IV. The Interview Quiz — The Scarlet Letter

Why does the jailer Master Brackett summon a physician to Hester's cell?

• The magistrates order a medical evaluation before sentencing
• Hester is in dangerous nervous excitement and Pearl is in convulsions
• Hester has attempted to remove the scarlet letter
• Pearl has developed a fever from the cold prison conditions

Under what pretense is Roger Chillingworth lodged in the prison?

• He is suspected of practicing witchcraft
• He is held as a debtor to the Massachusetts colony
• He is being housed there temporarily while awaiting ransom negotiations with the Indians
• He has been arrested for traveling without proper documents

What sources of medical knowledge does Chillingworth claim to possess?

• Training at a London medical school and apprenticeship with a surgeon
• Studies in alchemy and herbal knowledge learned from Native Americans
• Ancient Greek medical texts and Persian pharmacology
• Religious healing learned from Puritan ministers in England

Did Hester willingly take the medicine Chillingworth offered for Pearl?

What classical draughts does Chillingworth reference when preparing Hester's sedative?

• Ambrosia and nectar
• Lethe and Nepenthe
• Hemlock and nightshade
• Soma and elixir

According to Chillingworth, why is keeping Hester alive a better revenge than killing her?

• Her death would bring sympathy from the townspeople
• She can lead him to her lover if she remains alive
• Her burning shame will continue to blaze on her bosom for all to see
• The Puritan laws forbid him from harming her directly

Did Chillingworth deny any responsibility for the failure of his marriage to Hester?

How does Chillingworth say he will identify Hester's secret lover?

• By torturing Hester until she confesses the name
• By bribing the town magistrates for information
• By seeking the man as he has sought truth in books and gold in alchemy
• By hiring spies to follow Hester's movements

Chillingworth tells Hester: "Thou hast kept the secret of thy paramour. Keep, likewise, mine!" What does "paramour" mean?

• A trusted confidant or advisor
• An illicit lover, especially of a married person
• A fellow prisoner or cellmate
• A spiritual counselor or minister

Did Chillingworth threaten to harm Hester's lover physically?

What oath does Chillingworth extract from Hester at the end of their interview?

• She must confess the name of her lover within one year
• She must leave the colony and never return
• She must never reveal that Chillingworth is her husband
• She must raise Pearl according to his instructions

The text says Chillingworth entered with "the characteristic quietude of the profession to which he announced himself as belonging." What does "quietude" mean?

• Humility and self-deprecation
• A state of calmness and stillness
• Professional indifference
• Religious solemnity

What happens when Chillingworth touches the scarlet letter on Hester's breast?

• Hester collapses in pain and the letter turns black
• The letter seems to scorch into her breast as if red-hot, and she flinches
• Pearl awakens and begins screaming at Chillingworth
• The letter falls from her garment onto the floor

What is the significance of Chillingworth's final words: "Not thy soul. No, not thine!"?

• He is reassuring Hester that she will be forgiven by God
• He is implying that the spiritual ruin will fall on her lover's soul, not hers
• He is telling Hester that her soul already belongs to the Devil
• He is promising to protect Pearl's spiritual welfare