Nathaniel Hawthorne

Early Years Born in Salem, Massachusetts on July 4, 1804 • From a prominent Puritan family • Ancestor William Hathorne arrived in the New World in 1630 and was remembered for family’s association with the Salem Witch Trials • When Nathaniel was 4, his dad, a sea captain, died on a voyage • Family became largely dependent on wealthy relatives

Growing Up • Attended Bowdoin College in Maine with friends Henry Wadsworth Longfellow and Franklin Pierce After graduation, he returned to Salem where he spent the next 12 years in seclusion Loved to read and write; loved history Worked in the Boston customhouse to support himself • Joined Brook Farm, an experimental community of philosophers and writers

Later years • 1842: married Sophia Peabody, from a distinguished family • The heroine of Scarlet Letter reflects his strong and noble wife Newlyweds settled in Concord, Mass. With neighbors Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau 1852: Franklin Pierce appointed Hawthorne as American consul in England, a position he held 4 years He continued to write Hawthorne and Sophia traveled from England to Italy and back to the states Although he had always been very active, his health began to deteriorate Because he wouldn’t submit to medical exams, he mysteriously died on May 19, 1864

The Scarlet Letter Setting: Boston in the 1640’s Puritanism was based on predestination -- all things are controlled beforehand by the will of God Strove to follow the path of righteousness Handed out severe punishments for those who did not live by the righteous code Puritans prized simplicity, yet they loved the finer things in life (clothing, furniture, homes)

Themes Sin and its effect on the individual Hawthorne traces different kids of sin for 3 different characters: Hester, Dimmesdale, and Chillingworth The consequence is alienation Sin brings special knowledge or insights to the sinner

Characters Hester Prynne Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale Roger Chillingworth Governor Bellingham Mistress Hibbins Reverend John Wilson Pearl