The End of ‘The Scarlet Letter’ – and its Lasting Influence

We’ve come to the end of The Scarlet Letter, and it’s time to consider this journey we embarked upon almost three months ago.

In 1876, George Parsons Lathrop (1851-1898) was editor of The Atlantic Monthly (and at 25 years old, no less). That year, he published A Study of Hawthorne, neither an official biography nor an official literary study, but more a hybrid of the two. Lathrop himself called it a “portrait” rather than a biography. Whatever it’s genre, it remains one of the best studies on the work of Nathaniel Hawthorne (1809-1864). The book remained a popular study of the author for at least the next quarter century; I have an edition published in 1898.

Lathrop notes that it was The Scarlet Letter that made the author’s reputation when it was published in 1850. The subject was something of a shock and sensation, but the public quickly got over it and the book became a bestseller, selling out the first printing of 5,000 in 10 days. It was not without its contemporary critics; a publication of the Episcopal Church, which fancied itself the authority on all things Puritan, rained harsh criticism on the book, its story, the author, and anything associated with them. The criticism was ignored.

To continue reading, please see my post today at Literary Life.

Hawthorne and Suspense

The end is near. Or getting nearer. And the suspense is mounting.

Events in Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter are accelerating. It’s been seven years since Hester Prynne sewed the scarlet A on her dress, seven years since Roger Chillingworth began his disguised torment of the Rev. Arthur Dimmesdale, and almost seven years since the birth of Arthur and Hester’s elf-like child Pearl.

The community has reached the point of almost-acceptance of Hester, and she’s just pulled the A from her dress and tossed it in the forest. Dimmesdale encounters Hester in the forest and decides to throw over everything and flee with her and Pearl to Europe; there’s even a ship anchored in the harbor that could take them. 

To continue reading, please see my post today at Literary Life.

The Contradiction of Guilt

The deeper I get into The Scarlet Letter, the more I wonder who the novel is really about. It may be less about Hester Prynne and more about the drama unfolding with Roger Chillingworth, the wronged husband on his quest for vengeance, and Arthur Dimmesdale, the minister who’s fathered Hester’s, out-of-wedlock baby.

Chillingworth, in the guise of the trusted doctor, is gradually pushing Dimmesdale toward a crisis or breakdown. He occupies an interesting position in the story – associated with neither the Puritan church and culture nor the Romanticism of Hester and her daughter Pearl. He interacts with both but acts more like a free agent, outside church and conscience.

To continue reading, please see my post today at Literary Life.

Image of Dimmesdale, Hester, and Pearl on the platform is from the 1878 edition of The Scarlet Letter.