Arthur Dimmesdale's guilt leads to the breakdown of his character in The Scarlet Letter.

Guilt, according to the American Heritage Dictionary, is the state of being responsible for committing wrongdoings and expressing remorse for those wrongdoings. A character is created with such guilt in The Scarlet Letter, a psychological novel written by a member of the Anti-transcendentalist Movement, Nathaniel Hawthorne. Arthur Dimmesdale's guilt leads to the eventual downfall and demise of his conscience and drives him to work hard toward redemption. <Tab/>Dimmesdale's guilt leads …

…amp;lt;Tab/>Guilt is the cause of Dimmesdale's depression of his conscience and self. Physically abusing himself and jeopardizing his health and strength; constantly attacking himself mentally through the thoughts of what he had done; and allowing Roger Chillingworth to play endangering mid games with his fragile conscience are effects of Dimmesdale's guilt. All of these pieces of evidence prove that guilt is the eventual killer of Arthur Dimmesdale's conscience and self.