||Scarlet Letter 6: 126-144||

“To the untrue man, the whole universe is false,—it is impalpable,—it shrinks to nothing within his grasp. And he himself, in so far as he shows himself in a false light, becomes a shadow, or indeed, ceases to exist” (133).

• Through this quote, Dimmesdale does not explicitly admit to being an “untrue man” simply because he does not view himself as one. Through his explanation of what an untrue man is, it is evident that he may be stepping into this direction, however, what is stopping him is the pain he feels within and his acknowledgement of the sin. If that is what hinders Dimmesdale from being considered an untrue man, we can then assume that an untrue man is naive and portrays a false character only to conceal his wrongdoing for the betterment of himself. However, Dimmesdale clearly explicates his reasoning for hiding his secret as a means of keeping the townspeople’s best interests in mind.
  
  Would it be better to admit his sin so the townspeople are aware of the truth and realize that Dimmesdale is simply a flawed human being like themselves?

“‘Then, and there, before the judgment-seat, thy mother, and thou, and I must stand together. But the daylight of this world shall not see our meeting!”’ (139).

• Although Dimmesdale teetered from one means of obtaining redemption to another, he finally chooses one and holds his stance. Throughout the novel, it is evident that the reason for Dimmesdale’s concealment of his sin, was because he understood that only God could judge him. However, upon the arrival of Chillingworth’s torture and guilt, he becomes distraught and considers the option of confessing to the whole town: “He had been driven hither by the impulse of that Remorse which dogged him everywhere” (134). When coming into contact with Hester and Pearl, he comes to his senses. Ultimately, Dimmesdale realizes that his true judgment comes solely from God and on judgment day is when Dimmesdale, Hester, and Pearl will stand together. When comparing The Crucible, we see a correlation between both Dimmesdale and Proctor. Proctor however, suffered through his misguided search for redemption and came to the conclusion that only God can judge him toward the end of all the tumult, whereas Dimmesdale had this mentality from the beginning.
  
  What will Dimmesdale do if the townspeople become aware of his sinful act?
  (I wasn’t sure of the townspeople found out or not)

||Scarlet Letter 5: 107-126||

“To sum up the matter, it grew to be a widely diffused opinion, that the Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale, like many other personages of especial sanctity, in all ages of the Christian world, was haunted either by Satan himself, or Satan emissary, in the guise of old Roger Chillingworth” (116).

• It is evident that upon Chillingworth’s arrival in the town, he is seen as an angel or someone sent by God to heal Dimmesdale from his illness. However, the townspeople were not aware of the fact that Dimmesdale’s health began to diminish when becoming closer with his personal physician Chillingworth. His health certainly was not improving which caused suspicion to rise among the townspeople. To the townspeople, Chillingworth’s intentions had changed from being Godly to evil. No longer was he thought to have been put on earth to heal their beloved Dimmesdale. Chillingworth was there to torture.
  
  How will the death of Dimmesdale affect Hester?

“But still, methinks, it must needs be better for the sufferer to be free to show his pain, as this poor woman Hester is, than it cover it all up in his heart” (123).

• Through this quote, Dimmesdale reveals the inner battle in which he has been grappling with. Although he does not exactly articulate that it is his predicament, one can assume that it is. Dimmesdale expresses that Hester has much less of the weight of the sin on her shoulders solely because, for Hester, everyone is aware of her wrongdoing and now she must suffer the punishment. On the other hand, Dimmesdale must conceal his secret of having any part in the adulterous act and must simply be a spectator to the torture they are putting Hester through. In expressing this, Dimmesdale is claiming that his situation results in more suffering.
  
  Why doesn’t Dimmesdale tell the truth since he is going to die soon?

||Scarlet Letter 4: 91-107||

“‘No, my little Pearl!’ said her mother. ‘Thou must gather thine own sunshine. I have none to give thee!’” (94).

• After Pearl finds the wonder and amazement of Governor Bellingham’s house, she begins to dance as though she is in demand for the sunshine to be in her possession for her to play with. This quote follows Pearl’s excitement and reveals Hester’s understanding of her own self. Hester is aware of the sin she has committed and believes she no longer has purity or “sunshine” to give. By encouraging Pearl to find her own sunshine, Hester is claiming that Pearl is certainly capable of obtaining it, while she herself cannot offer it.
  
  Will Hester ever forgive herself?

“That this boon was meant, above all things else, to keep the mother’s soul alive, and to preserve her from blacker depths of sin into which Satan might else have sought to plunge her! Therefore it is good for this poor, sinful woman that she hath an infant immortality… to remind her, at every moment, of her fall, —but yet to teach her” (105).

• Pearl was certainly a symbol of sin considering the fact that she was conceived through adultery. However, this passage reveals how, regardless of Pearl being a representation of sin, she is there to remind Hester of her mistakes. Pearl is also destined to help Hester search for repentance and absolution from her sin. Hester now strives to carry herself in a manner that is beneficial toward the bringing up of Pearl.
  
  Is Pearl a symbol of goodness, rather than sin?

||Scarlet Letter 3: 72-91||

“From first to last, in short, Hester Prynne had always this dreadful agony in feeling a human eye on the token; the spot never grew callous; it seemed, on the contrary, to grow more sensitive with daily torture” (79).

• This quote shows that despite Hester’s confidence and acceptance of her sin, she is still affected by the townspeople’s constant glare at not only her, but the actual scarlet letter. It is evident that Hester holds a sense of insecurity within herself because she expresses her concern on the increase of the torture she feels she is receiving with every glare. Hester has no control over it and must deal with his difficulty on her own, bearing the shame of her sin on her chest for all to see. Her vulnerability provokes a sense of empathy within the reader, causing one to understand Hester’s position in this cruelty. Likewise, in “The Crucible,” Proctor’s genuine nature caused the reader to sympathize with what he was going through, pushing the well deserved (partial) blame from Proctor to the townspeople.
  
  When will the townspeople allow for Hester to be absolved from her sin of adultery?

"But, whether from pride or resignation, or a feeling that her penance might best be wrought out by this unutterable pain, she resisted the impulse, and sat erect, pale as death, looking sadly into Pearl's wild eyes" (89).

• As Pearl consistently throws wild flowers at Hester’s letter, Hester has the immediate instinct to cover it up. However, she restrains from doing so, expressing that perhaps this was a means of obtaining absolution from her sin. Regardless of the unjust treatment and false judgment Hester receives from the townspeople, she continues to bear her letter without any attempt to hide it. Hester believes that she deserves the hand she was dealt with considering that Hester is under the impression that Pearl’s malevolent nature is a direct consequence of her own sin. This is somewhat opposite to Proctor in “The Crucible” because Proctor had trouble truly accepting the fact that he had commit adultery, even after confessing it.
  
  Will Pearl grow up to be extremely evil?

||Scarlet Letter 2: 56-72||

"…to find yourself, at length, in a land where iniquity is searched out, and punished in the sight of rulers and people, as here in our godly New England"(58).

• A stranger by the name of Roger Chillingworth had just finished explaining his past state when he questioned the whereabouts of Hester Prynne. This quote reveals the common answer that everyone who lived in the town was essentially aware of. This was a society in which one’s sins and faults were of more significance than their good acts. The man giving this response was more than happy to share Hester’s faults with Chillingworth, parading her supposed well-deserved punishment. Just as in “The Crucible,” the townspeople are infatuated with giving accused sinners harsher punishments than deserved and finding joy in their pain.
  
  Is Roger ever going to reveal the fact that he had a relationship with Hester Prynne?

“And my child must seek a heavenly Father; she shall never know an earthly one!” (64).

• Hester Prynne constantly refuses to reveal the father of her child. Even when the clergymen attempt to make Hester feel guilty by asking her if she wouldn’t like her child to have a father, she simply refuses another time and gives this response. Hester’s response shows her consistent religious fervor, regardless of the sin she has committed. Hester is aware that human beings are prone to fault, whereas God certainly is not. On the contrary, the supposed religious town is acting in such a way completely contradictory toward their pious reputation by unjustly punishing Hester. In “The Crucible,” the sinner, John Proctor, remained devout, wheras the “righteous” townspeople reeked havoc killing innocent people.
  
  Will the townspeople ever be aware of the amount of hypocrisy in which they dwell in?

||Scarlet Letter 1: 45-56||

“In our nature, however, there is a provision, alike marvelous and merciful, that the sufferer should never know the intensity of what he endures by its present torture, but chiefly by the pang that rankles after it” (52).

• It can certainly be assumed that for one to go through such a lengthy experience of being unjustly judged by others is extremely agonizing and painful. However, this quote explains that this society is slightly different. One is not quite affected by the agony until after the experience. Regardless of when the pain is felt, Hester Prynne is clearly accepting her sin but may not feel the “pang” just yet. She is being unfairly judged by the townspeople as if they are not flawed human beings. This correlates to Proctor and his search for forgiveness, only to be judged by others that were certainly guilty of their own sins and had no right to look down upon him.
  
  If it is a pious area, why do the townspeople judge when they are not perfect themselves?

“Here, there was the taint of deepest sin in the most sacred quality of human life, working such effect, that the world was only the darker for this woman’s beauty, and the more lost for the infant that she had borne” (53).

• This quote explicates that in Hester Prynne’s case, one of the most beautiful parts of life, such as childbirth was tainted by the sin through which it occurred—adultery. Hester Prynne is certainly guilty of this sin and is not ashamed to accept her faults. However, it may be safe to assume that Hester desperately wants absolution from what she has done because perhaps, like Proctor, she is a genuinely good person but simply made a mistake. Considering what occurred in “The Crucible,” we are aware that forgiveness cannot come from flawed human being, so Hester Prynne must find it elsewhere.
  
  Will Hester Prynne continue to let others torture her unjustly?

Crucible Paper 2- Redemption

Macda Gerard
AP English 11: Mr. George
December 4, 2008
Crucible Paper 2- Redemption

What if one lived in a world where a man was defined by his mistakes, and an unforgiving society rarely created opportunities for redemption? John Proctor was living this reality. He commits the initial sin of adultery with Abigail, which leads him on a misguided search for redemption. Proctor searches for forgiveness through Elizabeth and the townspeople until he is confronted by his empathetic realization that true judgment solely comes from God.

Proctor informs Elizabeth of his adulterous act in hopes of being forgiven. Despite Proctor’s best efforts in abiding by his morality of truth, he is met with Elizabeth’s unwillingness to warmly accept his faults: “Spoke or silent, a promise is surely made” (61). Trust had vanished within the relationship making it difficult for Elizabeth to act in the hospitable way that she had before. Elizabeth’s emotional abandonment elucidates her inability to truly forgive Proctor because she is beset by her own internal conflict, thus pushing Proctor toward other means of obtaining exoneration.

Proctor, a revered man in Salem, is faced with a dilemma that coerces him into seeking redemption from the townspeople in the court. Throughout the chaos and disorder of the town, Abigail’s deception could only be brought to a standstill if Proctor confessed his sin of adultery. He was faced with two options: either sully his name to save innocent people and possibly be forgiven or uphold his reputation and allow Abigail to carry on with her dishonesty. Aware of the fact that his reputation was in danger, Proctor contritely confesses his sin to the court in anticipation of being absolved. Nonetheless, he is blinded by the truth that the townspeople were also guilty of sin, making them unable to truly forgive. Not fully acknowledging the fact that his pleas were directed toward completely flawed human beings, Proctor shouts in frustration, “I have made a bell of my honor! I have rung the doom of my good name—you will believe me, Mr. Danforth!” (111). By upholding his values, Proctor tarnishes his name for justice in hopes of obtaining redemption, however, he is unjustly condemned to death and faced with the reality that flawed beings certainly cannot free him of his sin.

Elizabeth’s influence became more apparent as Proctor’s search for forgiveness proceeded. Faced with lying to save his own life or dying as an unmerited martyr, Proctor pleads with his wife to give him insight on this decision. His moral compass is grappling with the two choices and simultaneously still seeking forgiveness from his wife. Elizabeth, aware of her own sins, simply replies, “I cannot judge you, John, I cannot” (138). She enforces the mentality that God is the only judge. Elizabeth certainly influences Proctor to not seek absolution from conflicted human beings, but to look within himself, thus ultimately finding the answer from God.

Proctor’s misguided search comes to an end when he discovers with whom his answers truly lie. Proctor falsely confesses in belief that there was “no ritual for the washing away of sins,” and that confession would simply compound his sins (20). However, Proctor’s epiphany manifests itself following Hale telling him that he cannot hang. Proctor simply replies, “I can. And there’s your first marvel, that I can” (144). He comes to the conclusion that in order to be forgiven by God, he must not search for it through others, but look within himself.

It is evident that fair judgment and forgiveness cannot be obtained from people plagued by their own internal conflicts. Throughout the moral corruption of this society, Proctor’s clouded morality makes him guilty of searching for amnesty from sinful townspeople. Initially, he is unable to attain redemption, however, through his order of events he discovers where it is found. Ultimately in his redemption, Proctor ceases to seek forgiveness from others and realizes the conflict is between himself and God.

Letter 3 ((Abigail to Proctor))

To my love John,

You have not been to church this sevenmonth. Is it because you cannot bear to stay distant whenever I come near? Do you assume I do not see the sweat glisten down your brow or hear the melodious beat of your yearning heart? I sense you John; your presence outside my window, your breath when you whispered soft words in my ear. When will we share our souls once more? I await to hold you again.

You were the first John; the first to introduce to me a new world. You gently stripped away my innocence and created a lasting bond. The mere memory of the grip of your hands as you clutched my body sends feeling through me, John. Your soft lips pressed against mine only remind me of your compassion. Have no worries, the love we hold is mutual. It will never disappear. Several believe it to be a sin. Whatever sin it may be, it has created my eternal passion for you. The love we share is unattainable by others. That is why Elizabeth mustn’t stand in the way. You must inform her of our love or she will continue to blacken my holy name. Why is my name blackened when surely, I did as you wanted? Pushing away such a persuasive and passionate man as yourself was not an option, nor did the horrid thought come to mind. If you do not make Elizabeth aware of this, I will do as I please and take matters into my hands.

Come to me, my love. Be without your wife and take me. Let us travel to a far away place where not a person is aware of the sin. Let us raise a prosperous family where, comfortably, we will bask in out everlasting love. Aye, that is when we will truly be happy.


Your love,
Abby

Letter 2 ((Mary Warren to Abigail *before they were confronted in the court*))

Dearest Abby,

I don’t understand your reasoning for all these lies. You are beginning to tear our town apart. Accusers are crying spirits, spirits and innocent victims are being hung. Animals are roaming without owners and farms are being left to ruin. This is all pretense. I do not see spirits and neither do you. The other girls follow you and believe it is the truth. It is not! At first, it was all a sport, but it is becoming harmful. Please, Abby, I beg of you. Stop this destruction. Let us go and tell the truth. Proctor always tells us that the truth will be the means of escape, so we must stand by it. I’m scared Abby, I want to walk with God.

I know you meant no harm when you bid me give the doll to Goody Proctor. Hale and Proctor think this good deed was done by a false heart but how could you have known? You can be a good person Abby, I know you can! It is much better if we confess our wrongdoings now, and then maybe we will not be hung. Maybe we will be praised for saving lives. Maybe we will just get a whipping. Despite the consequences, it is time to put an end to this. Before we are summoned, you need to tell me of your plans. Proctor implores that I confess. I don’t want to hurt you, but I have to Abby. This is wrong. It is hurting me. I am sick and shudder in my sleep thinking about this very matter. It’s a sin to mettle with people’s good names! Confess with me Abby! The Lord will save us!


Mary

Letter 1 ((Elizabeth to Abigail *after John's death*)

Dear Abigail,

I do not have the slightest idea of where you are, nor does it matter to me. You’ve caused such great pain amongst my family, and the townspeople as well. This area will never reclaim the amount of piety and reverence it was once adorned with due to your deceiving selfish acts. I surely do believe, at a time, you wanted me dead. Nevertheless, I am writing to you as a means of releasing my anger and as an act of forgiveness.

I had once claimed that there be no mark of blame upon my life, however, that is not true. In God’s eyes, not one person is without sin. We have all gone against His teachings and have strived to please man. This is not how it ought to be. Following John’s death, I have come to the understanding that there be no higher judge than God. He is solely responsible for washing away our sins so long as we first forgive ourselves. Aye, I have committed sins that I have yet confessed, so it is surely not my place to judge you. I can only wish for you to repent, for the Almighty forgives all those who seek it.

My intentions are not to plead with you to go God’s way. It is simply to make you aware that forgiveness is attainable. My soul releases all anger and hatred that it once held for you. I am able to now move forward in life and not be suppressed by my abhorrence for you. May your life be a symbol to all; a symbol of being lost, then being found by our Father above. At last, you are forgiven.

Sincerely,
Elizabeth