Scarlet Letter Project

1. Scarlet Letter Project Based on the Scarlet Letter By Nathaniel Hawthorne Rachel McNicklePd AB

2. Nathaniel Hawthorne Nathaniel Hawthorne was born in Salem, Massachusetts on July 4th, 1804. Nathaniel’s original last name was “Hathorne” which he later changed to “Hawthorne” to separate himself of his family’s history. Nathaniel’s father passed away when Nathaniel was young which caused his mother to become very protective and push him towards isolated activites. This led Nathaniel to writing. Nathaniel went on to attend Bowdoin College in 1825. After graduating college, he settled in Salem. In 1842, Nathaniel married Sophia Peabody. The couple then moved to Concord, Massachusetts and eventually had three children together, Una, Julian, and Rose. Once settled, Nathaniel continued writing. Hawthorne wrote many successful short stories including “"My Kinsman, Major Molineux", "Roger Malvin's Burial", and "Young Goodman Brown“. Upon his return to Salem in 1845 and was appointed a position of the Boston Custom House by President James Polk. When Zachary Taylor became president, Nathaniel was removed. Due to this, he dedicated all of his time to his now-famous novel, The Scarlet Letter. This novel was a complete success and is said to be an “inevitable read for most high school English classes.” The book’s success drove Hawthorne to a life of writing. He went on to write multiple other novels such as The Blithedale Romance. Sadly, Nathaniel Hawthorne passed away on May 19, 1964 in Plymouth, New Hampshire. He had suffered a long illness and was buried in Concord, Massachusetts. http://www.pbs.org/wnet/americannovel/timeline/hawthorne.html http://www.egs.edu/library/nathaniel-hawthorne/biography/ http://www.gradesaver.com/author/hawthorne/ http://www.dosomething.org/tipsandtools/book-review-scarlet-letter

3. Character Profile: Hester Prynne Hester Prynne is the protagonist of The Scarlet Letter. Hester is a young woman married to an elderly man named Roger Chillingworth. Roger Chillingworth sends his wife, Hester, to Boston, Massachusetts to find a home for the couple where they can start fresh. Roger was to stay back and finish a few things and then follow Hester when he was done. However, Roger failed to come to America after her. While in Boston, Hester meets and falls in love with Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale. They have an affair which results in pregnancy and the birth of her daughter, Pearl. Hester is then publicly punished on the scaffold for committing adultery. She wears a scarlet letter “A” for punishment of her sin. Hester embraces her letter and stitches it with gold. When she was asked who the man was, she refuses to tell. Hester is then put in jail, and finally Roger returns. Roger poses as a doctor who is supposed to visit Hester in jail . There Hester tells Roger, “thou knowest that I was frank with thee. I felt no love, nor feigned any.” (Page 69). Hester married Roger because it was convenient (Page 69). Her true love was for Dimmesdale. Once she is released from jail, Hester and Pearl move to the outskirts of town. She remains strong while the town alienates her. She also fights for the right to keep her daughter. Hester is an independent women, who supports herself and her daughter by selling her work as a seamstress to people as important as the governor. Hester also donates her work to the poor members of town. She “had no selfish ends, nor lived in any measure for her own profit and enjoyment…” (Page 234)

4. Conflict Analysis Hester Prynne faces many conflicts during The Scarlet Letter as an adulteress. She faces is the risk of losing her daughter, Pearl. This conflict takes place in the Governor’s mansion in the presence of Reverend Wilson and Dimmesdale. The Governor informs Hester that Pearl may be taken from her because the townspeople feel Hester is not fit to be a mother. He states, “The point hath been weightily discussed, whether we, that are of authority and influence, do well discharge our consciences by trusting an immortal soul, such as there is in yonder child, to the guidance of one who hath stumbled and fallen, amid the pitfalls of this world…” He continues, “Were it not, thinkest thou, for thy little one’s temporal and eternal welfare that she be taken out of thy charge…?’ ” (Page 101) They believe Pearl should be raised by someone else. Hester instantly makes her case at the thought of having Pearl taken from her. Hester believes that Pearl should not be taken away. She believes that she can be a great mother to her daughter and teach Pearl from her mistakes so that she never makes the same. Hester looks at Dimmesdale, and he talks the Governor into letting Pearl live with Hester. He believed that Pearl would be raised better under the circumstances. The conflict is motivation for Hester to be a better mother to Pearl. This conflict also demonstrates the bond between Hester and Dimmesdale. Although, the day ended well for Hester, it could’ve taken a turn for the wrong. By speaking for Hester, Dimmesdale could’ve revealed himself as Pearl’s father.