It's a Chilling (worth) feeling in the cool October air. As Halloween approaches, I can't help but remind myself of the dark and spooky creatures that go bump in the night.
So when reflecting upon the ending of the Scarlet Letter, I made a quick connection from Chillingworth to the hollowness associated with Halloween (see what I did there, hollow, hallow?). Roger Chillingworth, the scariest character in a classic novel that I've ever read, met a fateful doom at the end of the novel, but his death, in my opinion, cemented his villainous character.
I mean, what would have happened if we saw the thoughts behind his thinking? What was he doing handing all of that money over to Pearl? Obviously, he wanted his legacy to continue. He wanted to find another way to live, even if his main reason for living seemed to fade away. We can only ponder as to what evil stores he had in mind for the innocent daughter of his estranged wife.
His timely death made me reconsider what truly made up the characteristics of a villain. While Hawthorne made Chillingworth "wither away", he points out that each villain has to have some sort of downfall. During his life, Chillingworth was portrayed as some sort of devil, with "a writhing horror [that] twisted itself across his features"(Hawthorne 58) . However his death was sort of...anticlimactic. Based on all his evil ventures, one might suspect he would die a gruesome or more cataclysmic death. Instead he fades away, like any mundane human would.
This led me to the conclusion that Chillingworth really isnt a villain. He's just an antagonized human being with a soured heart. Hester's fault actually. Villains, in my opinion, have to show a stark contrast to heroes. Any tragic hero, such as Dimmesdale, has to have a major weakness that surpasses his or her strengths. So shouldn't that make the villain, as a result of the contrast, virtually indestructible?
Take Crowley, a character from a popular culture show called Supernatural, for example. To this date, this "King of Hell" has yet to be defeated. He stands strong as a villain, and probably will continue to do so, in pestering the two main heroes lives and in making the world a HORRIBLE place.
So when reflecting upon the ending of the Scarlet Letter, I made a quick connection from Chillingworth to the hollowness associated with Halloween (see what I did there, hollow, hallow?). Roger Chillingworth, the scariest character in a classic novel that I've ever read, met a fateful doom at the end of the novel, but his death, in my opinion, cemented his villainous character.
I mean, what would have happened if we saw the thoughts behind his thinking? What was he doing handing all of that money over to Pearl? Obviously, he wanted his legacy to continue. He wanted to find another way to live, even if his main reason for living seemed to fade away. We can only ponder as to what evil stores he had in mind for the innocent daughter of his estranged wife.
His timely death made me reconsider what truly made up the characteristics of a villain. While Hawthorne made Chillingworth "wither away", he points out that each villain has to have some sort of downfall. During his life, Chillingworth was portrayed as some sort of devil, with "a writhing horror [that] twisted itself across his features"(Hawthorne 58) . However his death was sort of...anticlimactic. Based on all his evil ventures, one might suspect he would die a gruesome or more cataclysmic death. Instead he fades away, like any mundane human would.
This led me to the conclusion that Chillingworth really isnt a villain. He's just an antagonized human being with a soured heart. Hester's fault actually. Villains, in my opinion, have to show a stark contrast to heroes. Any tragic hero, such as Dimmesdale, has to have a major weakness that surpasses his or her strengths. So shouldn't that make the villain, as a result of the contrast, virtually indestructible?
Take Crowley, a character from a popular culture show called Supernatural, for example. To this date, this "King of Hell" has yet to be defeated. He stands strong as a villain, and probably will continue to do so, in pestering the two main heroes lives and in making the world a HORRIBLE place.
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| Warning: Crowley Creepiness Overload....! |
first of all: OMG ITS CROWLEY. YOU USED CROWLEYYYYYYYY MAJOR FANGIRLING RIGHT HERE. YOU JUST MADE MY DAY. YOU GO CROWREEEYY!!:'''') *currently sobbing because Crowley*
ReplyDeletesecondly, that is so true! The Scarlet Letter did lack a proper villan. Although Chillingworth had the characteristics, he never really was given much importance compared to other villans! Crowley is a real villan. a villan has the ability to be admired for their cunningness and "ill make you feel miserable just cause i can" attitude.
Nice Post! I agree Hawthorne uses negative connotations directed towards Chillingworth, that is why he is seen as the bad guy, otherwise in actually he is just a man who is angry that his wife cheated on him.
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