The Scarlet Letter: A Romance

Nathaniel Hawthorne

Jan 1851 · Routledge

Ratings and reviews

I was required to read this for an eleventh grade English project. Seeing that it was written in the 1800s, I wasn't too excited about reading it. I reluctantly began reading it. To my surprise I couldn't put it down and I ended up reading the book in its entirety in one sitting. This is now one of my favorite novels. (And this is saying a lot because I usually read science fiction.) All in all, it's definitely in my top 5 favorite books. Check it out.

I love the book it really teaches you how life was back in the days. I would very much recommended it especially for those who have to do summer reading. it is about committing adultery and having to deal with the sins that you have made, teaching you that back then it was a crime to do such thing. Hester was very proud even though she knew the consequences of committing adultery and having a baby for her lover. The townspeople look down at her and called her child, Pearl, a devil child and thought she such be brought up in a different home due to her mothers poor action.

In the text and speech of the nineteenth century, far more verbose and reflectively time-consuming than our present day prose, Nathaniel Hawthorne recounts the life story of an adulteress, although the word itself is only ever referred to by its initial. The attempts at a psychological interpretation of the states of mind of the subjects bring this form of writing into modern literature, but it is far too wordy to sustain the attention of all but the most persistent readers. A pity, for the tale, with suspense and passion interwoven with rich and well written characterisation, is worthy of a wider interest than its archaic style would normally allow. Not just for students of American Literature. For all curious to read the thoughts of a bygone age.