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The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne
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Reading Guide

The Scarlet Letter

A Romance

Introduction by Alfred Kazin

By Nathaniel Hawthorne

By Nathaniel Hawthorne

By Nathaniel Hawthorne
Introduction by Kathryn Harrison

By Nathaniel Hawthorne
Introduction by Kathryn Harrison

By Nathaniel Hawthorne

By Nathaniel Hawthorne

By Nathaniel Hawthorne
Introduction by Alfred Kazin

By Nathaniel Hawthorne
Introduction by Alfred Kazin

By Nathaniel Hawthorne

By Nathaniel Hawthorne

By Nathaniel Hawthorne
Read by Donada Peters

By Nathaniel Hawthorne
Read by Donada Peters

Best Seller

Part of Vintage Classics

Part of Modern Library Classics

Part of Everyman's Library Classics Series

Paperback $8.00

Aug 26, 2014 | ISBN 9780804171571

Paperback $8.00

Sep 19, 2000 | ISBN 9780679783381

Mass Market Paperback $4.95

Feb 01, 1981 | ISBN 9780553210095

Hardcover $26.00

Nov 03, 1992 | ISBN 9780679417316

Ebook $1.99

Feb 04, 2003 | ISBN 9780553897364

Audiobook Download $18.00

May 10, 2011 | 417 Minutes

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    The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne
    Audiobook Download
    May 10, 2011 | ISBN 9780307916174 | 417 Minutes

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    • $8.00

      Aug 26, 2014 | ISBN 9780804171571

      Buy from Other Retailers:

    • $8.00

      Sep 19, 2000 | ISBN 9780679783381

      Buy from Other Retailers:

    • $4.95

      Feb 01, 1981 | ISBN 9780553210095

      Buy from Other Retailers:

    • $26.00

      Nov 03, 1992 | ISBN 9780679417316

      Buy from Other Retailers:

    • Feb 04, 2003 | ISBN 9780553897364

      Buy from Other Retailers:

    • May 10, 2011 | ISBN 9780307916174

      417 Minutes

      Buy from Other Retailers:

    Buy the Audiobook Download:

    About The Scarlet Letter

    Nathaniel Hawthorne’s masterpiece, an iconic fable of guilt and redemption set in Puritan Massachusetts, has long been considered one of the greatest American novels.
     
    The story of Hester Prynne—found out in adultery, pilloried by her Puritan community, and abandoned, in different ways, by both her partner in sin and her vengeance-seeking husband—possesses a reality heightened by Hawthorne’s sympathy and his unmixed devotion to his supposedly fallen but fundamentally innocent heroine. The Scarlet Letter rightly deserves its stature as the first great novel written by an American, a work of moral force and narrative power that announced a literature equal to any in the world.

    About The Scarlet Letter

    Introduction by Kathryn Harrison
    Commentary by Nathaniel Hawthorne, W. D. Howells, and Carl Van Doren
     
    A stark tale of adultery, guilt, and social repression in Puritan New England, The Scarlet Letter is a foundational work of American literature. Nathaniel Hawthorne’s exploration of the dichotomy between the public and private self, internal passion and external convention, gives us the unforgettable Hester Prynne, who discovers strength in the face of ostracism and emerges as a heroine ahead of her time. As Kathryn Harrison points out in her Introduction, Hester is “the herald of the modern heroine.”
     
    Includes a Modern Library Reading Group Guide

    About The Scarlet Letter

    Hailed by Henry James as "the finest piece of imaginative writing yet put forth in the country," Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter reaches to our nation’s historical and moral roots for the material of great tragedy. Set in an early New England colony, the novel shows the terrible impact a single, passionate act has on the lives of three members of the community: the defiant Hester Prynne; the fiery, tortured Reverend Dimmesdale; and the obsessed, vengeful Chillingworth.

    With The Scarlet Letter, Hawthorne became the first American novelist to forge from our Puritan heritage a universal classic, a masterful exploration of humanity’s unending struggle with sin, guilt and pride.

    About The Scarlet Letter

    Hester Prynne is a beautiful young woman. She is also an outcast. In the eyes of her neighbours she has committed an unforgivable sin. Everyone knows that her little daughter Pearl is the product of an illicit affair but no one knows the identity of Pearl’s father. Hester’s refusal to name him brings more condemnation upon her. But she stands strong in the face of public scorn, even when she is forced to wear the sign of her shame sewn onto her clothes: the scarlet letter “A” for “Adulteress.”

    The story of Hester Prynne–found out in adultery, pilloried by her Puritan community, and abandoned, in different ways, by both her partner in sin and her vengeance-seeking husband–possesses a reality heightened by Hawthorne’s pure human sympathy and his unmixed devotion to his supposedly fallen but fundamentally innocent heroine.

    In its moral force and the beauty of its conciliations, The Scarlet Letter rightly deserves its stature as the first great novel written by an American, the novel that announced an American literature equal to any in the world.

    About The Scarlet Letter

    Hailed by Henry James as "the finest piece of imaginative writing yet put forth in the country," Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter reaches to our nation’s historical and moral roots for the material of great tragedy. Set in an early New England colony, the novel shows the terrible impact a single, passionate act has on the lives of three members of the community: the defiant Hester Prynne; the fiery, tortured Reverend Dimmesdale; and the obsessed, vengeful Chillingworth.

    With The Scarlet Letter, Hawthorne became the first American novelist to forge from our Puritan heritage a universal classic, a masterful exploration of humanity’s unending struggle with sin, guilt and pride.

    About The Scarlet Letter

    Introduction by Kathryn Harrison
    Commentary by Nathaniel Hawthorne, W. D. Howells, and Carl Van Doren
     
    A stark tale of adultery, guilt, and social repression in Puritan New England, The Scarlet Letter is a foundational work of American literature. Nathaniel Hawthorne’s exploration of the dichotomy between the public and private self, internal passion and external convention, gives us the unforgettable Hester Prynne, who discovers strength in the face of ostracism and emerges as a heroine ahead of her time. As Kathryn Harrison points out in her Introduction, Hester is “the herald of the modern heroine.”
     
    Includes a Modern Library Reading Group Guide

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    Listen to a sample from The Scarlet Letter

    Also in Everyman’s Library Classics Series

    Byron's Travels
    Novels, Tales, Journeys

    Also by Nathaniel Hawthorne

    Young Goodman Brown
    The Scarlet Letter
    A Wonder-Book for Girls and Boys
    Hawthorne's Short Stories
    The House of the Seven Gables
    See all books by Nathaniel Hawthorne

    Also by Nathaniel Hawthorne

    Young Goodman Brown
    The Scarlet Letter
    A Wonder-Book for Girls and Boys
    Hawthorne's Short Stories
    The House of the Seven Gables
    See all books by Nathaniel Hawthorne

    Also by Nathaniel Hawthorne

    Young Goodman Brown
    The Scarlet Letter
    A Wonder-Book for Girls and Boys
    Hawthorne's Short Stories
    The House of the Seven Gables
    See all books by Nathaniel Hawthorne

    Also by Nathaniel Hawthorne

    Young Goodman Brown
    The Scarlet Letter
    A Wonder-Book for Girls and Boys
    Hawthorne's Short Stories
    The House of the Seven Gables
    See all books by Nathaniel Hawthorne

    Also by Nathaniel Hawthorne

    Young Goodman Brown
    The Scarlet Letter
    A Wonder-Book for Girls and Boys
    Hawthorne's Short Stories
    The House of the Seven Gables
    See all books by Nathaniel Hawthorne

    Also by Nathaniel Hawthorne

    Young Goodman Brown
    The Scarlet Letter
    A Wonder-Book for Girls and Boys
    Hawthorne's Short Stories
    The House of the Seven Gables
    See all books by Nathaniel Hawthorne

    About Nathaniel Hawthorne

    Nathaniel Hawthorne (1805–64) was an American novelist and short story writer. He was born in Salem, Massachusetts, and graduated from Bowdoin College. His first novel, Fanshawe, was published anonymously in 1828, followed by several collections of short stories, including Twice-Told Tales and Mosses from an… More about Nathaniel Hawthorne

    About Nathaniel Hawthorne

    Nathaniel Hawthorne (1805–64) was an American novelist and short story writer. He was born in Salem, Massachusetts, and graduated from Bowdoin College. His first novel, Fanshawe, was published anonymously in 1828, followed by several collections of short stories, including Twice-Told Tales and Mosses from an… More about Nathaniel Hawthorne

    About Nathaniel Hawthorne

    Nathaniel Hawthorne (1805–64) was an American novelist and short story writer. He was born in Salem, Massachusetts, and graduated from Bowdoin College. His first novel, Fanshawe, was published anonymously in 1828, followed by several collections of short stories, including Twice-Told Tales and Mosses from an… More about Nathaniel Hawthorne

    About Nathaniel Hawthorne

    Nathaniel Hawthorne (1805–64) was an American novelist and short story writer. He was born in Salem, Massachusetts, and graduated from Bowdoin College. His first novel, Fanshawe, was published anonymously in 1828, followed by several collections of short stories, including Twice-Told Tales and Mosses from an… More about Nathaniel Hawthorne

    About Nathaniel Hawthorne

    Nathaniel Hawthorne (1805–64) was an American novelist and short story writer. He was born in Salem, Massachusetts, and graduated from Bowdoin College. His first novel, Fanshawe, was published anonymously in 1828, followed by several collections of short stories, including Twice-Told Tales and Mosses from an… More about Nathaniel Hawthorne

    About Nathaniel Hawthorne

    Nathaniel Hawthorne (1805–64) was an American novelist and short story writer. He was born in Salem, Massachusetts, and graduated from Bowdoin College. His first novel, Fanshawe, was published anonymously in 1828, followed by several collections of short stories, including Twice-Told Tales and Mosses from an… More about Nathaniel Hawthorne

    Product Details

    Category: Classic Fiction | Literary Fiction | Historical Fiction

    Paperback | $8.00
    Published by Vintage
    Aug 26, 2014 | 288 Pages | 5-3/16 x 8 | ISBN 9780804171571

    Category: Classic Fiction | Literary Fiction | Historical Fiction

    Paperback | $8.00
    Published by Modern Library
    Sep 19, 2000 | 304 Pages | 5-3/16 x 8 | ISBN 9780679783381

    Category: Classic Fiction | Literary Fiction | Historical Fiction

    Mass Market Paperback | $4.95
    Published by Bantam Classics
    Feb 01, 1981 | 256 Pages | 4-3/16 x 6-7/8 | ISBN 9780553210095

    Category: Classic Fiction | Literary Fiction | Historical Fiction

    Hardcover | $26.00
    Published by Everyman’s Library
    Nov 03, 1992 | 312 Pages | 5 x 8 | ISBN 9780679417316

    Category: Classic Fiction | Literary Fiction | Historical Fiction

    Ebook | $1.99
    Published by Bantam Classics
    Feb 04, 2003 | 256 Pages | ISBN 9780553897364

    Category: Literary Fiction | Historical Fiction | Audiobooks

    Audiobook Download | $18.00
    Published by Listening Library
    May 10, 2011 | 417 Minutes | ISBN 9780307916174

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    Praise

    "[Nathaniel Hawthorne] recaptured, for his New England, the essence of Greek tragedy." –Malcolm Cowley

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