et, henceforward art thou also dead-dead to the world, to heaven and to hope! In me didst thou exist-and, in my death, see by this image, which is thine own, how utterly thou has murdered thyself." (Poe-95)Poe uses different strategies in order to give each story a distinctive personality. He experiments with different scenarios, times scales, and character traits, but keeps the theme constant. The limited characters, and lonely settings, show how the individuals only had themselves as enemies. The Imp of Perverse, The Tell Tale Heart, and William Wilson all present different characters that are dealing with the same inner issues, but the prime example of inner struggle is supplied by Nathaniel Hawthorne. The Scarlet Letter differs from the other stories because it is a novel. It supplies the reader with more evidence because it is simply longer. Hawthorne allows the reader to get an excellent look into Dimmesdale's tragic struggle during the seven years he kept his sin a secret from the community. Hawthorne also gives the reader the opportunity to compare and contrast the difference between one who is fighting with a struggle that has to remain internal and secret, and one who is forced to confront her sin on a daily basis. Hawthorne lets the reader decide which scenario would be the better to find themselves in. He also steers emotions form one position to the other in order to make his final point more effective. As like Poe, Hawthorne strives to illustrate what happens to a man that is left to struggle with a sin alone with his conscience. Reverend Dimmesdale is a very interesting character because he is supposed to be a holy man. His honor as a preacher prevented him from speaking up at the proper time. His life and reputation was in danger and he choose to take his sin and deal with it on a personal internal level. It is this choice that slowly starts to drain the life from Dimmesdale. He can not live with the guilt,...
