딤즈데일(Arthur Dimmesdale)의 성격연구: 청교주의자에서 초월주의자로

Abstract

Dimmesdale suffered pain caused by inner conflicts and struggles as he lived the life of a hypocrite, first because the 17th Century Puritanistic society adopted legalism which only pointed out sins and condemned sinners, with no forgiveness. Law points out sin, causing man to be conscious of guilt, and suffer from its pain, but it can neither forgive nor solve the problem of sin. Dimmesdale, who had committed adultery, had no conviction of God's election upon him, causing him to fall victim to the determinism and suffered from the pain of inner conflict. In pain Dimmesdale struggled to resolve the conflict that came from the hypocrisy that he was not able to confess along with Hester, while Hester who had committed adultery with Dimmesdale was humiliated at the scaffold. In revolt against such extreme 17th Century Puritanism, the Transcendentalism of the early 19th Century was born. According to Puritanism, man in his total depravity is unable to do anything good. In contrast, according to Transcendentalism, man has potentials without limit, and is not only able to overcome the evil inside but also reform society. Transcendentalism rejected social restrictions and control and cherished individual freedom. It not only sought freshness, pleasure, and freedom in nature but also entertained romantic ideas on nature and instincts. Hester's view of adultery differed from that of the Puritanism. According to the view of Hester who was a transcendentalist, the act of love is natural and divine. While, Dimmesdale was a puritan, in pain, he treated himself harshly living the life of inner conflicts, struggles, and outward hypocrisy, but when he accepted Hester's transcendentalists' idea, he recovered in his mind peace and joy. That is, as a puritan, he had no choice but to struggle to overcome conflicts. But after he became a transcendentalist thanks to Hester’s help, all his problems were resolved. Standing on the scaffold where Hester had suffered humiliation, Dimmesdale confessed to the crowd that he was Hester's partner and Pearl's father and died in the bosom of Hester, in public shame, a glorious death.