The Scarlet Letter

The Scarlet Letter


The short list of great American novels is often topped by Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter. This classic novel from the cannon of American Literature exemplifies the genre of Dark Romanticism. In this story, the consequences of Hester Prynne's adulterous affair with the reverend Arthur Dimmesdale are borne out as she gives birth to their child and is forced to wear a Scarlet Letter A, embroidered on her bosom, as a sign of her adultery. Hawthorne is at his best as he treats with the complexities of sin and redemption as the story progresses and carries Hester Prynne, Arthur Dimmesdale and Pearl toward their respective destinies. Illustration at right by Mary Hallock Foote, 1878. We offer a useful The Scarlet Letter Study Guide for students and teachers.

The novel is classified under the Romantic genre and further classified as Dark Romanticism and Dystopian Fiction. I urge readers to study rather than skip over the two introductory chapters; "Preface to the Second Edition" and "The Custom-House." Those two works do not appear alongside the novel by accident, and I believe an appreciation of Hawthorne's experience at the Customs House is the key to a deeper understanding of the novel itself.

The Scarlet Letter cover

This novel is a rare work of art. If you are reading it for a class, please cast aside any and all academic considerations. Don't let the assignment intrude on the experience. Enjoy the story as a reader instead of a student. You will have plenty of time for the classroom considerations, but you will probably only read the story once. So do it right. Good luck and most of all, enjoy it!

The Scarlet Letter is a true masterpiece of American Literature and a must-read for every student of literature. Featured in our collection of 25 Great American Novels. Teachers and students may be interested in our Dark Romanticism - Study Guide and D. H. Lawrence's chapter on Nathaniel Hawthorne and The Scarlet Letter from his book Studies in Classic American Literature.

Hughes Merle, The Scarlet Letter, 1861


Table of Contents

Preface to the Second Edition

The Custom-House

I. The Prison-Door

II. The Marketplace

III. The Recognition

IV. The Interview

V. Hester at Her Needle

VI. Pearl

VII. The Governor's Hall

VIII. The Elf-child and the Minister

IX. The Leech

X. The Leech and His Patients

XI. The Interior of a Heart

XII. The Minister's Vigil

XIV. Hester and the Physician

XIII. Another View of Hester

XV. Hester and Pearl

XVI. A Forest Walk

XVII. The Pastor and His Parishioner

XVIII. A Flood of Sunshine

XIV. The Child at the Brook-Side

XX. The Minister in a Maze

XXI. The New England Holiday

XXII. The Procession

XXIII. The Revelation of the Scarlet Letter

XXIV. The Conclusion

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