Scarlet Letter by Hawthorne

Irish novelist Brian Moore observed, 'There comes a point in many people's lives when they can no longer play the role they have chosen for themselves' (Bookshelf 95). From Hollywood movie stars to professional athletes, people have and will continue to lead false lives, under the public spotlight, concealing their personal travails. In literature, the preceding statement has held true numerous times, in works such as Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter. Minister and respected citizen, Arthur …

…that none of these links with man, the devil, or God, can comfort him' (347). Hawthorne used Dimmesdale's sufferings and moral cowardice to illustrate the consequences of leading the impossible double life. Hawthorne successfully showed us that having communal respect and popularity is insufficient for living in harmony with oneself. Unless one is willing to confront serious personal challenges directly and forthrightly, then one may be doomed to bear the burden that so tormented Arthur Dimmesdale.