1. By Nathaniel Hawthorne An Introduction
The Scarlet Letter
By Nathaniel Hawthorne
An Introduction

2. The Scarlet Letter Overview
Why is this book so challenging?
Understanding Hester’s punishment for something that is “common” now
Grasping the concepts of sin and morality

3. Nathaniel Hawthorne Born July 4, 1804 in Salem, Mass.
Reclusive at times
Served as a magazine editor
Worked in the Salem Custom House
Lived at Brook Farm
Wrote Twice-Told Tales, The House of Seven Gables, The Scarlet Letter, etc.

4. More on Hawthorne
Married Sophia Peabody and fathered Una (who became the model for Pearl)
Served as the United States Consul to Liverpool
Died in 1864
Buried in Concord, Massachusetts
His great-great-great-great grandfather, John Hathorne, was judge at Salem witch trials

5. Why do we read The Scarlet Letter?
It is a classic piece of American literature, the first “truly American novel”
You hear about it today in movies or on TV
The themes are timeless - people are still concerned with justice, forgiveness, revenge, hypocrisy, and love
The novel shows life in a Puritan society
Sensational Elements: the mysterious stranger, the wild, illegitimate child, the mother who refuses to name the father, a betrayed husband, a well-respected man who hides a dark secret, hints of witchcraft, mental and physical torture, and redemption

6. Setting The novel is set in the mid 1600s in Boston, Massachusetts.
The plot takes place over a seven year period.
The plot involves the love triangle of wife-lover-husband.
The major theme of the novel is developed in the context of good vs. evil.
The main characters live in Puritan New England.

7. Who Were the Puritans?
Puritans were the English Protestants (non Catholics) who in the 16th and 17th centuries believed in strict religious discipline along with simplification of the ceremonies and creeds of the Church of England. They believed in freedom of religion and getting away from the money and corruption of the English church. They escaped to Holland and then to New England. They were the bulk of the early population of New England.

8. What Did Puritans Believe?
Cleanse themselves through grace (no envy, lust, etc., just love for God)
Plainness = Good (worship in plain, wooden buildings - not stained glass cathedrals)
Divine Mission (new world was appointed by God, “city on a hill”) to be an example of good

9. Nathaniel Hawthorne’s Writing Style
Diction - word choice is different from today
Difficulties:
Vocabulary
Length/Complexity of sentence
Arrangement of words
Length of paragraphs

10. Main Characters Hester Prynne- wearer of the scarlet letter
Pearl- child of Hester; living symbol of Hester’s sin
Roger Chillingworth- learned scholar; doctor
Arthur Dimmesdale- admired young minister
Governor Bellingham- governor and magistrate of Massachusetts Bay Colony
Rev. John Wilson- senior minister of colony
Mistress Hibbins- Gov. Bellingham’s sister

11. Major Themes Sin makes the sinner be lonely and alone
Sin teaches the sinner with pain
Puritan society is mainly hypocritical: they say one thing but do another
Guilt can destroy
Sin hurts innocents

12. Point of View
Third-Person Omniscient…Hawthorne reveals the inner and outer workings of the characters and provides social criticism, history, and psychology.

13. Major Symbol
The scarlet letter itself is the central symbol. It changes meaning for the characters in the novel as Hester’s character changes. The A becomes a pathway to redemption for some characters as well. Watch the many ways Hawthorne uses the scarlet A as a symbol…

14. Quick Facts Author: Nathaniel Hawthorne
Written: late 1840’s in Salem and Concord, Massachusetts
Setting: mid 1600’s in Boston, Massachusetts
Type of work: novel
Tone: thoughtful, bitter, straightforward, ironic
Protagonist: Hester Prynne
Antagonist: the community