The use of spiritual reassessment or moral reconciliation to provide a happy ending in The Crucible and The Scarlet Letter.

Frequently, authors use spiritual reassessment or moral reconciliation to provide a "happy ending" to their story. The characters John Proctor and Arthur Dimmesdale take part in this kind of an ending in The Crucible by Arthur Miller and The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne, respectively. Although both Proctor and Dimmesdale are in similar situations during their moral resolutions, they react and adjust differently to their circumstances, and each author utilizes different literary techniques to accentuate these realizations: Miller uses light imagery while Hawthorne uses irony and symbolism.
Both Proctor and Dimmesdale confess their sins to society; however, they have different motives behind their confession. Proctor confesses to his adultery in an attempt to save his wife and to expose Abigail as the true fraud. On the other hand, Dimmesdale confesses to his adultery to release the immense guilt that he has carried for seven years. Whereas Proctor made his decision with othe...