The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne
The Scarlet Letter was published by Nathaniel Hawthorne in 1850, when the United States of America was not yet 100 years old. Upon its release, the novel became an instant hit, as it dealt with community, passion, wild emotion, and rule-breaking. Many Americans were excited to read a book that explored an integral chapter in their country’s history. The novel is set in mid-17th century Massachusetts Bay Colony (read: old school Boston), and it follows Hester Prynne and her lover over the course of seven years. Are you intrigued yet? Read on.
Nathaniel Hawthorne, a Bowdoin College graduate, hung out in college with the likes of poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow and future United States President Franklin Pierce. After graduating, Hawthorne found a job at the Custom House (a building where people monitored and documented goods for import and export) in Salem; he was fired from this position in 1849. Shortly thereafter, his mother (who had raised him single-handedly) passed away. Life was not so good. So Hawthorne (who had wanted for so long to write the great American novel) decided to write a book. And that book contained all of the emotion that a grieving man could muster.
The result of Hawthorne’s sudden unemployment is the beautiful, heart-wrenching tale of Hester Prynne. Hawthorne wrote The Scarlet Letter feverishly and furiously, and when he read the final words of the final chapter to his wife, she ran to bed crying. At that point, Hawthorne knew he had a hit on his hands. (Source: Marx, Leo. Foreword. The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne. Signet Classics, 1980.)
Hawthorne has an interesting connection to early colonial American history: his ancestors played a role in the persecution of Quaker women, as well as in the prosecution of women in the Salem Witch Trials. In "The Custom House," the preface to this novel, the narrator alludes to this history, taking blame for the actions of these ancestors and hoping that any curse brought about by their cruelty be removed.
Before we set you loose upon the stunning world of mid-17th century Boston, we want to mention that this was a society governed by Puritans, religious men and women who settled at Plymouth Rock, founded Boston, and began the experiment that grew into the United States of America. The Puritans left the Church of England (the Christian church of, well, England), which they felt was becoming too lax in its doctrines. They sought a purer form of their religion. At the heart of this novel is the concept of man’s relationship to himself and to a Christian God. Hawthorne sets his novel in a deeply religious time, and, thus, the language of the novel and the themes invoked contain deeply religious undertones.
*from schmoop.com (c)
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Click here for a really nice introduction to Nathaniel Hawthorne.
Click here for the online version of the full text.
Click here for the audio version of the text.
Reading Schedule for TSL (2014/2015):
1st/4th: Ch 1-7 (12/4), 8-11 (12/8), 12-19 (12/10), 20-24 (12/12)
5th/8th: Ch 1-7 (12/3), 8-11 (12/5), 12-19 (12/9), 20-24 (12/11)
Here is the handout for the Reader Response Journal. Front / Back
Nathaniel Hawthorne, a Bowdoin College graduate, hung out in college with the likes of poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow and future United States President Franklin Pierce. After graduating, Hawthorne found a job at the Custom House (a building where people monitored and documented goods for import and export) in Salem; he was fired from this position in 1849. Shortly thereafter, his mother (who had raised him single-handedly) passed away. Life was not so good. So Hawthorne (who had wanted for so long to write the great American novel) decided to write a book. And that book contained all of the emotion that a grieving man could muster.
The result of Hawthorne’s sudden unemployment is the beautiful, heart-wrenching tale of Hester Prynne. Hawthorne wrote The Scarlet Letter feverishly and furiously, and when he read the final words of the final chapter to his wife, she ran to bed crying. At that point, Hawthorne knew he had a hit on his hands. (Source: Marx, Leo. Foreword. The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne. Signet Classics, 1980.)
Hawthorne has an interesting connection to early colonial American history: his ancestors played a role in the persecution of Quaker women, as well as in the prosecution of women in the Salem Witch Trials. In "The Custom House," the preface to this novel, the narrator alludes to this history, taking blame for the actions of these ancestors and hoping that any curse brought about by their cruelty be removed.
Before we set you loose upon the stunning world of mid-17th century Boston, we want to mention that this was a society governed by Puritans, religious men and women who settled at Plymouth Rock, founded Boston, and began the experiment that grew into the United States of America. The Puritans left the Church of England (the Christian church of, well, England), which they felt was becoming too lax in its doctrines. They sought a purer form of their religion. At the heart of this novel is the concept of man’s relationship to himself and to a Christian God. Hawthorne sets his novel in a deeply religious time, and, thus, the language of the novel and the themes invoked contain deeply religious undertones.
*from schmoop.com (c)
----
Click here for a really nice introduction to Nathaniel Hawthorne.
Click here for the online version of the full text.
Click here for the audio version of the text.
Reading Schedule for TSL (2014/2015):
1st/4th: Ch 1-7 (12/4), 8-11 (12/8), 12-19 (12/10), 20-24 (12/12)
5th/8th: Ch 1-7 (12/3), 8-11 (12/5), 12-19 (12/9), 20-24 (12/11)
Here is the handout for the Reader Response Journal. Front / Back