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The Scarlet Letter and Related Readings
Top right tip of hardcover broke off
- GenresClassicsRead For School
309 pages, Hardcover
Published January 1, 1997
3 people are currently reading
38 people want to read
About the author
Nathaniel Hawthorne
5,367 books3,516 followersNathaniel Hawthorne was a 19th century American novelist and short story writer. He is seen as a key figure in the development of American literature for his tales of the nation's colonial history.
Shortly after graduating from Bowdoin College, Hathorne changed his name to Hawthorne. Hawthorne anonymously published his first work, a novel titled Fanshawe, in 1828. In 1837, he published Twice-Told Tales and became engaged to painter and illustrator Sophia Peabody the next year. He worked at a Custom House and joined a Transcendentalist Utopian community, before marrying Peabody in 1842. The couple moved to The Old Manse in Concord, Massachusetts, later moving to Salem, the Berkshires, then to The Wayside in Concord. The Scarlet Letter was published in 1850, followed by a succession of other novels. A political appointment took Hawthorne and family to Europe before returning to The Wayside in 1860. Hawthorne died on May 19, 1864, leaving behind his wife and their three children.
Much of Hawthorne's writing centers around New England and many feature moral allegories with a Puritan inspiration. His work is considered part of the Romantic movement and includes novels, short stories, and a biography of his friend, the United States President Franklin Pierce.
Shortly after graduating from Bowdoin College, Hathorne changed his name to Hawthorne. Hawthorne anonymously published his first work, a novel titled Fanshawe, in 1828. In 1837, he published Twice-Told Tales and became engaged to painter and illustrator Sophia Peabody the next year. He worked at a Custom House and joined a Transcendentalist Utopian community, before marrying Peabody in 1842. The couple moved to The Old Manse in Concord, Massachusetts, later moving to Salem, the Berkshires, then to The Wayside in Concord. The Scarlet Letter was published in 1850, followed by a succession of other novels. A political appointment took Hawthorne and family to Europe before returning to The Wayside in 1860. Hawthorne died on May 19, 1864, leaving behind his wife and their three children.
Much of Hawthorne's writing centers around New England and many feature moral allegories with a Puritan inspiration. His work is considered part of the Romantic movement and includes novels, short stories, and a biography of his friend, the United States President Franklin Pierce.
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
September 26, 2024
Hawthorne my guy you are wordy.
February 4, 2025
ever heard of a period?
February 15, 2013
The Scarlet Letter is such a great book!
The whole point of the book is centered on the Puritan society and we all know how Hawthorne felt about them. So yes, they get a bad rep, nothing new from him though. The book itself is great, it's entertaining and the ending is not predictable! It's a good book with many symbols and the most symbolic, the scarlet letter. It's also a gothic romance, so for those who love those kind of story, this book is a must read.
The book is centered mostly on the characters, but they are very interesting, especially Pearl.
The book is not hard to read, even though it is quite wordy and with extensive vocabulary, but once you get past that you will enjoy the book!
Reading the book reminded me of the movie Easy A, don't know why but it did. Guess I can know understand more of the movie!!
Go and read the book, it's great and I definitely recommend the book!
The whole point of the book is centered on the Puritan society and we all know how Hawthorne felt about them. So yes, they get a bad rep, nothing new from him though. The book itself is great, it's entertaining and the ending is not predictable! It's a good book with many symbols and the most symbolic, the scarlet letter. It's also a gothic romance, so for those who love those kind of story, this book is a must read.
The book is centered mostly on the characters, but they are very interesting, especially Pearl.
The book is not hard to read, even though it is quite wordy and with extensive vocabulary, but once you get past that you will enjoy the book!
Reading the book reminded me of the movie Easy A, don't know why but it did. Guess I can know understand more of the movie!!
Go and read the book, it's great and I definitely recommend the book!
December 7, 2011
This book was for class and we only focus on The Scarlet Letter. I actually really liked the story. It definately did not have a predictable ending, and the plot is good. It focus more on people than action, but it is still entertaining to read. The ridicule and torment of all the characters really reflects on the Puritan society, which is the point of the book. I highly recommend that others read The Scarlet Letter because once you get past the wording, the story is absolutely amazing. Loving the Classic!
September 22, 2011
I hadn't read this since high school... it is so much less painful than I remembered. Too bad I still have no idea how to make it interesting for high school students. I feel so sympathetic to their suffering and yet I still make them read it. I'm not sure what that says about me... Time to go watch Easy A!
November 22, 2011
Pretty good at times, pretty boring at others. I didn't really like any of the characters or what they did, and I thought the Puritans got too much of a bad rap. It had some interesting ideas though, and I kind of enjoyed analyzing it - the author snuck in a lot of symbolism and such. It could be dense reading at times, but not nearly as bad as my teacher made it sound.
August 11, 2014
so, most people didnt like this book because of the writing. however I'm the exact opposite. At times the writing style it was a bit more challenging to understand, but that was my favorite part. the verbose language and lengthy sentences were a challenge that I enjoyed. You actually (or at least I did) have to really focus when you're reading to understand what all of the description means.
January 1, 2013
I did not read the other stories in this book as our class focused on the Scarlet Letter, which was a good story with very moving quotes, once you move past the heavily descriptive writing style.
December 5, 2018
I had to teach this for AP Lang Comp. If I give this a couple more reads, this could be one of my favorite Classics. I will ride for Hester till the daY I DIE.
April 7, 2023
this actually wasn't the worst book i've had to read in an english class ☺️
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews