What is Dimmesdale’s idosyncratic gesture? He puts his hand over his heart
to “cover” up his guilt and pain for not admitting to the sin he committed
. He’s trying to hold himself back from not exposing himself.
Why does Pearl think the minister holds his hand over his heart?
Why does Pearl think the minister holds his hand over his heart? How is there symbolic truth in what she says? … Symbolic because in a way
Dimmesdale did sign his book with his act of adultery with Hester
, and his mark inflicted was his own punishment for it.
Who says why does the minister keep his hand over his heart?
—Why does the minister keep his hand over his heart?” “
Mother
!
What page does Dimmesdale put his hand over his heart?
Chapter 16 A Forest Walk
.
What advantage does Dimmesdale think Hester has over himself?
What advantage does Dimmesdale think Hester has over himself?
She doesn’t have the secret hidden filled with as much guilt.
What does Dimmesdale hand over his heart?
Throughout The Scarlet Letter, Dimmesdale repeatedly puts his hand over his heart which indicates and symbolizes
a secret, a metaphoric scarlet letter on his own chest
. This gesture is seen in the very beginning of The Scarlet Letter, when Hester stands on the scaffold in front of all the people.
Does Hester still love Dimmesdale?
Hester realizes that she still loves Dimmesdale
, and she courageously tells him this, even as she reveals her silence concerning Chillingworth. Hawthorne contrasts their love — “which had a consecration of its own” — and Chillingworth’s revenge and asks the reader which sin is worse.
What does Hester confess to Dimmesdale in the woods?
Hester tells Dimmesdale
that Chillingworth is her husband
. … Hester, unable to bear his harsh words, pulls him to her chest and buries his face in the scarlet letter as she begs his pardon. Dimmesdale eventually forgives her, realizing that Chillingworth is a worse sinner than either of them.
Why does Pearl say her mother wears the scarlet letter?
But despite repeated questions by Pearl, Hester says she wears the letter for
“the sake of the gold thread”
— the first time she had “been false to the symbol on her bosom.” Pearl is not satisfied and continues to question Hester until Hester threatens to shut Pearl in a dark closet.
What is the price Hester is referring to?
She refers to is as a price, that
Hester had put all effort into her daughter
. She, the child, is Hester’s only treasure. You just studied 16 terms!
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 did Dimmesdale get the A on his chest?
At this point in the narrative, Chillingworth had been suspecting that something other than physical is gnawing away at the minister. He discovers that Dimmesdale,
out of the guilt and sadness he feels from what occurs with Hester
, has carved a letter “A” on his chest.
What did Chillingworth find on Dimmesdale’s chest?
It is while Dimmesdale is sleeping one night that Chillingworth’s supsicions are confirmed; he looks at the sleeping Dimmesdale, and sees something on his chest that verifies he is indeed the man Hester had been with. There, on Dimmesdale’s chest, is
an engraved letter A, cut into his skin and scarred over
.
What garments is Hester not allowed to sew?
Hester Prynne, who bears the mark of an adultress, is not allowed to
embroider a bridal veil
which will cover the “pure blushes of a bride” because her sin, “which society frowned upon,” is connected to the basic relationship of man and woman.
How does Chillingworth get revenge on Dimmesdale?
Roger Chillingworth tortures Arthur
Dimmesdale by continually questioning the cause of his mysterious affliction and neglecting to clean Dimmesdale’s self-inflicted wound on his chest
. … Roger Chillingworth even offers to become Dimmesdale’s roommate, which allows him to investigate Dimmesdale’s dark secret.
What happened to Dimmesdale after confessing?
At the end of the novel, Dimmesdale makes a speech and exposes his chest to the community gathered around the scaffold,
then dies
. … Dimmesdale believes that by finally confessing his secret, he has saved his soul: “Had either of these agonies been wanting, I had been lost for ever!” He dies at peace.
