The Scarlet Letter: Stream of Consciousness

"That self was gone. Another man had returned out of the forest: a wiser one; with a knowledge of hidden mysteris which the simplicity of the former never could have reached. A bitter kind of knowledge that!" Pg. 172

     The entirety of the chapter titled "The Minister in a Maze" reveals the physical and mental journey of Arthur Dimmesdale as he makes his way back to town from out of the woods. Hawthorne devoted an entire chapter to this journey because it marks a significant change in the personality of the minister. Interestingly, the chapter before also gives a glimpse of a very similar transformation, except by Hester. During this chapter, the minsiter becomes much less focused on his hypocrisy and more focused on the fact that he loves Hester and so must form more mortal, immoral thoughts that befit the mind of the common man. He thinks about cursing out young children and chastizing sailors for their licentious lives. Just as the scarlet letter makes the truth more clear to Hester that she loves Arthur and so must reveal their secret, the walk through the forest infuses the minister with confidence because the path before him, however unpleasant, is spelled out clearly. I do not think that this chapter simply sets the plot up for the revelation and the falling action, however. I think Hawthorne was trying to convey to the reader a theme or lesson that no person is infallible, and the more we hide or suppress our faults, the more powerfully they burst forth when we are put into testing situations.