The Scarlet LetterIntroduction by Kathryn Harrison Commentary by Nathaniel Hawthorne, W. D. Howells, and Carl Van Doren A stark tale of adultery, guilt, and social repression in Puritan New England, The Scarlet Letter is a foundational work of American literature. Nathaniel Hawthorne’s exploration of the dichotomy between the public and private self, internal passion and external convention, gives us the unforgettable Hester Prynne, who discovers strength in the face of ostracism and emerges as a heroine ahead of her time. As Kathryn Harrison points out in her Introduction, Hester is “the herald of the modern heroine.” Includes a Modern Library Reading Group Guide |
Contents
The CustomHouseIntroductory | 3 |
The PrisonDoor | 42 |
The MarketPlace | 44 |
The Recognition | 54 |
The Interview | 63 |
Hester at Her Needle | 70 |
Pearl | 80 |
The Governors Hall | 90 |
Hester and Pearl | 159 |
A Forest Walk | 166 |
The Pastor and His Parishioner | 173 |
A Flood of Sunshine | 183 |
The Child at the BrookSide | 189 |
The Minister in a Maze | 196 |
The New England Holiday | 207 |
The Procession | 216 |
The ElfChild and the Minister | 97 |
The Leech | 106 |
The Leech and His Patient | 116 |
The Interior of a Heart | 126 |
The Ministers Vigil | 133 |
Another View of Hester | 144 |
Hester and the Physician | 152 |
The Revelation of the Scarlet Letter | 227 |
Conclusion | 236 |
NOTES | 243 |
COMMENTARY | 261 |
READING GROUP GUIDE FOR THE SCARLET LETTER | 269 |
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Common terms and phrases
Ann Hutchinson answered Hester Antinomian Arthur Dimmesdale aspect beauty beheld beneath bosom breast brook brought character child clergyman cried Custom-House dark deep Dimmes Dimmesdale's Dost thou earth earthly embroidered England evil eyes face fancy father felt forest gaze gleam Governor Bellingham gray guilty hand hath Hawthorne Hawthorne's heart Hester Prynne hither human ignominy imagination infant Kathryn Harrison kind knew less light likewise little Pearl Locofoco look magistrates market-place mind minister minister's Mistress Hibbins moral mother Nathaniel Hawthorne native nature never Old Manse old Roger Chillingworth once pale passion perhaps physician Prynne's Puritan Reverend Salem Salem witch trials scaffold scarlet letter scene secret seemed seen shadow shame smile solemn Sophia Peabody sorrow soul speak spirit stood story strange sunshine Surveyor sympathy thee thing thought tion town truth voice W. D. HOWELLS Whig whispered wild Wilt thou woman yonder young