Dimesdale and Uncle Creon
This past week in class we had a brief discussion about who the protagonist of The Scarlet Letter is. Although Hester is the main character in The Scarlet Letter, the class discovered that she remains very static throughout the novel. She seems to possess confidence and beauty, but we never see a change in her personality nor do we see her experience an epiphany. However, we see Dimesdale experience a dramatic change in character from the beginning of the book to the end. Through the death of Dimesdale and the revelation of his scarlet letter, Hawthorne teaches his audience to take responsibilities for their actions and to refrain from secrecy. Ultimately, the audience discovers the theme of The Scarlet Letter through the actions of Dimesdale, despite the fact that he is not the main character.
This occurrence also appears in Antigone by Sophocles. Last year in 10 Honors we learned that although Antigone is the central character of the play, Uncle Creon is the tragic-hero. Unlike Antigone, Creon changes his views and experiences an epiphany. Whereas Antigone remains rebellious and obstinate, Creon becomes aware of his wrongdoings, which eventually leads to the death of Antigone, his son , and his wife.


When Ms. Valentino referred to Dimesdale as the character that teaches the audience a lesson, I immediately made the connection to Uncle Creon. I found it interesting that often, it is the character that experiences consequences  that conveys the theme more than the main character does. Although some may believe that authors utilize the central character to convey theme, very often the character that experiences a change of heart more effectively teaches a lesson.