The most compelling character in Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter is Roger Chillingsworth. He materializes in the book from the beginning and continues to appear all the way to the very end. Chillingsworth tortures the Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale throughout the entirety of the novel. Roger is the husband of Hester Prynne, who is the focal point of the novel. Throughout the book, Chillingsworth is in search of the father of Hester’s daughter Pearl, who is the child born from Hester’s adultery.

Roger Chillingsworth is definitely the most tangible foe in The Scarlet Letter. After discovering that the Reverend Dimmesdale is the father of Hester’s child, Chillingsworth befriends him in order to take revenge by slowly speaking poison into the Reverend’s mind. He initiates his revenge subtly, by causing the Reverend Dimmesdale to die inside from regret for his sin of adultery. Roger traps Arthur Dimmesdale with his sin, scaring the Reverend out of confessing. The Reverend fears telling the townspeople of his sin, hiding behind his occupation as a minister. Roger Chillingsworth mercilessly tortures the Reverend with guilt. Without compassion from Chillingsworth, the Reverend slowly dies from the anguish he is concealing from everyone.  In the end, the Reverend finally confesses, causing Roger to lose his vice on the tattered minister.

Roger Chillingsworth portrays a type of Satan throughout the book. Initially, he seems like an ordinary citizen. As time progresses though, it becomes evident that he is not who he seems.  Roger Chillingsworth, the physician, is truly the cruel Roger Prynne.   The narrator notes that he becomes more and more ugly as he began taking revenge. His first sign of change was when he began to tighten his grip of vengeance around the minister. This is like Satan because at first Satan does not seem horrible. As time goes on, the true nature and purpose of Satan become evident as he gains control over us.

Since the Reverend is mortified at the prospect of telling the town of his sin, Roger is able to keep a hold of him and torture his mind. Towards the end of the book, the Reverend climbs the scaffold to confess his sin of adultery. Chillingsworth whispers in his ear, “Hadst thou sought the whole earth over, there was no one place so secret,-no high or lowly place, where thou couldst have escaped me,-save on this very scaffold!” Chillingsworth knows that when the Reverend Dimmesdale confesses, he will lose his hold on the minister. This is much like Satan, who does not want us to confess our sins, because if we do he will lose his hold on us.

Roger Chillingsworth is the most compelling character for several reasons. He provides a graphic picture of Satan, and shows the destructive nature of sin and revenge. Roger is also the only concrete antagonist in the book. Many people were their own enemy, but Roger was most identifiable as the villain.

Roger Chillingsworth is not the only compelling character in The Scarlet Letter, though. The vivid characters are one of the strengths Hawthorne shows in writing The Scarlet Letter. Little Pearl is another such example. Pearl is interesting because she is not realistic in the things she seems to know. She seems to have an underlying knowledge of the scarlet letter and its meaning, as well as the Reverend’s habit of holding his heart. Toward the heart of the book, she has a change of mind. She begins to dislike Dimmesdale for no apparent reason, whom she previously found intriguing. Dimmesdale constantly kept his hand over his heart, which caught the eye of Pearl.  She desired to know the reason behind his actions.  Pearl also has an unrealistic knowledge of things she has never experienced. Such as having a desire to pry into her mother’s affairs, seeming to already know the answers.

Pearl is the daughter of Hester Prynne. She was conceived because of adultery, the sin her mother committed. Pearl never makes friends her own age throughout the novel; she is exiled out of society along with her mother because she is seen as a result of sin and as a demon child. Whenever she went into town, she would get singled out by the town’s children, and would throw rocks at them to scare them off. Her life was sheltered because of her exile. Pearl’s activities such as getting into mischief, don’t quite fill out the roll she plays in the story.

Pearl experiences a burning passion to discover the meaning behind the scarlet letter throughout the story, which, by the end, produces changes that effect Hester, Arthur, and the town. At the beginning of the novel, she inquires about the scarlet letter on Hester’s bosom. Her mother, knowing what the mark meant, did not want to reveal the sinful meaning behind it, because of the embarrassment its meaning would bring. As time goes on, Pearl seems to become more aware of what the letter means, even though no one has told her about it. 

All of Nathaniel Hawthorne’s characters are compelling, but Roger Chillingsworth and Pearl are the most. Roger hides behind the name of Chillingsworth when his true name is Roger Prynne. Likewise, Pearl hides behind knowledge that children simply cannot possess without being told. The reality of the book is sound, and is applicable to today making Roger and Pearl compelling. Nathaniel Hawthorne was masterful at creating real characters that taught a moral. For each character, a different moral can be learned.  Chillingsworth teaches the depravity of revenge.  Pearl teaches the effects of a child’s inquiry.