“What I am! A fiend!”- An Analysis of Chillingworth’s Character in The Scarlet Letter in the light of Ghazalian Nafs e Ammara and Freudian Id

Abstract

The present study attempts to explore the intricacies of human mind, as portrayed through Chillingworth's character in The Scarlet Letter by Hawthorne. For an in-depth analysis, two legendary intellectuals i.e., Ghazali, the famous 11th century scholar of the Muslim world and Freud, the genius of 20th century, have provided the theoretical framework. The research design is based on thematic analysis of the selected novel. A detailed study of Ghazalain nafs e ammara and Freudian id guided the interpretation of the selected novel. The analysis of Chillingworth's perverted behaviour and degrading moral standards inside the parameter of the selected theories reveals Hawthorne's psychological insight. Besides, it also provides a cognizance into the current relevance of the psychological issues in modern world, thus, strengthening our belief in the similar workings of human mind, regardless of the variances in time and space. Moreover, the evidence from this study suggests that the incorporation of Eastern and Western insights for studying literary character has the potential of becoming an effective critical approach for psychological analysis in the realm of English literature.