1. Survey of American Literature
The Scarlet Letter
Survey of American Literature
We have spent a lot of time with early American literature this year.
We started with Native American origin myths, then moved into the Colonial Period
With the Colonial Period, we read two pieces – “To My Dear and Loving Husband” and “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God”
While the two pieces were different in tone and structure, they shared the qualities of lyric poetry – they both appealed to reader emotions
We learned to identify elements of literature through independent reading and paraphrasing
From there, we moved onto The Crucible, a longer piece.
It was a drama written in the 1950s about the 1690s – we learned about characterization, irony, and tragedy, and how to identify those elements through critical literary analysis
Now, we are moving on again, this time to The Scarlet Letter. It was written IN puritan times ABOUT puritans
While this work was written in 1855, the issues it raises still speak to us today
We will be building on everything we’ve done so far, and will be pushing ourselves to complete much of the reading independently
We will focus on making meaning of what we read, regarding both author intent and personal response
That being said, let’s first talk about the novel’s author

2. Nathaniel Hawthorne About the Man 1804-1864 Salem, Massachusetts
Puritan
Solid accomplishment
Great guilt
Ancestor: William Hathorne
Married Sophia Peabody
Strength and nobility
Reflected in Hester Prynne
About the Man
N.H. lived from 1804 to 1864
He was born in Salem, Mass to a prominent Puritan family
He associated Puritanism with solid accomplishment and great guilt
His early ancestor, William Hathorne, arrived in the colonies in 1630; he is remembered for having condemned a Quaker woman (by whipping)
Hawthorne married Sophia Peabody in 1842
In her, he found strength and nobility.
These are two qualities we will see later in Hester Prynne, the heroine of The Scarlet Letter, which reflect the qualities he admired in his wife.

3. Nathaniel Hawthorne About the Author Great American Author Romanticism
First psychological novel
Redemption, sin
Romanticism
Intellectual curiosity
Optimism
Dark Romanticism
Works
Novels
Short Stories
About the Author
Hawthorne is considered one of American’s greatest writers because
he is known to have written the first truly psychological novel
The Scarlet Letter is a parable – a story – of redemption and sin
He belongs to the era of Romanticism
Movement reflects intellectual curiosity and optimism
Although Hawthorn later rejected the optimism of the Transcendentalists
His work can be considered, more specifically, dark romanticism
Hawthorne wrote four major romances:
The Scarlet Letter, The House of Seven Gables, The Blithedale Romance, and The Marble Faun
He also wrote one anonymously called Fanshawe
He wrote many more short stories
Along with Edgar Allan Poe, he helped to create the template for short stories
Most well-known collection is called Twice-Told Tales

4. The Scarlet Letter Written in 1855 Setting Framework Boston Mid-1600s
Seven-year period
Framework
Rigid social mores
Traditional customs
Moral attitudes
Religious beliefs
Written in 1855
Set in Boston in the mid 1600s
Takes place over a seven year period
Provides a framework of rigid social mores and religious beliefs
Social mores include the accepted traditional customs and behaviors of a specific social group. In this case, we mean the Puritans. It also means their moral attitudes.
Remember, the Puritans are a people amongst whom religion and law were almost identical

5. The Scarlet Letter Plot Love triangle: wife-lover-husband Suspense
Struggle: good versus evil
Characters’ souls at stake
Suspense
Will identities of lover and husband be revealed?
How will identities be revealed?
Psychological movement: husband’s quest for revenge
The plot involves the familiar triangle of a wife, lover, and husband.
It is a struggle between good and evil, with the eternal souls of the characters at stake.
Suspense is built around two primary questions: will the identities of the lover and husband be revealed? And, if so, HOW will their identities be revealed?
The main psychological movement in the novel derives from the husband’s insatiable quest for revenge. This desire is all-consuming, and it drives much of the novel’s action.

6. The Scarlet Letter Structure Novel begins in media res Innovative form
Instead of ongoing chronicle of events
Series of separate, fully-realized chapters
Interspersed with expository chapters
Novel begins in media res
Action already occurred
Characters facing consequences
Hawthorne’s form of writing for this novel was innovative, especially for the 1850s
Instead of an ongoing chronicle of events, as most novels are written, the scarlet letter is a series of separate, fully-realized chapters, interspersed with expository chapters
Much like Arthur Miller gave us dramatic expositions in the crucible, Nathaniel Hawthorne gives us expository chapters with information necessary for understanding the story
The novel begins in media res, which means the motivating action has already occurred – the affair and the baby’s birth have already happened
So as the novel begins, the characters are already facing the consequences of this action

7. The Scarlet Letter Point of View (POV)
Omniscient
Author reveals inner and outer characters
Asides
Social criticism
History
Psychology
All characters in constant state of change
Theocracy
Act of adultery not important
Consequences of adultery more important
The novel’s point of view is omniscient, which means that the narrator knows the thoughts and feelings of all characters in the story
The word omniscient means having infinite knowledge or understanding
As we read, the author reveals the inner and outer lives of his characters, with asides on social criticism, history, and psychology
All characters in the scarlet letter are in a constant state of change. This is important to remember because different symbols will change with the characters.
It is important to remember the puritans live in a theocracy.
Their religious government suggests that the act of adultery – the sin itself – is not as important as the consequences of the sin

8. Major Characters Hester Prynne Novel’s heroine Adulterer
Name: prim and proper
First strong female character in American literature
Hester Prynne
Young Englishwoman
Has been living alone in Boston
Her husband has been missing for several years
Has given birth to a child
But refuses to name the father
She pays for her sin in many ways

9. Major Characters Pearl Hester’s daughter Precious to her mother
Illegitimate child
Product of adultery
Precious to her mother
Intelligent, imaginative
Pearl
Hester’s daughter
Illegitimate child
Product of adultery
Great value to her mother, very precious
Looked down upon by other Puritans
Keep an eye on this character
Happy and joyful
Highly intuitive – capable of knowing without reasoning
Intelligent and imaginative

10. Major Characters Arthur Dimmesdale Reverend Guilt-ridden Tortured
Popular and admired young clergyman
Guilt-ridden
Experiences intense internal conflict

11. Major Characters Roger Chillingworth Scholar Vengeful
Hides true identity
Roger Chillingworth
A scholar, much older than Hester and Dimmesdale
Arrives in Boston after years of captivity
Major antagonist
Novel chronicles his deterioration

12. Themes Effects of Sin and Possibility of Redemption
Psychological and social consequences of sin
Characters’ processes of redemption
Does every attain redemption?
Applies to:
Hester
Dimmesdale
Chillingworth
Secondary Effect: Insight into the Hearts of Others

13. Themes Hypocrisy Other Noticeable Themes
Conflict between outer appearance and inner reality
Depicted in Hester’s relationship with community
Illustrated in portrayals of Dimmesdale and Chillingworth
Other Noticeable Themes
Guilt
Revenge
Human frailty and Sin
Hypocrisy
Conflict between outer appearance and inner reality
Depicted in Hester’s relationship with community
Illustrated in portrayals of Dimmesdale and Chillingworth

14. Conflicts
Man versus Society
Man versus Man
Man versus Self

15. Symbols The Scarlet Letter The Scaffold Elements of Nature
Central symbol of novel
Meaning changes as characters change
The Scaffold
Public exposure of private since
Redemption through confession
Elements of Nature
Good and evil
Forest is changeable symbol for both
The Scarlet Letter
Central symbol
Meaning changes as characters change
The Scaffold
A scaffold is a raised platform used for criminals
Public exposure of private sins
Three main scaffold scenes – beginning, middle, end
For each of these scenes, focus on who controls that particular scene
Who’s there
Where they are
How they’re acting
Elements of Nature
Elements of nature are used to symbolize good and evil
Good: flowers, sun, light
Evil: weeds, unsightly vegetation, darkness, shade
Forest is a changeable symbol representing both good and evil

16. Irony Dramatic Irony Situational Irony Verbal Irony Controls novel
Readers know something about a character the other characters do not
If characters knew what readers know, plot would be ruined
Situational Irony
Central to novel’s action
Contrast between intention of an action and its result
Expectations aroused by situation are reversed
Verbal Irony
Throughout novel
Dramatic irony controls the novel
Readers know something about a character that the other characters don’t know
If the characters knew what the readers know, the plot would be ruined
Situational irony is central to the action of the novel
Situational irony is a contrast between the intention of a specific action and its result
Expectations aroused by a situation are reversed

17. What happens when a private sin becomes a public crime?