What do you think of the scene on the pillory? How have your impressions of Dimmesdale changed or evolved?
Needs to be posted by Friday.
16 comments:
Anonymous
said...
I hate to say it but guess what. i kind of liked him. he was a pretty good person to try to make himself feel better. i do have one issue though. personally it would have made a more profound impact on the reader if Dimmesdale would have done this in the public eye so that all could see him. how can he speak to all of them and hide this at the same time. i feel that with a secret as big as his Dimmesdale should accept responsibilty. sure he may lose his respct and position but i would rather lose that than lose all dignity for myself. he made a huge step, but before i truly like and respect him it would be a good idea for him to admit his sin to someone more than the person he sinned with and himself. but he made a huge step so that scene was super powerful in that it made the reader truly think.
i have mixed feelings about dimmesdale. it was honorable of him to stand up on the pillory with pearl and hester. i really started to like him a lot more in that scene. however, when pearl asked if he would stand with them in public and he said not until judgement day i began to think less of him. he committed the same sin as hester, yet she was the one who went to jail and endured public humiliation. i think that if he is able to come out with his sin, a huge weight will be lifted off his shoulders.
I really dont know what to think of him anymore. In the beginning i thought he was one of the few normal people in the book. then we found out about his "secret" and after that i didnt think a whole lot of him but nnow that he is trying to fix things a bit im not sure what to think. After so long of hiding it he has finally done something. It was a small step but it was still a step in the right direction i think. I think that Dimmesdale needs to come forward and let his sin be known but that is what he should have done when Hester was standing up there and he couldnt do it then so im not sure if he will be able to or not.
I think he felt really compelled to let go of his sin and let it out for everyone to see, but wasn't strong enough to do it in the light, so he attempted it in the dark. The only problem was that he didn't really reveal his sin because it was in the dark, so he couldn't feel fully relieved. I do think it very good of him to go up on the platform like he did though. It shows that he does want to do the right thing, but he just isn't strong enough and he is too concerned with his place in society. This shows precicely that Hester is stronger then Dimmesdale because she had the courage to stand up in front of everyone and he didn't. I respect him, am a little sorry for him, and yet I also am a little annoyed that he couldn't take a big enough step of faith to pronounce to everyone his sin. I am a little sorry for him though because he wants to do the right thing; he just doesn't come through fully in the light.
Dimmesdale seems quite sorry for whatever it is that he may have done (we do not know what for sure yet, of course), but still he does not seem sorry enough to confess this thing to the public. My thoughts on this man, from the second scene on the pillory, are that he is a good man, though, as Pearl observes, not a bold one. He would have made a good father, I think, but the whole idea of that is completely forbidden in this society. And so Rev. Dimmesdale, I think, is doomed to voice his guilt in his own private and tortuous ways.
Well, that was interesting, to say the least. The whole letter in the sky thing kind of threw me off though. Anywho, I've always kind of liked Mr. Dimmesdale, and now I think I like him a little more. I think it did him tremendous good to stand there with Hester and Pearl. But, he's not out of his sin yet.
I'm amazed that Pearl asked him to stand there the very next day. I mean, put yourself in his shoes. It's been what? Seven years? And he's only now begining to reveal his sin? It's taken him that long to show that much (which is very little) of his sin to the world, and yet Pearl wants him to completely reveal everything the very next day! I'd be nervous, too.
But, like Mandy said, this does show how much stronger and braver Hester is than Mr. Dimmesdale. I am sort of angry at the guy for making Hester suffer the full punishment alone while he just watched. She's been, for the most part, banished from society while he is admired and cheerished by many. He even knows how much better it would be for him to just come out with it in full daylight, and we must give him a little credit. He has tried before to say his sin, but people were too blind/deafened by their love of him to listen. I'm certian he will come clean fairly soon, but if he will do it himself or if Roger Chillington will do it for him, I cannot tell. :S
I had no strong feelings about Dimmesdale beforehand. Now, I actually like the guy. I disagree with Brock, I believe that what he is doing currently, the preaching, is for the better even if it is hypocritical. I disagree with Courtney in the fact that the A in the sky was confusing. To me, it seemed like it was one of those touching moments when, proverbially, "sparks fly", but in this case, sparks actually did fly. I mean, what's a reunitement without fireworks. This scene is almost written for a movie. The A appeared right after they united hands, right? Dimmesdale, in my mind, is not keeping the job for himself, but for the betterment of mankind. Overall, I think that God might have been using Dimmesdale and his guilt from this situation to further and preach the Good News. Because of his guilt it just means that much more to him, and therefore, to everyone he is preaching to.
Mr. Dimmesdale, in my opinion, is being foolish. For example if he has repented before god, the one and only true judge, then there is no need to be publicly disgraced. Also, a man that is so well versed biblically should now that no matter how much he punishes himself he can not be forgiven unless he repents, which he has done. The fact that he has sinned, is beyond the point because everyone has a flaw, but it is how he has gone about after the sin that is disappointing. At first, I thought that he was a strong righteous man but as the story has gone it has revealed that Dimmesdale is a bit of a coward. Although unnecessary, He should be able to tell the town about his sin if he feels it is the right thing to do. I think that the scene up on the pillory is kind of weird and a little unbelievable. First I think that that Mr. Wilson would have seen Dimmesdale up on the pillory. I say this because at night time, my senses are usually a little bit sharper. Furthermore, the author made mention of a moon (I think) so that would illuminate the seen so that the minister could see the guilty man. Also, I think that if a person were to yell in the middle of the night then some one in a town of two thousand would have to sleep light enough to wake up.
I am actually very proud of the man. It takes a big person to stand up and admit he is to blame to, especially in those time periods. If only he would take more credit it for it among the public. I am going to agree with everyone pretty much so far and say, he would feel so much better if he came out with what he did to everyone. I still have some respect for the man seeing as he did claim SOME of the blame, and I think he might prove to us his worth later on in the book. It was also brave of pearl to ask him to stand up there. I like her, she seems like a strong willed girl. =]]
well, dimmesdale is like any other person in this world. he did make the right decision by standing on the pillory, but he didnt want to give up his high place in society. he is letting go of a lot of personal secrets and he cant handle to let them all go at once. he cant go from being a revered religious figure to being an outcast. the fact that he admitted his sin to his own daughter and her mother is a huge step, but he still has a way to go. dont get me wrong, im not totally defending him, im just saying he is human. he does need to come clean, but i dont blame him if he doesnt come out of the dark right away. ill give him time to think of a way to get it out and benefit him as much as possible. i can handle a little selfishness, because it is most likely what i would do. im not afraid to admit that i most likely would not step from a role in society like his down into the scum of the earth. he is doing what most humans would do and i respect him for it, but it would be nice if he came completely clean sometime soon.
It bugs me how dimsdale can only admit his sins to the world when nobody is up or around to hear him. That's like if somebody robbed a grandma and told their dog it would be perfectly okay. Basically I thought his actions were pointless. If he wanted to get if off his chest he should have just sucked it up and stood with them during the day like Pearl suggested. Rogger Chillingworth will most likely tell the world anyway, so if I was Dimsdale I would want people to hear it from myself rather that let Chillingworth tell everyone his spin on the ordeal. At first I thought Dimsdale was a decent guy, but he really annoyed me in this scence.
I must agree with brock, my opinion of the guy chaged i kinda liked him. He was not so horrible of a guy, or at least i think that the idea of what he is hiding is eating alive SOOOO much that he is just collapsing within and this little episode on the pillory is just the first step he is taking to let people know about it. I think that he does'nt want to come out and say it like straight out, but he hints at it hoping that someone will discover it and unveil the horrible deed he has done. I think that his episode on the pillory is just kinda his first step in admitting it. I think that eveuntally he will have grown enough...confidence to just come straithg out and say exactly what he has done. I think that this is like the first true step to admittance. I am kinda confused about him, like my opinion has changed greatly, i think i'm going to like him more and more if he does just come out and say it, but as of right now he is just...blah, not necessarly good but not that bad either. I find it ironic though that he is ahead of some other revrends in the area. I think that it is just ironic that he is proably the only one going through this yet he is still considered to be one of the best religious leaders of the are, to me its just kinda funny.
I really like the scene of him on the pillory. I mean it was kinda weird that he just randomly decided to go stand on the pillory bu himself in the middle of the night but whatever. I really liked how he held hands with Pearl with Hester on the other side really kinda showing that he is taking part of the responsibilty. Like it has been said before, he is human. He made a mistake... I do like still. Ive known like since chapter 6ish it was him, so my opinion hasnt changed really. I think it is really good that he got it out there that he did wrong. I think in a situation like that it is the first step toward coming clean. I really agree with what Andrew said though, that if he is such a "religious" guy or whatever that he should know the Bible enough to know that nothing he can do will save him or make him feel any better. I think that even with his dirty little secret I would probably look up to him if he came out and told the town. I would probably be an outcast forever if he did, but I guess if you really wanted to come clean that would have to be a price you were willing to pay.
I still don't know what to think. I think that he has too high of a place in society as a minister, that he does not want to give it up, even though he did commit an enormous sin. I think he really does want to get it off of his chest, he is just not strong enough yet. This shows when he stands on the pillary with Hester and Pearl in the dark, but he refuses to stand on it with them during the day, for all to see. He doesn't want to because he does not want to be put to shame, even though he wishes to get this sin off of his chest. He is caught between a rock and a hard place.
I think it was respectable that Dimmesdale made an attempt at relieving himself of his misery. He may have wanted to know what Hester had felt when she was up there. The only problem is, no one knows why he's up there except Hester and possibly Chillingworth. I think that if Dimmesdale truly wants to feel better than he will have to admit to his sin and face the pubic as Hester did.
I dont like Dimmesdale. I think that if he was a decent human being he would have admitted his secret a long time ago. Instead he let Hester take all the blame and punishment for it. He cant even stand in public with Hester and Pearl. It was nice of him to stand with them for a little while, but no one saw so it didn't make a difference. I think he should me a man and own up to his mistakes.
16 comments:
I hate to say it but guess what. i kind of liked him. he was a pretty good person to try to make himself feel better. i do have one issue though. personally it would have made a more profound impact on the reader if Dimmesdale would have done this in the public eye so that all could see him. how can he speak to all of them and hide this at the same time. i feel that with a secret as big as his Dimmesdale should accept responsibilty. sure he may lose his respct and position but i would rather lose that than lose all dignity for myself. he made a huge step, but before i truly like and respect him it would be a good idea for him to admit his sin to someone more than the person he sinned with and himself. but he made a huge step so that scene was super powerful in that it made the reader truly think.
i have mixed feelings about dimmesdale. it was honorable of him to stand up on the pillory with pearl and hester. i really started to like him a lot more in that scene. however, when pearl asked if he would stand with them in public and he said not until judgement day i began to think less of him. he committed the same sin as hester, yet she was the one who went to jail and endured public humiliation. i think that if he is able to come out with his sin, a huge weight will be lifted off his shoulders.
I really dont know what to think of him anymore. In the beginning i thought he was one of the few normal people in the book. then we found out about his "secret" and after that i didnt think a whole lot of him but nnow that he is trying to fix things a bit im not sure what to think. After so long of hiding it he has finally done something. It was a small step but it was still a step in the right direction i think. I think that Dimmesdale needs to come forward and let his sin be known but that is what he should have done when Hester was standing up there and he couldnt do it then so im not sure if he will be able to or not.
I think he felt really compelled to let go of his sin and let it out for everyone to see, but wasn't strong enough to do it in the light, so he attempted it in the dark. The only problem was that he didn't really reveal his sin because it was in the dark, so he couldn't feel fully relieved. I do think it very good of him to go up on the platform like he did though. It shows that he does want to do the right thing, but he just isn't strong enough and he is too concerned with his place in society. This shows precicely that Hester is stronger then Dimmesdale because she had the courage to stand up in front of everyone and he didn't. I respect him, am a little sorry for him, and yet I also am a little annoyed that he couldn't take a big enough step of faith to pronounce to everyone his sin. I am a little sorry for him though because he wants to do the right thing; he just doesn't come through fully in the light.
Dimmesdale seems quite sorry for whatever it is that he may have done (we do not know what for sure yet, of course), but still he does not seem sorry enough to confess this thing to the public. My thoughts on this man, from the second scene on the pillory, are that he is a good man, though, as Pearl observes, not a bold one. He would have made a good father, I think, but the whole idea of that is completely forbidden in this society. And so Rev. Dimmesdale, I think, is doomed to voice his guilt in his own private and tortuous ways.
Well, that was interesting, to say the least. The whole letter in the sky thing kind of threw me off though. Anywho, I've always kind of liked Mr. Dimmesdale, and now I think I like him a little more. I think it did him tremendous good to stand there with Hester and Pearl. But, he's not out of his sin yet.
I'm amazed that Pearl asked him to stand there the very next day. I mean, put yourself in his shoes. It's been what? Seven years? And he's only now begining to reveal his sin? It's taken him that long to show that much (which is very little) of his sin to the world, and yet Pearl wants him to completely reveal everything the very next day! I'd be nervous, too.
But, like Mandy said, this does show how much stronger and braver Hester is than Mr. Dimmesdale. I am sort of angry at the guy for making Hester suffer the full punishment alone while he just watched. She's been, for the most part, banished from society while he is admired and cheerished by many. He even knows how much better it would be for him to just come out with it in full daylight, and we must give him a little credit. He has tried before to say his sin, but people were too blind/deafened by their love of him to listen. I'm certian he will come clean fairly soon, but if he will do it himself or if Roger Chillington will do it for him, I cannot tell. :S
I had no strong feelings about Dimmesdale beforehand. Now, I actually like the guy. I disagree with Brock, I believe that what he is doing currently, the preaching, is for the better even if it is hypocritical. I disagree with Courtney in the fact that the A in the sky was confusing. To me, it seemed like it was one of those touching moments when, proverbially, "sparks fly", but in this case, sparks actually did fly. I mean, what's a reunitement without fireworks. This scene is almost written for a movie. The A appeared right after they united hands, right? Dimmesdale, in my mind, is not keeping the job for himself, but for the betterment of mankind. Overall, I think that God might have been using Dimmesdale and his guilt from this situation to further and preach the Good News. Because of his guilt it just means that much more to him, and therefore, to everyone he is preaching to.
Mr. Dimmesdale, in my opinion, is being foolish. For example if he has repented before god, the one and only true judge, then there is no need to be publicly disgraced. Also, a man that is so well versed biblically should now that no matter how much he punishes himself he can not be forgiven unless he repents, which he has done. The fact that he has sinned, is beyond the point because everyone has a flaw, but it is how he has gone about after the sin that is disappointing. At first, I thought that he was a strong righteous man but as the story has gone it has revealed that Dimmesdale is a bit of a coward. Although unnecessary, He should be able to tell the town about his sin if he feels it is the right thing to do. I think that the scene up on the pillory is kind of weird and a little unbelievable. First I think that that Mr. Wilson would have seen Dimmesdale up on the pillory. I say this because at night time, my senses are usually a little bit sharper. Furthermore, the author made mention of a moon (I think) so that would illuminate the seen so that the minister could see the guilty man. Also, I think that if a person were to yell in the middle of the night then some one in a town of two thousand would have to sleep light enough to wake up.
I am actually very proud of the man. It takes a big person to stand up and admit he is to blame to, especially in those time periods. If only he would take more credit it for it among the public. I am going to agree with everyone pretty much so far and say, he would feel so much better if he came out with what he did to everyone. I still have some respect for the man seeing as he did claim SOME of the blame, and I think he might prove to us his worth later on in the book. It was also brave of pearl to ask him to stand up there. I like her, she seems like a strong willed girl. =]]
well, dimmesdale is like any other person in this world. he did make the right decision by standing on the pillory, but he didnt want to give up his high place in society. he is letting go of a lot of personal secrets and he cant handle to let them all go at once. he cant go from being a revered religious figure to being an outcast. the fact that he admitted his sin to his own daughter and her mother is a huge step, but he still has a way to go. dont get me wrong, im not totally defending him, im just saying he is human. he does need to come clean, but i dont blame him if he doesnt come out of the dark right away. ill give him time to think of a way to get it out and benefit him as much as possible. i can handle a little selfishness, because it is most likely what i would do. im not afraid to admit that i most likely would not step from a role in society like his down into the scum of the earth. he is doing what most humans would do and i respect him for it, but it would be nice if he came completely clean sometime soon.
It bugs me how dimsdale can only admit his sins to the world when nobody is up or around to hear him. That's like if somebody robbed a grandma and told their dog it would be perfectly okay. Basically I thought his actions were pointless. If he wanted to get if off his chest he should have just sucked it up and stood with them during the day like Pearl suggested. Rogger Chillingworth will most likely tell the world anyway, so if I was Dimsdale I would want people to hear it from myself rather that let Chillingworth tell everyone his spin on the ordeal. At first I thought Dimsdale was a decent guy, but he really annoyed me in this scence.
I must agree with brock, my opinion of the guy chaged i kinda liked him. He was not so horrible of a guy, or at least i think that the idea of what he is hiding is eating alive SOOOO much that he is just collapsing within and this little episode on the pillory is just the first step he is taking to let people know about it. I think that he does'nt want to come out and say it like straight out, but he hints at it hoping that someone will discover it and unveil the horrible deed he has done. I think that his episode on the pillory is just kinda his first step in admitting it. I think that eveuntally he will have grown enough...confidence to just come straithg out and say exactly what he has done. I think that this is like the first true step to admittance. I am kinda confused about him, like my opinion has changed greatly, i think i'm going to like him more and more if he does just come out and say it, but as of right now he is just...blah, not necessarly good but not that bad either. I find it ironic though that he is ahead of some other revrends in the area. I think that it is just ironic that he is proably the only one going through this yet he is still considered to be one of the best religious leaders of the are, to me its just kinda funny.
I really like the scene of him on the pillory. I mean it was kinda weird that he just randomly decided to go stand on the pillory bu himself in the middle of the night but whatever. I really liked how he held hands with Pearl with Hester on the other side really kinda showing that he is taking part of the responsibilty. Like it has been said before, he is human. He made a mistake... I do like still. Ive known like since chapter 6ish it was him, so my opinion hasnt changed really. I think it is really good that he got it out there that he did wrong. I think in a situation like that it is the first step toward coming clean. I really agree with what Andrew said though, that if he is such a "religious" guy or whatever that he should know the Bible enough to know that nothing he can do will save him or make him feel any better. I think that even with his dirty little secret I would probably look up to him if he came out and told the town. I would probably be an outcast forever if he did, but I guess if you really wanted to come clean that would have to be a price you were willing to pay.
I still don't know what to think. I think that he has too high of a place in society as a minister, that he does not want to give it up, even though he did commit an enormous sin. I think he really does want to get it off of his chest, he is just not strong enough yet. This shows when he stands on the pillary with Hester and Pearl in the dark, but he refuses to stand on it with them during the day, for all to see. He doesn't want to because he does not want to be put to shame, even though he wishes to get this sin off of his chest. He is caught between a rock and a hard place.
I think it was respectable that Dimmesdale made an attempt at relieving himself of his misery. He may have wanted to know what Hester had felt when she was up there. The only problem is, no one knows why he's up there except Hester and possibly Chillingworth. I think that if Dimmesdale truly wants to feel better than he will have to admit to his sin and face the pubic as Hester did.
I dont like Dimmesdale. I think that if he was a decent human being he would have admitted his secret a long time ago. Instead he let Hester take all the blame and punishment for it. He cant even stand in public with Hester and Pearl. It was nice of him to stand with them for a little while, but no one saw so it didn't make a difference. I think he should me a man and own up to his mistakes.
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