The Scarlet Letter door Nathaniel Hawthorne

SUMMARY (FULL): Hester Prynne has given birth to an illegitimate child and refused to say the name of the biological father. That means she had to be punished. She had to stand on a platform of the pillory for three hours and she had to wear, for the rest of her life, a scarlet letter A (for adultery) on her bosom as a mark of shame. Mr. Dimmesdale tried to force her to tell the name of the father, but she won’t. Only Mr. Dimmesdale and Hester knew that Mr. Dimmesdale the biological father was. In the public in front of the pillory stood her former husband. He wanted to know who the father is of the child, named Pearl. Hester refused to tell him, and therefore he asked her to keep his name secret too. He settled down in Boston under the name Roger Chillingworth. Hester lived with her child in a scaffold in a couple of minutes outside Boston, where she took care of ill people. Pearl was a child with a lot of energy. The distinguished men (Mr. Dimmesdale, Mr. Chillingworth and Mr. Wilson and Governor Bellingham) wanted to take Pearl away from her mother, but Mr. Dimmesdale prevented this. Mr. Dimmesdale felt guilty because of Hester’s scarlet letter and began to pray more ardently. Roger Chillingworth was the only person who knew the motives of Mr. Dimmesdale. He had hypnotised Mr. Dimmesdale and so he found out why Mr. Dimmesdale had always his hand on his heart. He wore a scarlet letter too. Roger Chillingworth saw Hester, Pearl and Mr. Dimmesdale on a market-place. Hester begged him to leave Mr. Dimmesdale alone, but he won’t. Then she told Mr. Dimmesdale who Roger Chillingworth really was (he was her husband). Hester wanted to escape with Mr. Dimmesdale and her daughter to Europe (the Old World named). She arranged three places on a ship, but there they found out that Roger Chillingworth travelled on the same ship. Mr. Dimmesdale found out that he never could escape from Roger Chillingworth and that’s why he led Hester and Pearl to the pillory and prayed for the last time and showed his bosom to the public where the scarlet letter is. At that time Mr. Dimmesdale collapses and died. Chillingworth didn’t like he can’t took revenge at Mr. Dimmesdale and with this idea he died a year later. Pearl inherited everything of Chillingworth so that she and her mother could travel to the Old World. Hester returned after a couple of years and there she took care of the old people until she died. 0.1 BIBLIOGRAPHY: Title: The Scarlet Letter

Author: Nathaniel Hawthorne
Publisher: James T. Fields
Year of publication: 1850
Number of pages: 173 Analysis: Title: The title of the book is ‘The Scarlet Letter’. This refers to the red letter, which Hester Prynne wears for the rest of her life on her bosom. She got the red letter, because she refused to say who the father of Pearl is. In the Puritan community it’s regarded as a great sin, and therefore she has to wear that letter as a mark of shame. Genre: The Scarlet letter is a dramatically novel, because Hester has to wear the letter A as mark of shame and nobody know who the father of Pearl is, Hester refused to say who the father is. Theme: The theme of this book is that people should not be judged by the way they look or because of the opinions of the other. Hester Prynne was looked down upon by all the local people, because a few of them thought that she was a vile sinner, when in fact she was a honourable and good woman. Other themes are secretiveness and guilt. But this themes are not so important for the story.
Characters: Hester Prynne: Hester Prynne is married to Roger Chillingworth and she has a daughter named Pearl. Hester has an affair with Arthur Dimmesdale. Arthur is the father of Pearl, but she refused to say who the father of Pearl is. When the local people forgive Hester, she spends her last years doing charitable work. When Hester dies, the letter A is used as a heraldic device on her tombstone. Arthur Dimmesdale: Arthur has an affair with Hester Prynne and he is the father of Pearl. In the end of the story he dies in the arms of Hester at the public pillory. Roger Chillingworth: Roger is Hesters’s husband. Roger is a cunning character who spends much time trying to find out who is the father of Pearl. When Roger dies, he leaves all his fortune to Hester’s daughter, Pearl. Pearle Prynne: Pearl is the daughter of Hester and Arthur. Time aspects: This story takes place in the 17th century. In the 17th century are Puritans settled in New England. The story is chronological told and the story spans many years. Point of view: A nameless narrator tells the story. The storyteller knows a lot about the characters. Setting: The story takes place in Boston, New England. Assignment number 8: The Scarlet Letter is written in the 19th Century, in the Victorian Age. The Victorian Period was a time when writers like Nathaniel Hawthorne wrote about social elements. The Victorian Period revolves around the political career of queen Victoria. Queen Victoria was crowned in 1837 and she died in 1901. A great deal of change took place during this period, brought about because of the Industrial Revolution, so it’s not surprising that the literature of this period is often concerned with growing class tensions, the early feminist movement, pressures towards political and social reform. Of course, in the literary from this period, we see a duality between the concerns for the individual and national success. You can divide the Victorian Period in two parts. The early Victorian Period (1800-1870) (The Raphaelites) and the late Victorian Period (1870-1900) (Aestheticism and Decadence). The Scarlet Letter written by Nathaniel Hawthorne is written in the early Victorian Period. The Victorian Age was a time of change, technological, political and economic. How I indicate how this book belongs to the Victorian Period is the usage. They use other words and constructions. An other reason how you can indicate it is the writer, Nathaniel Hawthorne, he lived in the nineteenth century. And the nineteenth century belongs to the Victorian Period.