The Scarlet Letter Q&A
- 1
What does Hester promise Roger Chillingworth?
Roger Chillingworth meets Hester after she has received the verdict, and he confronts her with the knowledge of her adultery. Roger does not truly like Hester, as he seems to think that he was partly to blame for marrying a woman, who he knew could not love him. He also blames the man who had sinned with Hester and wishes to exact vengeance. In that pursuit, he asks Hester to never reveal his true identity to anyone and to never reveal that they had been together.
- 2
How do the other women in the town feel about Hester’s punishment?
In the first chapter, we hear a few women discussing the leniency of the punishment that had been sentenced for Hester. They argue that they would have been all the more severe and demanded that she be executed. One of the women in the group, who is closest to Hester’s age, makes sympathetic remarks and asks the women to tone be merciful. Later onwards, Hester begins to occupy a respectable position in society, and receives a lot of opportunities as a seamstress, although she is never commissioned to work on a bridal dress.
- 3
Why does Hester visit Governor Bellingham?
Hester’s true motivation to visit the governor is to gain confidence in his upbringing of Pearl. Although she visits him on the pretense of delivering some gloves, she soon raises the subject of having Pearl taken away from her.
- 4
What reason does Dimmesdale give for believing Pearl should stay with Hester?
Dimmesdale entreats the group of men that are gathered at Governor Bellingham’s mansion at the behest of Hester. He argues that Pearl is a constant reminder of her sin to Hester, and thus being close to her was not only good for her moral character but also Pearl’s, since Hester would be able to provide a better education in morals than most other people, given her failure to sin.