The Scarlet Letter
Chapters 11 and 12
Summary of Chapters
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Dimmesdale is being tortured by his sin. Chillingworth is toying
with him and every one of his church members worships him.
They can’t understand why Dimmesdale speaks so lowly of
himself. Dimmesdale is going crazy because he is keeping this
secret. One night, Dimmesdale went up to the scaffold and held
hands with Pearl and Hester. Chillingworth was out because he
had been tending to Winthrop who had just died. It was very
dark so nobody except for Chillingworth witnessed this event.
While the three were still up on the scaffold, the letter “A”
appeared in the sky and many of the townspeople interpreted it
as Angel for Winthrop. The next day, the other pastor brought
Dimmesdale his black glove and said he found it on the
scaffold. Instead of asking how it got up there, the sexton
simply said that Satan must have put it there.
Themes
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Duplicity- living a lie is weakening Dimmesdale’s
body. This internal struggle affected so much that
he does not act on his suspicions about
Chillingworth. He wanted the public to know his sin
but was afraid. The people’s approval of him only
added to his torture. “It is inconceivable, the agony
with which this public veneration [praise] tortured
him.”
All humans have the same need - As Dimmesdale
struggles with his own sin, he was made more
“human” meaning he was able to connect with
people better. “He won it, indeed, in great part, by
his sorrows.”
Romantic Ideas
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Very emotional – laughs and screams of
Dimmesdale
Love – The three holding hands
Believe in individualism – Dimmesdale’s refusal to
admit nature of his sin publicly
Subjective perception – “A” in sky: angel or adulterer
Introspective – Dimmesdale’s soul searching
Satisfaction of desire – desire to confess drove
Dimmesdale to scaffold
Supernatural energy and power – “electric chain”
Puritan Ideas
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Follows the Bible exactly – Father Wilson
Conservative and strong moral character –
Dimmesdale
Nature is evil – Hibbins, twigs of forest clinging to her
skirt Also, Chillingworth heals with nature
Interprets signs from Heaven – Comet with letter A
was presumed to be a message from God.
Shows little emotion – In chapter 11, the fathers of
the church could not reach the people on an
emotional level.
Character Analysis
The most significant character developments in
chapters 11 and 12 are in Dimmesdale and
his illegitimate daughter, Pearl.
 We will take a closer look at the climactic
internal battle that Dimmesdale undergoes
and the further development of Pearl’s freespirited nature.
Character Analysis: Dimmesdale
 Dimmesdale’s
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hallucinations and self injury
(hitting himself with a scourge or starving
himself) increase because Chillingworth is
now torturing him for revenge.
He desperately wants to confess but is too
cowardly to be anything but vague.
He believes that the comet proclaims God’s
judgment of him as an adulterer but the
townspeople misinterpret it.
Character Analysis: Pearl
In these chapters, the reader is assured that
Pearl knows that Dimmesdale is her father.
 She asked him twice to acknowledge her
publicly though he refuses.
 She vengefully taunts him with the
knowledge of Chillingworth’s true identity.
This shows that she knows she deserves to
be acknowledged.
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Literary Device: Irony
 Dimmesdale
doesn’t know that Chillingworth
is Hester’s husband. Even though
Dimmesdale doesn’t know Chillingworth’s
secret, Dimmesdale is already beginning to
hate Chillingworth because Chilligsworth was
constantly intensifying Dimmesdale’s pain
through his evil machination.
Literary Device: Narrative Voice
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“Yes it seems to be my glove indeed.”
In this example, Dimmesdale has just been
given the glove that was found on the
scaffold. He admits to the minister that it’s his
glove, which could be a confession that he
was there but, he doesn’t come out and say
that he left it there, not Satan.
By using narrative voice here, Hawethorne
causes the reader to question Dimmesdale’s
Ideals.
Literary Devices: Symbolism and Color
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Forest = natural chaos of sin
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Light = reason
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Mistress Hibbins interred the scene with twigs from the
forest on the hem of her skirt
This is the opposite of the order and control that Puritans
valued.
Pages 155-156 “…now, in short, good Father Wilson was
moving homeward, aiding his footsteps with a lighted
lantern!”
Black gloves = evil
-The minister said that Satan left the glove on the scaffold.
Literary Device: Allusion
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Allusion is when the author refers to a well-known
work but doesn’t show the connection.
When Dimmesdale twice denies Pearls request to
admit his sin (such a confession could lead to his
salvation), this could allude to the Bible where Peter
twice denies Christ (Christ is Peter’s salvation).
“…I, in whose daily life you discern the sanctify of
Enoch…” The Enoch walked with God in Genesis
5:21-24. This allusion implies that the people think
that Dimmesdale is as Holy as Enoch.
Quiz
1)
2)
3)
4)
5)
Why doesn’t Dimmesdale act upon his suspicions
of Chillingworth?
In what ways did Dimmesdale hurt himself?
Why do you think Dimmesdale tortured himself?
Without knowing the truth about Chillingworth, why
does Dimmesdale begin to hate him?
What did the “A” that was marked in the sky by the
meteor represent to the townspeople? To
Dimmesdale?