The Scarlet Letter
Title page, first edition of The Scarlet Letter, 1850
Author	Nathaniel Hawthorne
Country	United States
Language	English
Genre(s)	Romantic novel
Publisher	Ticknor, Reed & Fields
Publication date	1850

This article is about the 1850 book. For films based on the book see The Scarlet Letter (film)

The Scarlet Letter, published in 1850, is an American novel written by Nathaniel Hawthorne and is generally considered to be his magnum opus. Set in Puritan Boston in the seventeenth century, it tells the story of Hester Prynne, who gives birth after committing adultery, refuses to name the father, and struggles to create a new life of repentance and dignity. Throughout the novel, Hawthorne explores the issues of grace, legalism, sin, and guilt. Image File history File links Title_page_for_The_Scarlet_Letter. ... Nathaniel Hawthorne (born Nathaniel Hathorne; July 4, 1804 – May 19, 1864) was a 19th century American novelist and short story writer. ... For other uses, see Country (disambiguation). ... The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ... This article refers to the wide variety of writing called romantic. For literature from the European Romantic movement of the 18th and 19th centuries, see Romanticism: Art and Literature. ... A publisher is a person or entity which engages in the act of publishing. ... The Scarlet Letter is the 1995 film version of the classic Nathaniel Hawthorne novel, The Scarlet Letter. ... For the game, see: 1850 (board game) 1850 (MDCCCL) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Sunday [1] of the 12-day-slower Julian calendar). ... Nathaniel Hawthorne (born Nathaniel Hathorne; July 4, 1804 – May 19, 1864) was a 19th century American novelist and short story writer. ... Magnum opus (sometimes Opus magnum, plural magna opera), from the Latin meaning great work,[1] refers to the best, most popular, or most renowned achievement of an author, artist, or composer, and most commonly one who has contributed a very large amount of material. ... For the record label, see Puritan Records. ... Nickname: City on the Hill, Beantown, The Hub (of the Universe)1, Athens of America, The Cradle of Revolution, Puritan City, Americas Walking City Location in Massachusetts, USA Counties Suffolk County Mayor Thomas M. Menino(D) Area    - City 232. ... The theme of adultery features in a wide range of literature through the ages. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... In Christianity, divine grace refers to the sovereign favour of God for humankind — especially in regard to salvation — irrespective of actions (deeds), earned worth, or proven goodness. ... Legalism, in Christian theology, is a term referring to an improper fixation on law or codes of conduct, or legal ideas, usually implying an allegation of pride and the neglect of mercy, and ignorance of the grace of God. ... For other uses, see Sin (disambiguation). ... This article is about the emotion. ...

Plot introduction

Salem Custom House

The story of The Scarlet Letter is framed by a preface (called "The Custom-House") in which the narrator, a surveyor in the Custom House, claims to have found documents and papers that substantiate the evidence concerning Prynne and her situation. The narrator says that when he touched the letter to his breast it gave off "burning embers...as if the letter were not of red cloth, but red hot iron." Among these documents, the narrator claims to have found the death certificate of Anne Hutchinson, previously believed to have been destroyed by the Puritan church leaders as they tried to cover up her brutal murder two years earlier. The manuscript, the work of a past surveyor, Jonathan Pue, detailed the events of the trials of Hutchinson's alleged murderers. When the narrator lost his post, he decided to write a fictional account of the events recorded in the manuscript. The Scarlet Letter is the final product. Image File history File links Metadata Size of this preview: 800 × 600 pixelsFull resolution (2304 × 1728 pixel, file size: 1. ... Image File history File links Metadata Size of this preview: 800 × 600 pixelsFull resolution (2304 × 1728 pixel, file size: 1. ... A frame story (also frame tale, frame narrative, etc. ... Custom House is an area of the London Borough of Newham. ... Anne Hutchinson on Trial by Edwin Austin Abbey Anne Hutchinson (July 1591 – August 1643) was the unauthorized Puritan minister of a dissident church discussion group and a pioneer settler in Massachusetts, Rhode Island and New Netherlands. ... For the record label, see Puritan Records. ...

Historically, Nathaniel Hawthorne worked in the Custom House in Salem, Massachusetts for several years, eventually losing his job as a result of an administration change. There is no factual basis for the documents described in the book, however, and the preface is properly read as a literary device. Introductions that justify the fantastic content to come were a typical device in romance.^[1] Nickname: Location in Essex County in Massachusetts Coordinates: , Country State County Essex Settled 1626 Incorporated 1626 A City 1836 Government  - Type Mayor-council city  - Mayor Kimberley Driscoll Area  - Total 18. ...

Plot summary

The Scarlet Letter (1860) by T. H. Matteson. This oil on canvas painting was made under the supervision of Hawthorne himself.^[2]

The novel begins in 17th-century Boston, Massachusetts, then a Puritan settlement. A young woman, Hester Prynne, is led from the town prison with her infant daughter, Pearl, in her arms and the scarlet letter “A” on her bosom. The scarlet letter "A" represents the act of adultery that she has committed and it is to be a symbol of her sin – a badge of shame – for all to see. A woman in the crowd tells an elderly onlooker that Hester is being punished for adultery. Hester's husband, who is much older than she is, sent her ahead to America, but he never arrived in Boston. The consensus is that he has been lost at sea. While waiting for her husband, Hester has apparently had an affair, as she has given birth to a child. She will not reveal her lover’s identity, however, and the scarlet letter, along with her public shaming, is her punishment for her sin and her secrecy. On this day Hester is led to the town scaffold and harangued by the town fathers, but she again refuses to identify her child’s father.^[2] Boston redirects here. ... Yellow badge Jews in Nazi Germany were required to wear as a badge of shame. ... Public humiliation was often used by local communities to punish minor and petty criminals before the age of large, modern prisons (imprisonment was long unusual as a punishment, rather a method of coercion). ...

The elderly onlooker is Hester’s missing husband, who is now practicing medicine and calling himself Roger Chillingworth. He settles in Boston, intent on revenge. He reveals his true identity to no one but Hester, whom he has sworn to secrecy. Several years pass. Hester supports herself by working as a seamstress, and Pearl (her daughter) grows into a willful, impish child, who is more of a symbol than an actual character, said to be the scarlet letter come to life as both Hester's love and her punishment. Shunned by the community, they live in a small cottage on the outskirts of Boston. Community officials attempt to take Pearl away from Hester, but, with the help of Arthur Dimmesdale, an eloquent minister, the mother and daughter manage to stay together. Dimmesdale, however, appears to be wasting away and suffers from mysterious heart trouble, seemingly caused by psychological distress. Chillingworth attaches himself to the ailing minister and eventually moves in with him so that he can provide his patient with round-the-clock care. Chillingworth also suspects that there may be a connection between the minister’s torments and Hester’s secret, and he begins to test Dimmesdale to see what he can learn. One afternoon, while the minister sleeps, Chillingworth discovers an "A" (for adultery) on the man’s breast, which convinces him that his suspicions are correct.^[2]

Dimmesdale’s psychological anguish deepens, and he invents new tortures for himself. In the meantime, Hester’s charitable deeds and quiet humility have earned her a reprieve from the scorn of the community. One night, when Pearl is about seven years old, she and her mother are returning home from a visit to a deathbed when they encounter Dimmesdale atop the town scaffold, trying to punish himself for his sins. Hester and Pearl join him, and the three link hands. Dimmesdale refuses Pearl’s request that he acknowledge her publicly the next day, and a meteor marks a dull red “A” in the night sky . It is interpreted by the townsfolk to mean Angel, as a prominent figure in the community had died that night, but Dimmesdale sees it as meaning Adultery. Hester can see that the minister’s condition is worsening, and she resolves to intervene. She goes to Chillingworth and asks him to stop adding to Dimmesdale’s self-torment. Chillingworth refuses.^[2]

Hester arranges an encounter with Dimmesdale in the forest because she is aware that Chillingworth has probably guessed that she plans to reveal his identity to Dimmesdale. The former lovers decide to flee to Europe, where they can live with Pearl as a family. They will take a ship sailing from Boston in four days. Both feel a sense of release, and Hester removes her scarlet letter and lets down her hair. Pearl, playing nearby, does not recognize her mother without the letter. She is unnerved and expels a shriek until her mother points out the letter on the ground. Hester beckons Pearl to come to her, but Pearl will not go to her mother until Hester buttons the letter back onto her dress. Pearl then goes to her mother. Dimmesdale gives Pearl a kiss on the forehead, which Pearl immediately tries to wash off in the brook.

The day before the ship is to sail, the townspeople gather for a holiday and Dimmesdale preaches his most eloquent sermon ever. Meanwhile, Hester has learned that Chillingworth knows of their plan and has booked passage on the same ship. Dimmesdale, leaving the church after his sermon, sees Hester and Pearl standing before the town scaffold. He impulsively mounts the scaffold with his lover and his daughter, and confesses publicly, exposing the mark seared into the flesh of his chest. He falls dead just after Pearl kisses him.^[2]

Frustrated in his revenge, Chillingworth dies a year later. Hester and Pearl leave Boston, and no one knows what has happened to them. Many years later, Hester returns alone, still wearing the scarlet letter, to live in her old cottage and resume her charitable work. She receives occasional letters from Pearl, who was rumored to have married a European aristocrat and established a family of her own. Pearl also inherits all of Chillingworth's money even though he knows she is not his daughter. There is a sense of liberation in her and the townspeople, especially the women, who had finally begun to forgive Hester of her tragic indiscretion. When Hester dies, she is buried in "a new grave near an old and sunken one, in that burial ground beside which King's Chapel has since been built. It was near that old and sunken grave, yet with[in] a space [set] between, as if the dust of the two sleepers had no right to mingle. Yet one tombstone served for both." The tombstone was decorated with a letter "A", and one tombstone was used for Hester and Dimmesdale.

==Characters in The Scarlet Letter

Major themes

Sin

Sin and knowledge are linked in the Judeo-Christian tradition. The Bible begins with the story of Adam and Eve, who were expelled from the Garden of Eden for eating from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. As a result of their knowledge, Adam and Eve are made aware of their disobedience, that which separates them from the divine and from other creatures. Once expelled from the Garden of Eden, they are forced to toil and to procreate—two “labors” that seem to define the human condition. The experience of Hester and Dimmesdale recalls the story of Adam and Eve because, in both cases, sin results in expulsion and suffering. But it also results in knowledge—specifically, in knowledge of what it means to be human. For Hester, the scarlet letter functions as “her passport into regions where other women dared not tread,” leading her to “speculate” about her society and herself more “boldly” than anyone else in New England.^[3] Jacob wrestling an angel, by Gustave Doré (1832-1883), a shared Judeo-Christian story. ... For other uses, see Bible (disambiguation). ... Michelangelos Creation of Adam, from the Sistine Chapel. ... For other uses, see Garden of Eden (disambiguation). ... This article does not cite its references or sources. ...

As for Dimmesdale, the “cheating minister” of his sin gives him “sympathies so intimate with the sinful brotherhood of mankind, so that his heart vibrate[s] in unison with theirs.” His eloquent and powerful sermons derive from this sense of empathy. Hester and Dimmesdale contemplate their own sinfulness on a daily basis and try to reconcile it with their lived experiences. The Puritan elders, on the other hand, insist on seeing earthly experience as merely an obstacle on the path to heaven. Thus, they view sin as a threat to the community that should be punished and suppressed. Their answer to Hester’s sin is to ostracize her. Yet, Puritan society is stagnant, while Hester and Dimmesdale’s experience shows that a state of sinfulness can lead to personal growth, sympathy, and understanding of others. Paradoxically, these qualities are shown to be incompatible with a state of purity.^[3] The narrative of the Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale is quite in keeping with the oldest and most fully authorized principles in Christian thought. His "Fall" is a descent from apparent grace to his own damnation; he appears to begin in purity. He ends in corruption. The subtlety is that the minister is his own deceiver, convincing himself at every stage of his spiritual pilgrimage that he is saved.^[4] For the record label, see Puritan Records. ... In modern parlance, to ostracize means to exclude someone from society or from a community, by not communicating with or even noticing them, similar to shunning. ... For other uses, see Christian (disambiguation). ... This article is about the religious or spiritual journey. ...

The rosebush, its beauty a striking contrast to all that surrounds it — as later the beautifully embroidered scarlet A will be — is held out in part as an invitation to find “some sweet moral blossom” in the ensuing, tragic tale and in part as an image that “the deep heart of nature” (perhaps God) may look more kindly on the errant Hester and her child (the roses among the weeds) than do her Puritan neighbors. Throughout the work, the nature images contrast with the stark darkness of the Puritans and their systems.^[5]

Chillingworth’s misshapen body reflects (or symbolizes) the evil in his soul, which builds as the novel progresses.^[5]

Although Pearl is a complex character, her primary function within the novel is as a symbol. Pearl herself is the embodiment of the scarlet letter, and Hester rightly clothes her in a beautiful dress of scarlet, embroidered with gold thread...just like the scarlet letter upon Hester's bosom. ^[3] It would be interesting to draw a parallel between Pearl and Beatrice, in Rappaccini's Daughter. Both are studies in the same direction, though from different standpoints. Beatrice is nourished upon poisonous plants, until she becomes herself poisonous. Pearl, in the mysterious prenatal world, imbibes the poison of her parents' guilt. But, in either instance, behind this imported evil stands the personal soul: and the question is, Shall the soul become the victim of its involuntary circumstances? Hawthorne, in both cases, inclines to the brighter alternative.^[6] Rappaccinis Daughter is a short story written by Nathaniel Hawthorne in 1844 that concerns a medical researcher in medieval Padua. ...

Past and present

The clashing of past and present is explored in various ways. For example, the character of the old General, whose heroic qualities include a distinguished name, perseverance, integrity, compassion, and moral inner strength, is said to be “the soul and spirit of New England hardihood.” Now put out to pasture, he sometimes presides over the Custom House run by corrupt public servants, who skip work to sleep, allow or overlook smuggling, and are supervised by an inspector with “no power of thought, nor depth of feeling, no troublesome sensibilities,” who is honest enough but without a spiritual compass.^[5] This article is about the region in the United States of America. ...

Hawthorne himself had ambivalent feelings about the role of his ancestors in his life. In his autobiographical sketch, Hawthorne described his ancestors as “dim and dusky,” “grave, bearded, sable-cloaked, and steel crowned,” “bitter persecutors” whose “better deeds” would be diminished by their bad ones. There can be little doubt of Hawthorne’s disdain for the stern morality and rigidity of the Puritans, and he imagined his predecessors’ disdainful view of him: unsuccessful in their eyes, worthless and disgraceful. “A writer of story books!” But even as he disagrees with his ancestor’s viewpoint, he also feels an instinctual connection to them and, more importantly, a “sense of place” in Salem. Their blood remains in his veins, but their intolerance and lack of humanity becomes the subject of his novel.^[5]

Publication and response

The Scarlet Letter was published in the spring of 1850 by Ticknor & Fields, beginning Hawthorne's most lucrative period.^[7] The book was an instant best-seller.^[8] Its immediate and lasting success are due to the way it addresses spiritual and moral issues from a uniquely American standpoint. In 1850, adultery was an extremely risqué subject, but because Hawthorne had the support of the New England literary establishment, it passed easily into the realm of appropriate reading. It has been said that this work represents the height of Hawthorne's literary genius; dense with terse descriptions. It remains relevant for its philosophical and psychological depth, and continues to be read as a classic tale on a universal theme.^[9]

The Scarlet Letter was also one of the first mass-produced books in America. Into the mid-nineteenth century, bookbinders of home-grown literature typically hand-made their books and sold them in small quantities. The first mechanized printing of The Scarlet Letter, 2,500 volumes, sold out within ten days,^[7] and was widely read and discussed to an extent not much experienced in the young country up until that time. Copies of the first edition are often sought by collectors as rare books, and may fetch up to around $6,000 USD. USD redirects here. ...

Allusions/references to actual history, geography and current science

• Anne Hutchinson, mentioned in Chapter 1 - The Prison Door, was a religious dissenter (1591-1643). In the 1630s she was excommunicated by the Puritans and exiled from Boston and moved to Rhode Island.^[5]
• Martin Luther (1483-1546) was a leader of the Protestant Reformation in Germany.
• Sir Thomas Overbury and Dr. Forman were the subjects of an adultery scandal in 1615 in England. Dr. Forman was charged with trying to poison his adulterous wife and her lover. Overbury was a friend of the lover and was perhaps poisoned.
• John Winthrop (1588-1649), first governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony.

Anne Hutchinson on Trial by Edwin Austin Abbey Anne Hutchinson (July 1591 – August 1643) was the unauthorized Puritan minister of a dissident church discussion group and a pioneer settler in Massachusetts, Rhode Island and New Netherlands. ... The Puritans were members of a group of radical Protestants which developed in England after the Reformation. ... Nickname: City on the Hill, Beantown, The Hub (of the Universe)1, Athens of America, The Cradle of Revolution, Puritan City, Americas Walking City Location in Massachusetts, USA Counties Suffolk County Mayor Thomas M. Menino(D) Area    - City 232. ... This article is about the U.S. State. ... Martin Luther (November 10, 1483 – February 18, 1546) was a German monk,[1] priest, professor, theologian, and church reformer. ... Reformation redirects here. ... Thomas Overbury Sir Thomas Overbury (1581 - September 15, 1613), English poet and essayist, and the victim of one of the most sensational crimes in English history, was the son of Nicholas Overbury, of Bourton-on-the-Hill, and was born at Compton Scorpion, near Ilmington, in Warwickshire. ... John Winthrop (12 January 1587/8–26 March 1649) led a group of English Puritans to the New World, joined the Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1629 and was elected their first governor on April 8, 1630. ... A map of the Massachusetts Bay Colony Capital Charlestown, Boston History  - Established 1629  - New England Confederation 1643  - Dominion of New England 1686  - Province of Massachusetts Bay 1692  - Disestablished 1692 The Massachusetts Bay Colony (sometimes called the Massachusetts Bay Company, for the institution that founded it) was an English settlement on...

Film, TV or theatrical adaptations

1995 film poster

• 1917: A black-and-white silent film directed by Carl Harbaugh with Mary G. Martin as Hester Prynne
• 1926: A silent movie directed by Victor Sjostrom and starring Lillian Gish and Lars Hanson.
• 1934: film directed by Robert G. Vignola and starring Colleen Moore
• 1973: Der Scharlachrote Buchstabe a film directed by Wim Wenders in German
• 1979: PBS version starring Meg Foster and John Heard
• 1995: The Scarlet Letter, a film directed by Roland Joffé and starring Demi Moore as Hester and Gary Oldman as Arthur Dimmesdale. This version is "freely adapted" from Hawthorne according to the opening credits and takes liberties with the original story.
• 1996: The film Primal Fear references The Scarlet Letter.
• The Red Letter Plays (In The Blood produced in 1999, and F--ing A, produced in 2000) by playwright Suzan-Lori Parks, rewrote the story placing it in contemporary New York and Houston.
• 2001: A musical stage adaptation which premiered at the Fringe Festival in Edinburgh, Scotland, by Stacey Mancine, Daniel Koloski, and Simon Gray.
• 2004: The Scarlet Letter is a Korean noir-thriller featuring an adulteress' monologue, that mentions a plan to raise her unborn child as Pearl in America, in a desperate plea to exit her obsessive affair.

Image File history File links Scarletlettermovieposter. ... Image File history File links Scarletlettermovieposter. ... Black-and-white or black and white) can refer to a general term used in photography, film, and other media (see black-and-white). ... A silent film is a film which has no accompanying soundtrack. ... Victor Sjöström  listen, in US sometimes known as Victor Seastrom (born September 20, 1879 - died January 3, 1960), was a Swedish actor, screenwriter, and film director. ... Lillian Diana de Guiche (October 14, 1893 – February 27, 1993), was an Oscar-nominated American actress, better known as Lillian Gish. ... Lars Hanson (July 26, 1886 - April 8, 1965) was a highly successful Swedish film and stage actor mostly remembered for his motion picture roles during the silent film era. ... Robert G. Vignola (August 5, 1882 – October 25, 1953 was an Italian-born actor, screenwriter and film director in American cinema. ... Colleen Moore, born Kathleen Morrison (August 19, 1900 – January 25, 1988) was an American film actress, and one of the most fashionable stars of the silent film era. ... The Scarlet Letter (German: Der Scharlachrote Buchstabe) is a 1973 German film directed by Wim Wenders. ... Ernst Wilhelm (Wim) Wenders (born August 14, 1945) is a German film director, playwright, photographer, and producer. ... The Scarlet Letter is a 1979 miniseries that aired on WGBH from March 3, 1979 to March 24, 1979. ... Meg Foster (Born: May 10, 1948 in Reading, Pennsylvania, USA) is an American actress. ... John Heard John Heard (born March 7, 1945 in Washington, DC, USA) is an American actor. ... The Scarlet Letter is the 1995 film version of the classic Nathaniel Hawthorne novel, The Scarlet Letter. ... Roland Joffé in a TV interview Roland Joffé (born November 17, 1945 in London) is an Anglo-French film director who started out directing television. ... Demi Kutcher (born Demetria Gene Guynes on November 11, 1962) is an American actress. ... Gary Leonard Oldman[1] (born March 21, 1958) is an Emmy and Screen Actors Guild-nominated, Saturn and BAFTA award-winning English-born American[2] film actor, writer and director. ... Primal Fear is a 1996 motion picture which tells a story of a defense attorney (Richard Gere) who defends an altar boy (Edward Norton) charged with the murder of a Catholic archbishop. ... Suzan-Lori Parks (1964 - ) is an African-American playwright and novelist. ... This article is about the state. ... Houston redirects here. ... Fringe Theatre refers to a series of unjuried theatre festivals often called Fringe Festivals. ... Edinburgh viewed from Arthurs Seat. ... This article is about the country. ... The Scarlet Letter is a 2004 South Korean film about a police detective who investigates a murder case while struggling to hang onto his relationships with his wife and mistress. ...

Allusions/references from other works

Literature

• The 1993 novel, The Holder of the World by Bharati Mukherjee re-wrote the story, placing it in present day Boston, Colonial America, and seventeenth century India during the spread of the British East India Company.
• Deborah Noyes wrote a companion to this novel entitled Angel and Apostle with Pearl as the main character.
• Postmodern writer Kathy Acker borrows from The Scarlet Letter in her novel Blood and Guts in High School. Janie, the main character, identifies with Hester Prynne and intertwines their stories in a vulgar manner.
• In the novel Speak, Hairwoman, the English teacher, refers to The Scarlet Letter in her lesson. The novel's protagonist, Melinda Sordino, is a freshman in high school who is ostracized from her fellow schoolmates during the school year, much as Hester Prynne was ostracized by the Puritans in Boston.
• The character Hester Prynne features in Maryse Conde's 'I, Tituba... Black Witch of Salem'.

The Holder of the World, (1993) is a novel by Bharati Mukherjee. ... Bharati Mukherjee (born July 27, 1940) is an award-winning Indian born American writer. ... This article is about the colonial history of the United States. ... The British East India Company, sometimes referred to as John Company, was the first joint-stock company (the Dutch East India Company was the first to issue public stock). ... Angel and Apostle is a novel written by Deborah Noyes in 2005. ... Postmodernity (also called post-modernity or the postmodern condition) is a term used by philosophers, social scientists, art critics and social critics to refer to aspects of contemporary art, culture, economics and social conditions that are the result of the unique features of late 20th century and early 21st century... Kathy Acker (18 April 1947 in Manhattan—30 November 1997 in Tijuana, Mexico) was an experimental novelist, prose stylist, playwright, essayist, poète maudit and sex-positive feminist writer. ... Please wikify (format) this article or section as suggested in the Guide to layout and the Manual of Style. ... Speak is a 1999 novel by Laurie Halse Anderson about a teenager named Melinda Sordino. ... Melinda Sordino is the young narrator of Laurie Halse Anderson’s 1999 novel Speak. ...

Music

• The band Halifax have a song entitled "Scarlet Letter Part 2" on their EP "A Writer's Reference".
• The band As Blood Runs Black titled their song "Hester Prynne" including lyrics that hint towards sin.
• The Music Man character Harold Hill sings a line in the song "The Sadder But Wiser Girl" about his desire for a strong-willed woman: "I smile, I grin, when the gal with a touch of sin walks in. / I hope, and I pray, for a Hester to win just one more 'A'."
• The band Trophy Scars refer to the title of the book in the opening lines of their album Alphabet. Alphabets. There are also other allusions to the novel over the course of the album via a similar theme and lexical device. In a recent interview to Absolute Punk, Jerry Jones, the band's lead singer said "I did indeed adopt Nathaniel Hawthorne's motif for his book The Scarlet Letter".
• The Virginia-based Hip-Hop group The Clipse refers to Hawthorne in an unreleased track from their 2006 album Hell Hath No Fury. Pusha T delivers the line "Like a Scarlett letter, for the world to see" on a song called "Pussy" which was later released on their mix tape album We Got It 4 Cheap: Vol. 1.
• The band Sweetbox references it in their song "Chyna Girl", in which vocalist Jade sings "And now my scarlet letter burns".
• American composer Robert Ward composed a ballet in 1994 for the Winston-Salem Piedmont Triad Symphony based on the novel.
• American composer Stephen Paulus composed a monodrama opera in 2003 entitled "Hester Prynne at Death" (to a text of Terry Quinn) based on the novel.
• The Casting Crowns song "Does Anybody Hear Her?" includes the line; "Can't see past her scarlet letter/And they've never even met her."
• The rosebush is referenced in the song "Don't Forget Me" by the Red Hot Chili Peppers in the line; "I'm the rainbow, in your jail cell, all the memories of everything you've ever smelled."
• The Tool song "The Grudge" deals with the themes of forgiveness and guilt, referencing the novel with the lyrics "Unable to forgive your scarlet letterman"
• The Say Anything song "People Like You Are Why People Like Me Exist" mentions the line "Repressed and overdressed with a Scarlet Letter on your chest."
• The Hole song 'Old Age' references the book with the line "No one knows she's Hester Prynne".
• The Project 86 song titled "Salem's Suburbs" contains the lines "They put on disguises today/To hide the scarlet letters/That each of us has put so far away."

Halifax is a five-piece rock band from Thousand Oaks, California. ... As Blood Runs Black is an American Deathcore band from Torrance, California. ... This article is about the stage musical. ... Trophy Scars is a post-hardcore band from Morristown, New Jersey. ... AbsolutePunk. ... This article is about the U.S. state. ... Breakdance, an early form of hip hop dance, often involves battles, showing off skills without any physical contact with the adversaries. ... The Clipse are a Virginia based multi-platinum selling hip-hop duo. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Hell Hath No Fury is the oft-delayed second album from the Virginia hip hop duo Clipse. ... Sweetbox, is a pop band that was formed in 1995 by producers Heiko Schmidt and GEO and since 2000, has been fronted by vocalist, Jade Villalon. ... Robert Ward (born September 13, 1917 in Cleveland, Ohio) is an American composer. ... Stephen Paulus (born August 24, 1949, Summit, NJ) is an American composer, best known for his operas and choral music. ... Terry OQuinn (Born: July 15, 1952 in Newberry, Michigan, USA) is an American actor. ... Casting Crowns is a Grammy award and Dove Award winning Christian band that employs a soft rock music style. ... The Red Hot Chili Peppers are an American alternative rock band formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1983. ... Tool is an American rock band that was formed in 1990 in Los Angeles, California. ... Say Anything is a rock band from Los Angeles, California. ... // Hole has released three official albums, Pretty on the Inside, Live Through This and Celebrity Skin. ... Project 86 is a post-hardcore band from Orange County, California consisting of Andrew Schwab (vocals), Randy Torres (guitar), and Stephen Dail (bass). ...

Television

• An episode of the America teen drama Popular was based around each of the main characters confessing their Scarlet Letter.
• The show One Tree Hill features an episode with a voice over by character Lucas Scott where a quote from The Scarlet Letter is used.
• In "Easy-Bake Coven" plot The Simpsons Treehouse of Horror VIII, Edna Krabappel is seen wearing a scarlet letter 'A'.
• In "Grey's Anatomy", the episode "Who's Zoomin' Who?", George is trying to get Olivia to say she had slept with other men. He says "it's not like I'm handing out Scarlet Letters or anything."
• In "Reno 911!," the episode "Son of a "Chechekevitch" (2006), Deputies Weigel and Kimball answer a 911 call at the Reno Renaissance Fair, where someone sticks a red "A" on the chest of a very pregnant Weigel.
• In the movie "Speak" Melinda Sordino and her class are studying symbolism with The Scarlet Letter as reference material, Melinda narrates "why couldn't he just say what he meant? Would they pin a scarlett letter on his chest? S for staight forward."
• In an Episode of Saturday Night Live, hosted by Lara Flynn Boyle, Boyle plays "Hester" but instead of an "A" on her chest, it is the letters "BJ". Later in the sketch, Will Ferrell comes on to the scene wearing the letters "HJ" and "BF"
• In an episode of Twin Peaks, Audrey Horne (Sherilyn Fenn) identifies herself as Hester Prynne while attempting to gain employment at a brothel.
• A reference to The Scarlet Letter is made in hit medical drama House (TV series). In episode "Insensitive", Dr. Lisa Cuddy asks Gregory House, "Do I need to stitch a letter on my tops?" when he finds out she had brought a man home after a first date.
• In the song "SlutMaker" by GAZA there is a reference to the scarlet letter. stating:""Sluts fuck better." she said to me. So what's with the Scarlet Letter shit? There's no 'A' on your chest."

Popular is a teenage comedy-drama on The WB, created by Ryan Murphy (Nip/Tuck) and Gina Matthews (What Women Want, Jake 2. ... One Tree Hill is a teen television drama created by Mark Schwahn that premiered on September 23, 2003 on The WB Television Network. ... Simpsons redirects here. ... Treehouse of Horror VIII is the fourth episode of The Simpsons ninth season and first aired on the Fox network on October 26, 1997. ... Speak (2004) is an independent film based on the novel Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson. ... For the hills in San Francisco, see Twin Peaks, San Francisco, California. ... Audrey Horne, played by Sherilyn Fenn Audrey Horne is a fictional character in the television series Twin Peaks, played by Sherilyn Fenn. ... Sherilyn Fenn (born Sheryl Ann Fenn[1] on February 1, 1965 in Detroit, Michigan) is an Emmy and Golden Globe award nominated American actress and filmmaker, best known for playing Audrey Horne on the cult TV series Twin Peaks, for her roles in Ruby, Of Mice and Men, Boxing Helena... Hester Prynne, the young protagonist of Nathaniel Hawthornes book The Scarlet Letter, is a woman condemned by her Puritan comrades. ... House, also known as House, M.D., is an American medical drama television series created by David Shore and executive produced by Shore and film director Bryan Singer. ... Lisa Cuddy, M.D., is a fictional character on the Fox medical drama House. ... Dr. Gregory House, M.D., is a fictional character and protagonist of the Fox medical drama House. ...

Culture

Richard Dawkins's Out Campaign for atheism uses a red scarlet "A" on webpages and clothing as an emblem of atheist identification.^[10] Clinton Richard Dawkins, FRS (born March 26, 1941) is a British ethologist, evolutionary biologist and popular science writer who holds the Charles Simonyi Chair for the Public Understanding of Science at the University of Oxford. ... Atheist redirects here. ...

See also

• Boston in fiction
• Illegitimacy in fiction

This is a list of various works of fiction that takes place in Boston, Massachusetts: // The Bostonians, by Henry James; life in aristocratic Boston during the late nineteenth century. ...

References

Nathaniel Hawthorne (born Nathaniel Hathorne; July 4, 1804 – May 19, 1864) was a 19th century American novelist and short story writer. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) was a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. ... is the 364th day of the year (365th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

External links

Wikisource has original text related to this article:

The Scarlet Letter

• The original text of The Scarlet Letter hosted by the University of Virginia
• Hawthorne in Salem Website Page on Hester and Pearl in The Scarlet Letter
• The Scarlet Letter, available at Project Gutenberg.