Scarlet Letter #8

'Yes, I hate him!' repeated Hester, more bitterly than before. 'He betrayed me! He has done me worse wrong than I did him!'" (159)

Hester's hatred towards Chillingworth is completely justified because he has brought her so much more pain than was necessary, and his revenge no longer contains any merit. This is seven years after the incident and Chillingworth still desires revenge on Dimmesdale for his actions. No matter what someone has done, you cannot keep the same passion for that length of time and still be acting in a sane manner. Chillingworth has thrown away the idea of trying to resolve the issue (like Hester and Dimmesdale have tried to do). Instead, he has continued to carry out a plan full of malice and has brought nothing but added pain and suffering to Hester who was trying to put the entire situation behind her.

"No golden light had ever been so precious as the gloom of this dark forest. Here, seen only by his eyes, the scarlet letter need not burn into the bosom of the fallen woman! Here, seen only by her eyes, Arthur Dimmesdale, false to God and man, might be, for one moment, true!" (177)

The burden that Hester and Dimmesdale both carry with them, although very difficult for the two of them, ultimately has brought the two of them closer together. Hester and Dimmesdale are lucky to have one another alongside them as they go through such rough times because they understnad the suffering upon them and are able to comfort one another. Unlike the rest of society, Hester and Dimmesdale are able to see through the rough exteriors that both of them present, and witness the true beauty deep down. Having that other person to connect with regarding their pain is so helpful for Hester and Dimmesdale because it keeps them hopeful for peace in the future.