num_pages: 439
description: Set in 17th-century Puritan Boston, Massachusetts, during the years 1642 to 1649, it tells the story of Hester Prynne, who conceives a daughter through an affair and will not reveal her lover’s identity. The scarlet letter A (for adultery) she has to wear on her clothes, along with her public shaming, is her punishment for her sin and her secrecy. She struggles to create a new life of repentance and dignity. Throughout the book, Hawthorne explores themes of legalism, sin, and guilt.
language: English
title: The Scarlet Letter
titlecomplete: The Scarlet Letter
characters: Roger Chillingworth, Mistress Hibbins, Arthur Dimmesdale, Governor Bellingham, Hester Prynne, Pearl Prynne
genres: Read For School, Historical Fiction, Historical, School, Novels, Literature, High School, Classic Literature, Classics, Fiction
ratings_count: 840898
places: Massachusetts, The United States of America, Boston, Massachusetts
publisher: W W Norton & Co Inc