The Scarlet Letter: Imagery and Symbolism In The Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne uses imagery to convey that Dimmesdale may represent Puritan society rather than the round character that can be seen on the surface level. This is seen through the imagery and symbolism of hypocrisy, Dimmesdale as a Christ figure, and the scarlet letter. First of all, Hawthorne compares Dimmesdale's hypocrisy to that of Puritan society. Hawthorne describes Dimmesdale as "a vilest companion of the vilest, the worst of sinners", even though Dimmesdale is seen as the holiest man in the Puritan community. Puritan society was supposed to be a utopian society and eliminate English traditions. Likewise, as Dimmesdale was supposed to be holy, yet both were hypocrites. Second, Dimmesdale portrays Puritan society as initially not taking his place on the scaffold: “You were both here before, but I was not with you…and we will all three be together.” The Puritans modeled the hypocrisy of Dimmesdale, as they were supposed to be a "city on a hill" for the world to see as they ended up mixing English tradition with their ideals. While Dimmesdale hid his sin at the first gallows he saw, so did the Puritans when they colonized America. Initially the Puritans' flaws were not so obvious, but as time passed they appeared on their scaffold just like Dimmesdale. Hawthorne writes of one of Dimmesdale's sermons that he "addressed to the multitude a discourse on sin, in all its branches." In Dimmesdale's sermons, he spoke out against sin while at the same time committing this sin, just as the Puritans committed sins that condemned Dimmesdale's character models of Puritan society in how they deal with religious persecution. The Puritans left England to escape religious intolerance, but when they arrived in the colonies they had no religious tolerance for people with different religious beliefs. Dimmesdale speaks out against adultery and commits it, the Puritans ask for religious tolerance but refuse to grant it. Dimmesdale symbolically portrays Jesus Christ in certain ways. For example, Dimmesdale's death marked the beginning of a new era, just as the death of Christ marked a new beginning for all who believe in Him. Dimmesdale's death symbolically marks the beginning of American history and the end of colonial history, just as the death of Christ marked the beginning of the Christian church.