Carlton the Artist
Carlton is repeatedly described as an artist working on his masterpiece when he was, in fact, rebuilding his church. One such example is the following passage.
“Yet he had loved his work for its own sake, not merely as a distraction from gnawing thoughts; there was in him something of the elemental artist: the making of anything was his passionate delight”
Such imagery and description allows the reader to have a glimpse of the parson’s true nature. His sole sin might have brought destruction, but his was a loving and a creative nature which longed for creation and production.
Darkness and Hypocrisy
Darkness and hypocrisy go hand in hand in the novel. The author links both to show how hypocrite individuals hide behind the veil of secrecy and anonymity. One such example is the scene of the attack upon the parsonage. The panorama was immersed in darkness so that the parson could only recognize his assailants from their voices. This is symbolic of their hypocritical characters and the duality of their natures; in other words, how their public image was different from the true self. Similarly, all the hypocritical deeds, in the book, are committed in the dead of night when the identity of the culprit can be hidden from all eyes. Among the many other examples, the burning of the church is another very significant instance to illustrate the use of imagery in linking darkness and hypocrisy in the novel.
Fire and Anger
Fire and anger make another combination of imagery in the book. Fire is repeatedly used as a symbolic representation of anger. The church was set in fire twice by Jasper Musk. Each time, he did so when his anger reached its peak. In his first attempt, Musk was fueled by the hatred he nurtured towards the parson after the latter’s scandal with his daughter. In the second attempt, his anger was even more violent, for he could not stand the fact that the parson was forgiven by his parishioners, and restored to his former state of respectability.
Herd Morality
Peccavi comes as a denunciation of herd morality. It condemns blind conformity and uses imagery to convey the idea that human beings lose themselves and their identities in the crowd. One such example is the festivity held by Wilton Gleed. The author alludes to the villagers invited there as a crowd instead of individuals, mainly because conforming to the masses annihilates the individual’s personality and reduces him to a mere number.
