The Scarlet Letter 5

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…make it quite clear that Dimmesdale is a complete coward. He has the chance throughout the entire novel to confess. Despite it all, he is caught up in the fame and the excitement of his reverend-hood, which pushes him down the "slippery slope" inch by inch. His confession is never a true public one, and because of that, I believe the last scene of the novel was not quite as noble as Randall Stewart claims.