womens fiction

Like many reviewers here, I was "forced" to read this book for my English Composition class. However, unlike many reviewers here, I have a much different view of the story. As some people have said before, Hawthorne's book takes a good deal of concentration, effort, and strength to understand. Not only to understand, but to finish. The story can drag sometimes, it is true, and Hawthorne's style of writing occasionally leaves something to be desired (I don't think I've ever seen that many commas, 15 letter words, or page long paragraphs before), but we simply must look past these minor issues. Overall, the plot is highly creative and intense, despite the writing.\

Ok, ok, I agree that the first chapter, "The Custom-House", was pretty bad. In fact, it was so bad and boring that I drifted off to sleep several times while reading it! The first chapter has little relevancy with the story, so, unless you have to, I would suggest skipping that part of the text. The rest is exceptionally good, and the quality of the plot cannot be overlooked. My advice is to just lay off the first chapter; that way you'll be able to enjoy the rest of the book without difficulty.

The story itself deals with sin and adultery, a subject that isn't very popular right now. Hawthorne does an excellent job of telling us about this, but he leaves the reader with many questions floating around in his mind at the conclusion. At the end of the story you're not 100% sure if Hawthorne was condemning the Puritan society, or if he was commending it. He leaves that for the reader to figure out, which is a thing authors seldom do. That's a major reason I believe this work is so unique and timeless.

The story involves a women named Hester Prynne, living in the New World in the late 17th century. She has committed adultery with someone unknown, and, since the Puritan society considered the Bible to be their ultimate source of law, the punishment was quite severe for such an act. Hester is forced to wear a scarlet "A" (for adultery) on her attire at all times, as a sign to everyone that she has sinned deeply. And so she must carry out the rest of her life this way. That's the major gist of the plot, although there's much more. I won't give it anyway, though, you'll have to read the book to find out.

Let's face it: at some time or another we all are going to probably have to read this book, voluntarily or involuntarily. Shouldn't we try to make the best of it? Read it for its enjoyment, anything else would be missing the point.

Although it suffers from the expected trappings of Romantic literature ( authorial intrusion, verbosity, etc) and the blatant didactic tone of the author, this book is an essential for anyone wishing to have a full appreciation for American literature. Hawthorne creates a masterpiece of social commentary, cross-applied symbolism and overall beauty. The chief virtue of this book is the question posed by the line "what we did had a consecration all its own." It is this line which continues to spark discussions among English teachers everywhere. The implications of these words also seem to elude students across the country. The issue is this: did Hawthorne imply, in paroxysms over the sanctity of nature, that the adultery committed by Hester and Dimmesdale was holy because it was wild like the forest beyond the austere village of the Puritans? The symbolism associated with the product of their sin, Pearl, seems to support this conclusion. The book is worth the read merely to contemplate that question, let alone the fact that The Scarlet Letter is a near-perfect example of American Romanticism. I do have to admit that it would be a bit more enjoyable if Hawthorne had used a synonym for "ignominy" once or twice....

This story has been synopsized repeatedly on this item page, and I'll not be redundant. Instead, I'll move directly to explaining the four-star rating I gave it.

Strengths
1. It is, from a technical standpoint, very well-written.
2. It paints a clear picture of the era.
3. It describes, and questions, the social mores regarding infidelity and adultery.
4. It describes the consequences of adultery, not just for the unfaithful spouse, but for all affected parties.

Weaknesses
1. "The Scarlet Letter" is very detailed and descriptive, and can be boring at times, especially in the beginning.
2. Many adults think this is a great book for teens to read. Most of the teens I've discussed this book with do not agree; they find it boring, wordy, and irrelevant.