Dimmsdale Vs. Chillingworth

Dimmsdale vs. Chillingworth

Ankur Javia

American Literature/ Drama

Mrs. Willing

December 20, 2006

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Conflict is defined as a problem or argument between two opposing forces. There can be many different types of conflict. Man vs. man is the most popular type of conflict that deals with two different people arguing with each other. Another popular type of conflict is Man vs. self, which involves a person dealing with inside problem that may come upon them. In addition to those two, types of conflict include: man vs. supernatural, and man vs. nature. Authors use conflict because it adds to the plot of the story. Conflict makes a story more interesting and more fun to read. In The Scarlet Letter, Hawthorne uses conflict to emphasize the irony of Chillingworth being Hester’s husband, and Dimmsdale being Hester’s lover. Hawthorne uses the conflict between Dimmsdale vs. Chillingworth to make the plot of the story much more interesting. In the novel The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne, Dimmsdale vs. Chillingworth is a major conflict because the two characters are both in a major problem that will eventually take a toll in their lives.

Chillingworth vs. Dimmsdale is an interesting conflict in this story because they are both victims of sin. Chillingworth is a victim of the sin of revenge. After encountering the news of his wife committing adultery, his thoughts revolve around finding out the identity of the man, and then getting revenge. Chillingworth’s revenge for Dimmsdale drives him crazy and eventually takes his life. Dimmsdale is also a sinner. He commits the sin of lust and secrecy. These two sins cause Dimmsdale to deteriorate in health and make him weak. First, the major sin committed by Dimmsdale caused his life to be living hell. If he did not feel any lustrous feelings for Hester, none of this would have happen. Another sin that Dimmsdale commits is keeping the whole thing a secret. The more he kept the whole thing a secret, the more it ate himself up inside.

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Chillingworth’s revenge makes him yearn for the death of Dimmsdale. Dimmsdale sleeps with his wife and also has a child with her, which angers him. Considering all of these, Chillingworth is determined to get back at Dimmsdale. He does this by bringing up conversations about sin and more about Hester. Dimmsdale copes with these topics and goes along with them, but it hurts him on the inside because of the fact that he is keeping the whole thing a secret. Chillingworth also poisons Dimmsdale by giving him poisonous medicine that causes Dimmsdale’s health to deteriorate.

The conflict of Dimmsdale vs. Chillingworth is very interesting because Dimmsdale is very reluctant to tell Chillingworth any information. He keeps everything