Everyone makes a mistake in life that they regret; in Dimmesdale's case, he kept his sin hidden. Hawthorne uses various methods to depict Dimmesdale's struggle to overcome the oppressive Puritan society and reveal his true identity. Laws, religion, and community members place high expectations on Dimmesdale. He is pressured to please his people and obey the rules of his society, but he knows that their people will not accept who he really is. The community's expectations cause Dimmesdale to punish himself for his sin instead of confessing it. He struggles for years to accept his mistake, and in the end he comes to accept his true identity and publicly confess his sin. In The Scarlet Letter, Hawthorne illustrates how the community's influence on Dimmesdale prevents him from embracing his true identity, highlighting the negative effects the community can have on a person. Negative and restrictive diction is used to describe the harmful aspects of the community's strict laws, which prevents Dimmesdale from revealing his true identity to the public. The Puritans are described as "...a people among whom religion and law [are] almost identical, and in whose character the two [are] so thoroughly confounded that the mildest and most severe acts of public discipline [are] ] also made venerable and horrible,” illustrating the community's high expectations and the pressure their laws place on Dimmesdale (Hawthorne 47-48). The restrictive diction of the identical value of "religion and law" highlights the seriousness of Dimmesdale's sin in the eyes of society, which explains his inability to confess his sin due to the harsh punishments. Negative diction is used to describe how "the gentlest and most serious act...... middle of paper ......ity." The community's negative influence on Dimmesdale makes him unable to reveal his true identity except in the face of death. Works Cited Carton, Evan. “The prison door.” Modern Critical Interpretations: The Scarlet Letter. Ed. Harold Bloom. New York, NY: Chelsea House Publishers, 1986. 99. Print. Colacurcio, Michael J. “The Footsteps of Ann Hutchinson: The Context of the Scarlet Letter.” » Modern critical interpretations: The Scarlet Letter. Ed. Harold Bloom. New York, NY: Chelsea House Publishers, 1986. 136. Print. Hawthorne, Nathaniel. The scarlet letter. 1850. New York, NY: Tom Doherty Associates, 1989. PrintPennell, Melissa McFarland. Student companion of Nathaniel Hawthorne. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1999. Print Sewall, Richard B. “The Scarlet Letter.” Novels for students. Ed. Diane Telgen. Flight. 1. New York, NY: Gale Research, 1997. 324. Print.