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The Scarlet Letter


His tone at the description of the crowd is sorrowful, irked. Although significant, tone is not Hawthorne's only weapon of choice. .
             The Scarlet Letter was a novel filled with antagonism. Main conflicts include man versus man, man versus self, and man versus society. The initial man versus man conflict was between Arthur Chillingworth and Reverend Dimmesdale. It had turned out that Chillingworth was Hester's former husband. He was a prominent figure in the society and had told Hester, in essence, to keep quiet about their relationship. He went on pretending to be Dimmesdale's friend. He plotted and schemed a way to fix his revenge, because he was hateful and jealous. Chillingworth wanted to ruin Dimmesdale's image in front of the whole town and tell them that he was an adulterer also. The next, man versus self, conflict arose inside of the Revered Dimmesdale. He was torn between the option of keeping quiet and keeping his position and taking care of his family. He held guilt that ripped him apart, because he was letting Hester take all the blame for their sin. Hawthorne described a doleful Dimmesdale who could be seen walking the streets beating his heart. It turned out that he had branded the letter "A" on his chest as an inner punitive measure. The last man versus society conflict existed between Hester and the villagers. Hester's very crime was an insult against and an amazement to the townspeople. She had gone against every moral fiber in a Puritan body. Hester was seen as a harlot and a philanderer. The settlers stayed well away from her and dealt with her only when they had to. They were even so brave as to ask her to give up her child, on the grounds that Pearl would be corrupted if she lived with Hester. She could no longer walk among them with her head held high. Hester was doomed to a solitary life and proceeded to live her life solely for her child. These conflicts concerned Hester because they all involved her in some way.


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