The Scarlet Letter · Chapters

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Chapter companions for The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne.

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Chapter 1
Preface to the Second Edition
The author responds to public outcry over his introductory sketch of official life, defending its good-humor and accuracy while disclaiming any personal or political enmity, and resolves to republish it unchanged.
Chapter 2
The Customhouse
The narrator introduces himself as a Surveyor in the Salem Customhouse, reflecting on his Puritan ancestors, his own idleness, and the discovery of a manuscript that will become The Scarlet Letter. He describes the decay of the wharf and the customs officers, and explains his autobiographical impulse as a means to authenticate the tale.
Chapter 3
The Scarlet Letter
Hester Prynne is publicly shamed on the scaffold for adultery, forced to wear the scarlet letter 'A' as a symbol of her sin. She refuses to name her lover, and her estranged husband, Roger Chillingworth, arrives in Boston and vows to discover the man's identity.
Chapter 4
I: The Prison-Door
The chapter introduces the setting of a Puritan colony in Boston, describing the prison door and a wild rosebush beside it, symbolizing the tension between societal punishment and nature's compassion.
Chapter 5
II: The Marketplace
Hester Prynne emerges from prison carrying her infant daughter, Pearl, and wearing the elaborately embroidered scarlet letter 'A' on her breast. She ascends the scaffold in the marketplace to endure public shaming, facing a crowd of hostile townspeople, including stern women who criticize her punishment as too lenient. The scene is observed by the town's dignitaries, including Governor Bellingham and ministers, as Hester bears the weight of their judgment with a mixture of dignity and inner turmoil.

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Preface to the Second Edition

The Customhouse

The Scarlet Letter

I: The Prison-Door

II: The Marketplace