What happened to Dimmesdale in Scarlet Letter?

In the end, Chillingworth is morally degraded by his monomaniacal pursuit of revenge. Dimmesdale is broken by his own sense of guilt, and he publicly confesses his adultery before dying in Hester’s arms. Only Hester can face the future bravely, as she prepares to begin a new life with her daughter, Pearl, in Europe.

Who committed the greatest sin in the scarlet letter?

Roger Chillingworth

Does Hester feel guilty for her sin?

In chapter six Hawthorne writes that Hester knows “her deed had been evil” (92). This evil deed, in Hester’s eyes, causes Pearl to act sinful, so Hester feels overwhelming guilt. At this point Hester feels that her actions were evil and were her fault, therefore she is sorry for committing adultery.

How did Hester Prynne change from beginning to end?

Through the course of the novel, it appears that Hester changes from an arrogant, unremorseful woman to a much kinder and helpful, repentant woman. In the beginning of The Scarlet Letter, we see Hester being punished publicly for the sin she has committed with Arthur Dimmesdale.

Why did Hester name her child Pearl?

A beautiful flower growing out of sinful soil, Pearl is so named because she was “purchased with all [Hester] had—her mother’s only treasure!” Because “in giving her existence a great law had been broken,” Pearl’s very being seems to be inherently at odds with the strict rules of Puritan society.