of his sins. Loring writes, “And while Arthur Dimmesdale, cherished in the arms of that society which he had outraged, glossing his life with a brief coloring which made it beautiful because to all beholders, was dying of an inward anguish. ” The pressure to be perfect killed Dimmesdale because not only did he lie to himself, he lied to the Puritan community that worshipped him.
He devoted his life to the church and his ministry to conceal the secret that was deteriorating him. Arthur waited until he was dancing with death to reveal the reason why he had an A branded into his chest. This shows his selfishness and lack of care for his daughter, Pearl. Throughout the novel, Dimmesdale acknowledged Pearl during the nighttime, but refused to be seen in the daylight with her and Hester. In chapter twenty three Arthur says, “My little Pearl… dear little Pearl, with thou kisS me now? Thou wouldst not, yonder, in the forest! But now thou wilt? (Hawthorne 197).
He finally decided to show affection publicly to his daughter after neglecting her for most of her life. He confessed because he wanted to save his soul and give Pearl closure. Arthur Dimmesdale is similar to Harte’s morally ambiguous character, John Oakhurst. These men are weak, but depicted as strong and eliable. Arthur lied to the Puritan community to keep his reputation clean. Simson and Piney Woods innocent. The calm, handsome man was a hero and leader to his expatriated party, just like the Reverend was to his congregation.
John Oakhurst is considered an outcast in Poker Flat. He was a skilled gambler, and this talent led to him being exiled by the judges for carrying away the residents’ money. In the short story, Harte writes, “In the point of fact, Poker Flat was “after somebody. ” It had lately suffered the loss of several thousand dollars, two valuable lied about Uncle Billy’s actions keep Tom orses, and a prominent citizen. It was experiencing a spasm of virtuous reaction, quite as lawless and ungovernable as any of the acts that had provoked it.
A secret committee had determined to rid the town of all improper persons. ” Poker Flat’s leaders were concerned about unethical people who created a inferior reputation for their town. John accepted his sentence and fate calmly because the banishment was what he needed to reinvent himself. John and the expatriated party’s wagon was stolen on the way to Sandy Bar by Uncle Billy, a man who was on the trip with them. They confided in an abandoned cabin ocated in the forest. The party was low on provisions and the members became sick during the winter months.
Oakhurst, who was believed to be the strongest and wisest of the group took his own life when his situation became uncertain. He was “. pulseless and cold, with a Derringer by his side and a bullet in his heart, though still calm as in life, beneath the snow lay he who was at once the strongest and yet the weakest of the outcasts of Poker Flat. ” (Harte 49). John’s actions revealed his morals and character. He thought that committing suicide would make things better for The Duchess and Piney. His nplanned death caused him to be remembered not as a hero, but as a selfish man who thought only of his own feelings and needs.
The characters struggled with being isolated, distancing themselves from their pasts, and revealing their secrets. They are all morally ambiguous because their actions at times may illustrate them as evil or pure. Hester, the adulteress, never revealed her daughter’s father was, but did not let that decision define her. Arthur lied to his congregation by not revealing his sin until he was minutes away from death, but he did tell his listeners positive sermons. John took his own life and refused to ersevere through dark times, but he did give up food and sacrifice his health for the other outcasts.
The characters show their morals and character by their interactions with others in their judgmental and hypocritical societies. They are good people who made bad decisions and had to suffer with the consequences. Also, learn more about themselves during difficult times in their lives. Hester Prynne, Arthur Dimmesdale, and John Oakhurst portray the theme of moral ambiguity in Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter and Francis Bret Harte’s “The Outcasts of Poker Flat” through their struggles and actions.
