Given the task definition and input, reply with output. You will be given a trivia clue, and the category it belongs to. You should answer with the best answer that belongs in the category and is described by the clue. For simplicity, answers should be in all lower cased letters.

Category: AMERICAN LITERATURE
Clue: "The Scarlet Letter" says, "to forbid the culprit to hide his face... was the essence of" this 7-letter punishment
the pillory