When Nathaniel Hawthorne published The Scarlet Letter in 1850, its original title was The Scarlet Letter, A Romance. The year is 1642, which means that … Dates are always a little squishy on literary genres, but the period of American Romanticism began somewhere around 1830 and lasted until about the Civil War in the 1860s. In the third column, list the characters and main events in the structure scene. In fact, the novel’s original title was The Scarlet Letter: A Romance. The fact that the townspeople tolerate Miss Hibbins, and gradually soften their stance towards Hester, implies that their Puritanism is more forgiving and humanitarian than the version that will be practiced by the next generation. The Scarlet Letter. While today we think of romances as love stories, and The Scarlet Letter does contain love scenes between its two protagonists, the term romance as Hawthorne uses it refers to a work of fiction that does not adhere strictly to reality. 102 lessons Nathaniel Hawthorne originally called The Scarlet Letter 'A Romance', but he didn't mean it in the way we use the word now. The novel The Scarlet Letter is set in the theocratic and patriarchal Puritan society of the Massachusetts Bay Colony. Hawthorne wrote in the preface of another of his romances, The House of the Seven Gables, that a romance “sins unpardonably so far as it may swerve aside from the truth of the human heart.” In The Scarlet Letter, Hawthorne underscores the emotional veracity of his tale by qualifying the fantastical elements as possibly the result of the characters’ heightened emotional states. The Scarlet Letter is a novel that deals with the never-ending theme of sin. The Scarlet Letter was written in the Romantic literary period of American Literature. 7 chapters | The film met with overwhelmingly negative reviews and bombed at the box office. The Scarlet Letter is set in Boston in the 1600s, prior to American Independence. Although throughout the book, Hawthorne uses the elements of flashbacks and foreshadowing to give greater understanding or to create irony in his narrative. 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In addition to The Scarlet Letter, his well-known works include the novel The House of the Seven Gables and the story collection Twice-Told Tales. credit by exam that is accepted by over 1,500 colleges and universities. "But there is a fatality, a feeling so irresistible and inevitable that it has the For all the supernatural elements, The Scarlet Letter also explores the life and times of early America. | {{course.flashcardSetCount}} The Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne’s 1850 novel about Puritan Boston, then known as the Massachusetts Bay Colony, tells the story of Hester Prynne, a woman who has given birth to a child out of wedlock—a grave sin in the deeply religious community. The novel is considered a masterpiece of American literature and a classic moral study. flashcard sets, {{courseNav.course.topics.length}} chapters | Working Scholars® Bringing Tuition-Free College to the Community. (page number, paragraph number, etc.). Several characters from the book are based on actual historical figures such as Governor Bellingham, Mistress Higgins, and the character of the narrator himself, whose life story closely follows Hawthorne’s own biography. © copyright 2003-2021 Study.com. Ace your assignments with our guide to The Scarlet Letter! The Scarlet Letter: A Romance is a work of historical fiction by American author Nathaniel Hawthorne, published in 1850. The primary distinguishing feature of the Dark Romantics is their penchant for examining the darker side of human nature. Puritanism began in England during the reign of Queen Elizabeth (1558-1603). settings of Scarlet Letter The settings in The Scarlet Letter are very important in displaying the themes of the novel.The settings in this novel are almost characters, for they are an important part in developing the story. This classic novel from the cannon of American Literature exemplifies the genre of Dark Romanticism. Instead, it was a literary movement which encompassed a rich and diverse tapestry of aesthetic ideas and theories. Not sure what college you want to attend yet? This literary technique allows a writer to tell one story while laying open to the readers several other stories as well. The work centers on Hester Prynne, a married woman who is shunned after bearing a child out of wedlock but displays great compassion and resiliency. The early Puritans who first came to America in 1620 founded a precarious colony in Plymouth, Massachusetts. The Scarlet Letter, by Nathaniel Hawthorne set a genre standard for American Romanticism, with an intrinsic love of nature, sense of freedom of imagination and emotion, and the low regard Hawthorne holds for organized religion and all that it entails. and career path that can help you find the school that's right for you. These otherworldly effects heighten the sense of drama in the story, and convey the feeling that while the exact story is probably not true, it conveys a deeper emotional truth that surpasses the specifics of the tale. Because each character and item in the story can be a representation of any number of other things, The Scarlet Letter, like most literature from the Romantic period, is many-layered and multi-faceted. He compares the dour Puritanical community in Boston both to the “sunny richness” of Old World Europe, where Hester was born, and to the generations to follow, which, he writes “wore the blackest shade of Puritanism, and so darkened the national visage with it” – a reference to the Salem witch trials that would take place fifty years later. They also viewed nature as “evil” or “corrupt”. What kind of book is Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter? Top Colleges for Literary Studies: Program and School Information, Literary Agent: Job Duties, Salary and Outlook, Literary Publicist: Job Description, Duties and Salary. 's' : ''}}. Reverend Dimmesdale, for instance, is lauded for his piety, but it turns out he is the one who committed adultery with Hester Prynne. The character of Miss Hibbins, who freely boasts of consorting with the Black Man, or devil, in the book, is based on the real life figure Mary Hibbins, who was executed for witchcraft in 1652. Meanwhile, the people of the town (or 'society') are really quite nasty. Romance. In fact, the novel’s original title was The Scarlet Letter: A Romance. credit-by-exam regardless of age or education level. In the preface of the book, Hawthorne defines romance as taking place “somewhere between the real world and fairy-land, where the Actual and the Imaginary may meet, and each imbue itself with the nature of the other.” The Scarlet Letter mixes the actual in the form of a historically accurate setting, believable characters, and realistic dialogue with elements of the imaginary, such as the giant “A” that lights up the night sky and the strange mark burned into Dimmesdale's chest. The scaffold, the forest, the prison, and Hester’s cottage are settings that show sin and its consequences result in shame and suffering. Log in here for access. At this time, Puritans believed in living by the bible and that God drew the soul of man to salvation. Hawthorne uses his historical setting to suggest that many of the beliefs and customs of his characters are the result of the times they’re living in, and that society is continually moving between repressive and permissive modes. In setting his novel in the past, Hawthorne comments not only on the morals of a specific period, but contrasts them to both the past and the future. By the end of the 17th century, women convicted of adultery had to wear the letter A sewn into their clothes. The Scarlet Letter is also a historical novel, in that it was written in 1850 but set in the 1640s and contains real-life settings, characters, and actual historical events. Use up and down arrows to review and enter to select. The Scarlet Letter, for instance, is ostensibly about a woman who committed adultery in colonial America. Visit the The Scarlet Letter Study Guide page to learn more. courses that prepare you to earn To learn more about Nathaniel Hawthorne's novel and literary romanticism, you can read through the accompanying lesson, Genre of The Scarlet Letter. Character AnalysisHester PrynneHester is the book’s protagonist and the wearer of the scarlet letter that gives thebook its title. These acknowledgments that characters’ emotions influence their interpretation of events bolsters the sense of psychological accuracy in the novel. The Scarlet Letter is a gothic romance, not a historical novel. It takes place at a recognizable place and time, the Massachusetts Bay Colony during the 17th century, but … Fortunately Hawthorne made the setting, characters, and ideas Puritan inspired and did not incorporate bland Puritan writing style into this work, which was an immense relief for me. https://study.com/academy/lesson/genre-of-the-scarlet-letter.html iv THE SCARLET LETTER THE LIFE AND WORKS OF Nathaniel Hawthorne NathanielHawthorne(1804–1864).BornonJuly4inSalem, Massachusetts, Nathaniel was … A Scarlet RomanceIt is the year 1644, Boston Massachusetts, and the stage is set for one of the most famous romance novels of our time. flashcard set{{course.flashcardSetCoun > 1 ? The Dark Romantics operated under the same principles as the other Romantic writers, they just had a more cynical view of humanity. “It is to the credit of human nature, that, except where its selfishness is brought into play, it loves … A viewing will … Grade 11: Scarlet Letter Setting Tracker As you read The Scarlet Letter, complete the chart below. The Scarlet Letter is a 1995 American romantic drama film directed by Roland Joffé. imaginable degree, area of The Leech - Chillingworth spends much of his time with Dimmesdale, who is very ill. Chillingworth is … In the first chapter, we get a mini tour of the most important town buildings and structures: the prison and the town scaffold. Sociology 110: Cultural Studies & Diversity in the U.S. Library Organization, Search Engines & Research Strategies, Access, Advocacy & Professional Development for Library Media Specialists, 2021 Study.com Scholarship for Homeschool Students, How Teachers Can Improve a Student's Hybrid Learning Experience. She is strong and capable, she is kind, and she is humble. Understanding the larger genre into which The Scarlet Letter informs and broadens our reading of the text. In combining realistic and imaginative elements to tell a moving and dreamlike story, The Scarlet Letter is an example of the romance genre. What did he mean by that? Poe and Hawthorne are often labeled 'dark' because their writings tend to look at the darker side of humanity. The Scarlet Letter shows his attitude toward these Puritans of Boston in his portrayal of characters, his plot, and the themes of his story. To learn more, visit our Earning Credit Page. Containing a number of religious and historic allusions, the book explores themes of legalism, sin, and guilt. Genres are categories into which literature and other art are grouped according to various similarities. This story takes place on a puritan settlement in 17th century Boston. In the second column, provide the proper citation information. The Scarlet Letter was published during the height of Romanticism in literature in the United States. We see that in The Scarlet Letter as so many of the characters are supposedly fine upstanding citizens, but are hiding dark deeds underneath. Symbolism, or using one object, character, or idea to represent something else, is another tenet of Romanticism. “The Prison-Door” This first chapter contains little in the way of action, instead setting the scene and … Nathaniel Hawthorne set this work 200 years earlier during the Puritan era. 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