One of the most interesting parts of the Scarlet Letter is the contrast between how Arthur Dimmesdale and Hester Prynne suffer and deal with their sins. For Hester, she is forced to publicly own up to what she has done, and everyone knows that she has committed a sin. In Dimmesdale’s case, he keeps his sin as a secret. No one knows what he has done, and even as he tries to speak about how he has sinned in his sermons, everyone thinks this makes him more holy. The guilt of what he has done and what he has not said physically sickens him, and he begins to lose his mind. Though what Hester has gone through was not pleasant for her, and there are plenty of social consequences she has to suffer, owning up to her sins and allowing them to be part of the past is a much healthier way of dealing with them. Dimmesdale has to relive it every second of every day, and even though deep down he wants people to know, he is terrified of anyone finding out. This is especially highlighted in chapter 5, “The Leech and his Patient,” when Chillingsworth is trying to get Dimmesdale to confess what his secret is.