The Scarlet Letter: Evil And Mistriss Hibbins
Evil can be defined as, "That which is the reverse of good,
physically or morally; whatever is censurable painful, disastrous, or
undesirable." In the novel "The Scarlet Letter" by Nathaniel Hawthorne,
Mistriss Hibbins can also be defined in those terms. She is believed to be
evil by many of the characters. Henry Louis Mencken once said, "It is a sin
to believe evil of others, but is seldom a mistake." In this novel he was
right, Mistriss Hibbins is evil. However, she is an important character who
appears more often than most people realize and her evilness has a serious
impact on most of the characters.
Mistriss Hibbins represents evil in the novel. She was accused of
being a witch. ...
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gave way before her, and seemed to fear
the touch of her garment, as if it carried the plague among its gorgeous
folds." Here, it says that the townspeople were so scared, that they
thought her evil was contagious.
Mistriss Hibbins also effects the way some of the characters think
in the novel. In one part of the novel, Mistriss Hibbins tells Pearl, the
daughter of Hester Prynne, that Dimmesdale, who is her father, is the
"Prince of Air". "They say, child, though art of the lineage of the Prince
of Air!" In this quote she was telling Pearl that Dimmesdale is the devil.
Pearl gets influenced by her and believes her father is the devil. In one
scaffold scene, Pearl yells out, "Mistriss Hibbins says my father is the
Prince of Air. If though callest me that ill-name, I shall tell him of thee,
and he will chase thy ship with a tempest." This quote proves that she
believes her father is evil by stating that he has the power to create
storms.
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The Scarlet Letter: Evil And Mistriss Hibbins. (2008, March 5). Retrieved March 27, 2025, from http://www.essayworld.com/essays/The-Scarlet-Letter-Evil-Mistriss-Hibbins/80058
"The Scarlet Letter: Evil And Mistriss Hibbins." Essayworld.com. Essayworld.com, 5 Mar. 2008. Web. 27 Mar. 2025. <http://www.essayworld.com/essays/The-Scarlet-Letter-Evil-Mistriss-Hibbins/80058>
"The Scarlet Letter: Evil And Mistriss Hibbins." Essayworld.com. March 5, 2008. Accessed March 27, 2025. http://www.essayworld.com/essays/The-Scarlet-Letter-Evil-Mistriss-Hibbins/80058.
"The Scarlet Letter: Evil And Mistriss Hibbins." Essayworld.com. March 5, 2008. Accessed March 27, 2025. http://www.essayworld.com/essays/The-Scarlet-Letter-Evil-Mistriss-Hibbins/80058.
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