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An "A" On His Breast (An Analysis Of The Reverend Arthur Dimmsdale)

Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale in Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter is a thought-provoking character with a secret buried deep within his heart. He commits a sin with his lover Hester Prynne, but disowns her when their sin is exposed. He is afraid to admit his share in Hester's shame to the townspeople, so he tortures himself in repentance. What is his purpose in the novel, and how does he overcome his fear of the truth?
Reverend Dimmesdale commits adultery with his lover Hester. After Hester gives birth to their daughter, Pearl, the sin is exposed and Hester is arrested and forced into public humiliation. While Hester is exposed to the public, Dimmesdale preaches against her. While Hester has to wear a scarlet "A" upon her breast, Dimmesdale walks away with nothing to show for his actions except for the guilt he feels inside himself.
Even though Dimmesdale has not admitted his part in Hester and his sin to the public, he is constantly torturing himself. Dimmesdale endures multiple fasts and other gruesome tortures upon himself, and he eventually kills himself after admitting his sin to the townspeople. Years before his death he makes friends with a doctor named Chillingworth who is supposedly helping him get better. In actuality Chillingworth is Hester's husband who is trying to get his revenge on Dimmesdale by digging slowly at the reverend's heart. Soon the tortures drive the minister crazy and he begins to think of other ways to repent. He "admits" to being a sinner in his church sermons, and one night he stands on the scaffold that Hester had stood upon on once their sin was exposed. Even after all of this, he still does not admit his sin to the public and accept his share in Hester's punishment.
Why does Dimmesdale not want to admit to his sinful actions to the public? One reason is that the people look to him as their hero, and he feels he needs to be a good role model to them. He is their minister; he needs to be righteous so they can...