Governor Bellingham speaks these lines to Hester when
he explains why he is considering taking Pearl away from her
. He thinks that because she has engaged in sinful behavior she might be likely to encourage similar behaviors in her daughter, or fail in her moral responsibility to raise the child appropriately.
What does Governor Bellingham want from Hester?
Hester pays a visit to Governor Bellingham’s mansion. She has two intentions:
to deliver a pair of ornate gloves she has made for the governor
, and to find out if there is any truth to the rumors that Pearl, now three, may be taken from her.
Why does Hester go talk to Gov Bellingham?
Hester comes to Governor Bellingham’s house
because she has heard that people — particularly the governor — want to deprive her of Pearl
. Once again Hawthorne shows his disdain for the smug attitudes of the Puritans.
What does Governor Bellingham represent in the scarlet letter?
Bellingham represents
law and order, tradition, and connections to the old world
. He first appears in the scene where Hester is questioned about the identity of her lover, where he is described “with hard experience written in his wrinkles.” Governor Bellingham is harsh and uncompromising, siding with the Revered Mr.
What do Bellingham and Wilson want Hester to do?
What do Bellingham and Wilson want Hester to do? …
He is to make Hester confess the truth about her adultery and tell the name of the child’s father.
Who is the black man in the scarlet letter?
Roger Chillingworth
, Hester’s long-lost husband, exemplifies this. Referred to more than once as the Black Man, Chillingworth demonstrates that our actions define our morality. In choosing the path of revenge, Chillingworth has made himself demonic.
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.
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 Prynne hate Chillingworth?
Hester is afraid of Chillingworth
because she knows what he is capable of doing
. He is a learned man and has devoted his life to the healing arts. Having been with the Indians, he has added herbs and medicinal plants to his sagacious accomplishments.
Why does Hester dress pearl like the scarlet letter?
Just as the scarlet “A” that
Hester is forced to wear is turned by her skill with the needle into a symbol of beauty and finery
, so Pearl, the illegitimate child of an illicit and unlawful union, is a figure of beauty and is arrayed in all finery by her mother.
Who is Hester’s baby daddy?
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.
How is Bellingham a hypocrite?
Governor Bellingham (in addition to being a bit of a hypocrite himself by dressing luxuriously while enforcing Puritan plainness on the people he governs) provides us with
a physical metaphor for hypocrisy
. He shares his home with his sister, Mistress Hibbins, who claims to be a witch.
Why is Governor Bellingham a hypocrite?
Bellingham conducts himself like an aristocrat, enjoying money, luxury, and the privileges of power. Yet when it comes to the actions of others,
Governor Bellingham punishes any behavior that does not fit with the strict Puritan rules of behavior
. This makes him a hard-hearted hypocrite.
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.
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.
What are Hester’s three punishments?
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.
