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Which character is most responsible for Dimmesdale's suffering?

I would argue that the character most responsible for the Reverend Dimmesdale's suffering is Dimmesdale, himself.  He whips himself with a scourge, fasts, keeps late-night vigils, and wrestles with his conscience again and again throughout the novel, but he never does the one thing that will end his suffering until the book's conclusion: confess that he is Hester's co-sinner.  He sort ofconfesses to his congregation, saying that he is "utterly a pollution and a...

I would argue that the character most responsible for the Reverend Dimmesdale's suffering is Dimmesdale, himself.  He whips himself with a scourge, fasts, keeps late-night vigils, and wrestles with his conscience again and again throughout the novel, but he never does the one thing that will end his suffering until the book's conclusion: confess that he is Hester's co-sinner.  He sort of confesses to his congregation, saying that he is "utterly a pollution and a lie," but these terms are so veiled that his auditors interpret them only as a sign of his humility.  He never says explicitly that he is Pearl's father.  Then, standing on the scaffold at night, holding hands with Hester and Dimmesdale, their daughter asks him if he will stand with them and hold her hand during the day in front of the town.  He says that he will not; it is thus clear that he does not ultimately want anyone to know about his sin, and it is this hiding that causes him such anguish.  Dimmesdale could confess but chooses not to for over seven years.  If he didn't have such a guilty conscience, Chillingworth would not be able to torture him with it. The minister is responsible for his own suffering.

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