What revelation is she going to make to Reverend Dimmesdale?

• A. That Chillingworth is her husband.
• B. That Dimmesdale is her husband.
• C. That he is innocent of any guilt.
• D. That Pearl is Dimmesdale's daughter.

Answer: (A)

The moment hinges on revealing a hidden relationship that changes how Dimmesdale understands what’s happening to him. Hester plans to tell Dimmesdale that the man who has been acting as his physician is actually her husband, Roger Chillingworth. This reframes Dimmesdale’s sense of betrayal and power: the person allegedly helping him is the same man whose presence and manipulation have shaped his guilt and suffering. The discovery intensifies the stakes of their conversation in the forest, pushing Dimmesdale toward confronting his own sin and what he might confess. The other options don’t fit the scene: Dimmesdale is not Hester’s husband, and the revelation in that moment isn’t about his innocence or about Pearl’s paternity being disclosed to him.