Hester keeps
secret the name of her illegitimate
child’s father (Reverend Dimmesdale) and the true identity of Roger Chillingworth (her husband). She will not reveal Pearl’s father to protect Reverend Dimmesdale’s reputation, as he is the minister of the church.
When Hester is asked who the father of her baby is what is her reply?
She is told that she should “give the child a father.” In response to this, she say that the only father the child
will have is her heavenly father — she will never know an earthly one
.
Why do the townspeople want Hester to reveal who the father of her baby is?
He tells Hester she would
be doing a justice
by revealing the father’s identity because he would no longer live with hypocrisy and guilt.
Who pleads with Hester to reveal the identity of the baby’s father?
The other principal character is
the young Reverend Dimmesdale
, who pleads with Hester to name the father of her infant daughter; Dimmesdale is Pearl’s father.
What does he say to try to convince Hester to name the father of her baby What does she respond?
Hester responds saying
she will take both the shame of her own and the father instead of giving a name
. Dimmesdale talked in such a peaceful and serene way that the baby put its arms toward him in a happy manner.
Who is the father of Hester Prynne’s baby?
Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale
Dimmesdale
is a young man who achieved fame in England as a theologian and then emigrated to America. In a moment of weakness, he and Hester became lovers. Although he will not confess it publicly, he is the father of her child.
What is Hester coming to realize is the true sin?
What is Hester coming to realize is the true sin she has committed?
Hester is realizing that marrying a man who she truly did not love is a worse sin than adultery
. Hawthorne would consider this worse than adultery because had she not married a man she did not love, maybe she would never have committed adultery.
Who does Pearl say made her?
Unlock
When the minister asks Pearl who made her, Pearl doesn’t want to tell him at first. She knows what her mother has told her — that
she was a child of God
and that God had made her.
How did Dimmesdale punish himself?
Dimmesdale begins to torture himself physically:
he scourges himself with a whip, he fasts
, and he holds extended vigils, during which he stays awake throughout the night meditating upon his sin. … He decides to hold a vigil on the scaffold where, years before, Hester suffered for her sin.
Why does Hester say she should keep custody of Pearl?
Hester argues to keep Pearl by
saying she can teach Pearl the faith through her mistakes and trials
, but also by saying Pearl is a daily reminder of the sin she committed.
Why is Pearl called the Elf child?
Pearl is therefore repeatedly referred to as an “elf” or “elf-child”
because of the way in which she is so different from other children.
Why does Pearl cry at the end of Chapter 7?
In literal terms, Pearl cries
because she wants a rose but can’t have one
. Pearl is irresistibly drawn to the beautiful rose bush, highlighting once more her status as a child of nature.
What does pearl call Chillingworth?
But he cannot catch little Pearl! The Puritans often referred to the Devil as
the Black Man
, referring figuratively to the darkness of sin and evilness of deeds. Thus, when Pearl calls Chillingworth by this appellation, she seems to be identifying his sinfulness and wickedness.
How does Dimmesdale try to convince Hester to reveal the baby’s father?
What appeal does he use to convince Hester to reveal the baby’s father? …
He tells Hester she would be doing a justice by revealing the father’s identity
because he would no longer live with hypocrisy and guilt.
How was Hester punished?
Hester’s punishment was
a judicial sentence
; however, being forced to stand on the scaffold for three hours, and to wear the scarlet letter “A” for the rest of her life. It was socially humiliating. Hester was sent to prison for committing adultery.
Why does Chillingworth want revenge?
Chillingworth does want revenge because, as
he says to Hester
, this man “has wronged us both!” He feels that he shares some responsibility for Hester’s current condition, and so there is a balance of blame between the two of them; not so for the man she slept with, Dimmesdale.
