Guilt in the Scarlet Letter and the Crucible Essay

Scarlet Letter/Crucible Essay The presence of guilt has been felt by all human beings. As guilt grows in a persons life it eventually begins to have a deteriorating effect on the individual. In both The Scarlet Letter and The Crucible more than one of the characters are experiencing some form of guilt and the effects of the publics opinion on their own personal sins. Each characters guilt originates from a different personal problem and with each characters guilt comes a different reaction. Miller and Hawthorne use the source of guilt, the actions resulting from it and the eventual consequences to portray the concept of a guilty conscience to the reader. Each characters guilt originates from a†¦show more content†¦In both of the novels, the consequences resulting from guilt are showed best through the two men. In Dimmesdales case, his guilt eventually condemned him to his grave. In most situations guilt isnt that drastic, but in his case, seven years of self inflicted punishment was enough to kill him. Proctor, definitely had issues with his sin, but he didnt take it as far as Dimmesdale did. He confessed his crime, but he let his wifes judgment of him, drive him crazy. The consequence of the guilt that he was experiencing can be seen in two different lights. It eventually brought him to confession in the court, and the tarnishing of his good name. However, his confession was strictly to protect his wife, so his guilt could be seen also as a final reconciliation between Proctor and Elizabeth. Guilt has the capability of doing permanent damage to a person, and in both novels, the authors use guilt as a very negative force in a persons life. In The Scarlet Letter and The Crucible, guilt is portrayed in similar ways. Both authors use the concept of guilt to imply the idea that guilt has the capabilities to produce reactions in people that in most situations arent the same. The result of a guilty conscience can be used as a positive or negative force in a persons life and through theShow MoreRelatedEssay on Guilt In The Scarlet Letter And The Crucible987 Words   |  4 PagesThe presence of guilt has been felt by all human beings. As guilt grows in a person’s life it eventually begins to have a deteriorating effect on the individual. In both The Scarlet Letter and The Crucible more than one of the characters are experiencing some form of guilt and the effects of the public’s opinion on their own personal sins. Each character’s guilt originates from a different personal problem and with each character’s guilt comes a different reactionRead MoreSimilarities And Differences Between The Crucible And The Scarlet Letter1111 Words   |  5 Pagesthe loss of control and power over the people. 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In 1850, Nathaniel Hawthorne published The Scarlet Letter, which tells the story of two people who commit adulteryRead MoreThe Scarlet Letter And The Crucible1502 Words   |  7 PagesThe Scarlet Letter and The Crucible are two stories both set in the early days of the Massachusetts colony. Both of these stories have many similarities between them, including setting, situations, and conflict. The two stories were also very different. The effects of sin on the characters, how they deal with their sin, and the consequences of their actions are different in each story. The Crucible and The Scarlet Letter are different works and although they deal with similar conflicts the consequences