Revenge can be defined as an act of retaliation. Some people simply cope with misdeeds and get on with their lives; however, others may begin their quest for vengeance. The latter may find themselves plunging into such derangement that they never find their way to lucidity again. In THE SCARLETT LETTER Revenge can be defined as an act of retaliation. Some people simply cope with misdeeds and get on with their lives; however, others may begin their quest for vengeance. The latter may find themselves plunging into such derangement that they never find their way to lucidity again. In The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne, Chillingworth takes this plunge in the Puritan town of Boston. The various stages of Chillingworth's revenge varies throughout his life; he starts life an average man, gradually changes into a vindictive man, and ends as a grotesque remnant of a human being.
Chillingworth's life is ordinary until he finds himself shipwrecked and taken captive by Indians.
The Scarlet Letter (1860) by T. H. Matteson. Oil o...
English: Hester Prynne & Pearl before the stocks
This is the title page for the first edition of Th...He gets transported to Boston, gets released for a ransom, and becomes a physician in the prison. In working at the prison, his true identity uncoils as he reunites with Hester, who is his wife, and medicates her illegitimate daughter Pearl.
Chillingworth confronts Hester on the identity of her adulterous partner. When Hester refuses to release his name, Chillingworth leaves vowing revenge.
Chilligworth initiates revenge when he suspects Reverend Dimmesdale of fathering Pearl. Chillingworth puts on an act, pretending to be Dimmesdale's friend, and soon after moves in with him. He starts torturing Dimmesdale psychologically, by asking intrusive questions of sin confession , and physically by dabbling in diablerie.
Chillingworth desecrates Dimmesdale so much that the grievous minister finds no relief in his acts of penance.
Chillingworth's final grotesque transformation takes place over time as he...