Why is chillingworth interested in dimmesdale

The two men are interrupted by Pearl and Hester walking through the cemetery outside. Pearl is jumping from gravestone to gravestone, and she finally starts dancing upon a large, flat stone.

When Hester tries to make her stop, she takes several burrs and arranges them on the scarlet letter, to which they stick. Chillingworth observes that Pearl has no "discoverable principle of being" since she disregards all human ordinances and opinions. Dimmesdale then remarks that Pearl embodies "the freedom of a broken law. Pearl then shouts to her mother that they should leave, or the "Black Man" who has already gotten hold of Dimmesdale will catch them.

Chillingworth then tells Dimmesdale that as his physician he cannot cure him—his ailment sees to come from his spiritual side. Chillingworth demands to be told what sort of secret Dimmesdale is hiding. The minister, upset by this, passionately cries out, "No! Soon after, Dimmesdale falls asleep while reading. Chillingworth takes the opportunity to place his hand over Dimmesdale's heart and then leaves before the minister can awaken. He is incredibly full of joy and wonderment after having felt Dimmesdale's heart.

The narrator tells us that he acted "how Satan comports himself when a precious human soul is lost to heaven and won into his kingdom. Chillingworth seems to cross the line in this chapter from having human motives to suffering inhuman possession. Pearl perhaps senses this evil more than anyone, calling Chillingworth "the Black Man" and telling her mother that he already has captured Dimmesdale's soul.

The end of the chapter brings to light some of what previous foreshadowing promised. Earlier, Chillingworth told Hester that he would be able to know her partner by reading his heart. In the final scene, he is in fact able to read Dimmesdale's heart and know the secret Dimmesdale is hiding. Hawthorne, however, indicates that Chillingworth is surprised by what he discovers, implying that Chillingworth never fully suspected Dimmesdale of being Pearl's father.

Pearl herself seems to grow angrier and wilder the longer that everyone keeps the secret of her father's identity. She dances on graves, shuns all law, even attacks Dimmesdale now, all in a raging storm.

She, in a sense, is our beacon in this story, a kind of lightning rod for everyone's repressed feelings. She impels action from under the surface, much as unconscious desires demand conscious action.

It will not be until her desires are satiated, namely through confession and reconciliation among the adults who are tangled up in the adultery and her life, that she will be able to live in peace. Chillingworth, having figured out that Mr. Dimmesdale is the true father of Pearl, goes on a subtle campaign to hurt the minister as much as possible. Revenge consumes him to the point that he can only focus on causing the other man pain.

Dimmesdale never figures out that his strongest enemy is the man whom he considers his only friend and physician. Dimmesdale is so overwhelmed with shame and remorse that he has started to become famous for his sermons.

His ability as a speaker is enhanced by the fact that he feels far more sinful than many in his audience. But Dimmesdale never reveals his secret. Eventually, Chillingworth hints to Dimmesdale's friends that it would be better if he and Dimmesdale lived together so that he could better assist the minister's health.

This is getting a little too Single White Female for our tastes. Since Dimmesdale is unmarried and doesn't seem interested in changing that, living with his physician seems like the perfect solution.

In fact, most the congregation thinks it sounds a lot like the hand of God. But not everyone. These doubters feel that Chillingworth has changed since he first came to town. At first, he had appeared like scholar, but now there was something "ugly and evil in his face" 9.

And Dimmesdale can never atone, because he can never confess. Whereas the men represent authority Dimmesdale the authority of the church, Chillingworth that of accumulated knowledge , Pearl has no respect for external authority and holds nothing sacred. Similarly, whereas the two men deeply respect their forebears, Pearl has no such respect for inherited history. Yet Pearl is not merely a negative figure; she is also a positive element, because she illuminates truths and seeks to open closed minds.

Ace your assignments with our guide to The Scarlet Letter! Crime and Punishment Don Quixote Dr. Jekyll and Mr. SparkTeach Teacher's Handbook. Did Hester ever love Chillingworth? What type of work does Chillingworth take on in New England?

What does Dimmesdale believe he sees when the meteor lights up the night sky? How does Pearl react when she first sees her mother without the scarlet A?

As he ingratiates himself with the young minister, and the town sees Chillingworth as "a brilliant acquisition. Hawthorne purposely uses the old-fashioned term "leech" for "physician" because of its obvious double meaning. As a doctor, Chillingworth seems to be making complicated medicines that he learned at the feet of the Indians; he also appears to be sucking the life out of Dimmesdale. Chillingworth's devious and evil nature is developed in this chapter.

As he moves into a home with Dimmesdale and the two freely discuss their concerns, there begins to develop "a kind of intimacy" between them. To Dimmesdale, Chillingworth is the "sympathetic" listener and intellectual whose mind and interests appeal to him. The reader, however, is told that, from the time Chillingworth arrived in Boston, he has "a new purpose, dark, it is true. As the people in town watch this struggle, they feel that this disciple of Satan cannot win and that the goodness of Dimmesdale will prevail.

Dimmesdale, however, is not so sure. Each Sunday, he is thinner and paler, struggling under the unrevealed guilt of his deed.