Character guide

Hester Prynne

major

Also known as Mistress Prynne, Prynne, Mistress Hester Prynne, Hester, Mistress Hester, Madam Hester, Madam

Condemned to wear an embroidered scarlet letter for adultery, she endures Puritan scorn with a quiet, unsettling dignity that slowly transforms her punishment into a strange kind of power.

Arthur Dimmesdale

major

Also known as godly Master Dimmesdale, the Reverend Mr. Dimmesdale, Mr. Dimmesdale, Master Dimmesdale, poor Mr. Dimmesdale, the Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale, Arthur

The colony's most beloved young minister, whose eloquence and piety conceal a secret guilt that is quietly consuming him from within.

Pearl

major

Also known as little Pearl, poor little Pearl, Little Pearl, dear little Pearl, Silly Pearl, Child, the Elf-Child

Hester's wild, elf-like daughter, a child who seems to spring from the scarlet letter itself and who torments her mother with uncanny, unanswerable questions.

Roger Chillingworth

major

Also known as old Roger Chillingworth, Old Roger Chillingworth, the mysterious old Roger Chillingworth, Roger, the stranger

A learned physician who arrives in Boston and insinuates himself into the minister's confidence, his cold curiosity masking a deeper and more terrible purpose.

Governor Bellingham

supporting

Also known as Bellingham, Old Governor Bellingham

A stern colonial governor whose rigid Puritan authority and worldly comforts sit uneasily together as he weighs the fate of Hester and her child.

Mistress Hibbins

supporting

Also known as old Mistress Hibbins

A sharp-tongued widow rumored to consort with the Black Man in the forest, she voices the town's darkest suspicions with a knowing, unsettling glee.

John Wilson

supporting

Also known as Father Wilson, venerable Father Wilson, Mr. Wilson, the Reverend Mr. Wilson, good old Mr. Wilson, old Mr. Wilson, Reverend Mr. Wilson, Good Master Wilson, good Mr. Wilson

As the senior clergyman of the colony, Wilson lends his authority to the magistrates who judge Hester Prynne, questioning her in open court with a mixture of paternal warmth and unyielding doctrine. His genuine affection for Dimmesdale makes him a frequent, well-meaning presence in the younger minister's failing health, though he never suspects the cause. He embodies the colony's paternal face—gentle in tone, rigid in judgment—and his blindness to what stands beside him sharpens the irony of the Puritan community's self-assurance.

Master Brackett

minor

The jailer who escorts Hester from prison to the scaffold.

Surveyor Pue

minor

Also known as Mr. Surveyor Pue

The former surveyor of the Custom House who discovered Hester's documents.

Satan

minor

Also known as the Black Man, Black Man, Man, old Black Man, The Devil

The embodiment of evil, often invoked by townspeople and Mistress Hibbins.

Sir Thomas Overbury

minor

Also known as Overbury, kind Sir

A historical figure alluded to in the Custom House sketch.

Governor Winthrop

minor

Also known as Winthrop

A former governor whose death is marked by a meteor in the night sky.

Isaac Johnson

minor

An early settler whose land became the site of the prison and cemetery.

Phillips

minor

A minor character mentioned in the Custom House narrative.

Matthew

minor

A name briefly referenced in the Custom House section.