The novel is set in a village in Puritan New England. The main character is Hester Prynne , a young woman who has borne a child out of wedlock. Hester believes herself a widow, but her husband, Roger Chillingworth, arrives in New England very much alive and conceals his identity. He finds his wife forced to wear the scarlet letter A on her dress as punishment for her adultery. After Hester refuses to name her lover, Chillingworth becomes obsessed with finding his identity.
Stricken by guilt, Dimmesdale becomes increasingly ill. Hester herself is revealed to be a self-reliant heroine who is never truly repentant for committing adultery with the minister; she feels that their act was consecrated by their deep love for each other. Although she is initially scorned, over time her compassion and dignity silence many of her critics.
In the end, Chillingworth is morally degraded by his monomaniacal pursuit of revenge. Only Hester can face the future bravely, as she prepares to begin a new life with her daughter, Pearl , in Europe. Years later Hester returns to New England, where she continues to wear the scarlet letter. The scarlet letter A that Hester is forced to wear is finely embroidered with gold-coloured thread. As both a badge of shame and a beautifully wrought human artifact , it reflects the many oppositions in the novel, such as those between order and transgression, civilization and wilderness, and adulthood and childhood.
The more society strives to keep out wayward passion, the more it reinforces the split between appearance and reality. The members of the community who are ostensibly the most respectable are often the most depraved, while the apparent sinners are often the most virtuous.
The Scarlet Letter
The novel also crafts intriguing symmetries between social oppression and psychological repression. BAL ; Clarke A Morgan exlibris, pencil shelfmark; deaccessioned. James Cummins Bookseller Published: A very good example with to the extremities, rebacked with some rubbing to the bottom of the cloth and short splits along front joint. Housed in a custom clamshell box. First edition, first issue with March, ads and "reduplicate" for "repudiate" on line 20 of page 21; "characterss" page 41, line 5; "Chatechism" page , line 29; and "known of it" page , line 4.
In a lovely polished calf binding by Sangorski and Sutcliffe with gilt tooling to spine, skillfully rebacked and bound with an extra title page and preface for the Second Edition at rear. Ticknor, Reed and Fields,, Finely bound by The Chelsea Bindery in full dark blue morocco, titles and decoration to spine gilt, single rule to boards gilt, inner dentelles gilt, marbled endpapers, all edges gilt.
First edition, first issue: First edition, with Hawthorne's signature bound in.
First edition identification and notes
Bound without the ads, a few touches to joints and tips. Red morocco gilt by P. Sanford, spine in six compartments with five raised bands, gilt-lettered in two, a repeated leafy block in the rest, two triple-fillet panels on the sides, turn-ins gilt, top edges gilt; original cloth covers and spine bound in at end. Alfred Nathan morocco bookplate ; with Inman's slip laid-in.
Bound without the ads, a fine copy with a few minor touches to joints and corners. A very attractive copy of this landmark American novel, with a document bearing the author's signature bound in: From , Hawthorne worked for three years as a weigher and gauger at the Boston Customs House.
He was then living in a rented room, and furtively writing in what he called the home's "owl's nest" when not consumed with his bureaucratic duties at work. Of this period in his life he wrote to Longfellow, "I have not lived, but only dreamed about living. Hawthorne titled his introduction to The Scarlet Letter the custom-house and writes of his three years' employment there, making several allusions to local politicians.
The inclusion of a signed document from this period in the author's early career is thus an appropriate and evocative enhancement. Bound without the ads, a few touches to joints and tips Edition: Ticknor, Reed, and Fields, First Edition, First Printing with the misprint "reduplicate" for "repudiate" in line 20, page This book also has the correct ads dated March 1, The book has been re-backed on the spine using the original publisher's brown cloth with some restoration.
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The boards of the book are original with light wear. The pages are clean with new endpapers and minor wear to the edges. There is NO writing, marks or bookplates in the book. Scarlet Letter Hawthorne, Nathaniel Boston: Ticknor, Reed, and Fields. Dark brown morocco and original cloth. Rebacked recently with leather, five raised bands.
On the spine there is gilt lettering title and author on red leather in separate compartments. First issue with the March, ads at the front, "reduplicate" for "repudiate" on line 20 of page 21; "characterss" on page 41, line 5; "Chatechism" on page , line 29; and "known of it" on page , line 4. Early owner name and in pencil to the front free endpaper. Small label to the front pastedown. Corners with slight wear and boards just showing. Text without foxing or marking. There is some foxing to the ads. Heavy wear to spine and covers. Chipping to spine with spine cloth showing at places.
Bumped corners and shelf wear. Water stain to title page and front end paper. Occasional foxing, but overall clean and not affecting text. This copy is an excellent candidate for expert bindery repair. Illustrated with 15 plates in two states, colored and uncolored by A. Graham; 30 plates in all. Full contemporary red morocco with elaborate gilt stamped design of scrolling, small flowers and ruling; marbled endpapers. One of copies on Imperial Japan paper.. With fifteen original colored illustrations by A. Large octavo x mm. Contemporary binding by Zaehnsdorf for Brentano's New York , in brown crushed morocco with red onlay, covers with central panel in gilt infilled with stylized flower and leaf tools, spine lettered in gilt with flower ornaments in compartments, brown silk endpapers, gilt ruled edges, inner dentelles and top edge gilt, other edges uncut.
Frontispiece and 14 plates all in two states, coloured and uncoloured, with printed tissue guards; 30 plates in all.
Spine a little rubbed; an excellent copy, internally fine. Special limited edition, one of only copies printed on Japanese imperial paper one copy was printed on vellum. Second edition with "Preface to the Second Edition" added, first printing with Metcalf imprint and May, ads. Publisher's brown cloth stamped in blind and titled in gilt.
A couple of faint spots on boards, small breaks in the cloth at the spine ends, slight foxing in text, but a superior near fine copy with the spine lettering bright. Ownership signature of John A. Robison at the top of the ads.
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Tiny orange printed label of "L. Hall, Book-Seller, Syracuse" on front pastedown. Housed in custon cloth chemise and quarter morocco gilt and cloth slipcase. A nice copy of an early edition of one of the early masterpieces of American literature. Between the Covers- Rare Books, Inc.
Ticknor and Fields, In Very Good condition, with wear commensurate with age. Cloth shows a few spots to the front board, light mottling with age. Chipping to cloth at spine ends. Gilt stamping to spine is pleasantly bright. Front hinge appears repaired. Previous owner name on front end paper. Prelims show light staining. Pages show light occasional foxing, but are surprisingly bright. A lovely, unrestored copy. Five star seller - Buy with confidence! Has some crinkling and staining. Illustrated by Miss M.
Argosy Book Store Condition: Slight lean; few internal marks and smudges; a pair of early ownership inscriptions; shelf rubbed and with wear to head and heel of spine.
Includes a new two-page preface by the author. With Metcalf on copyright page and ads dated May Locus Solus Rare Books Published: Slight lean; few internal marks and smudges; a pair of early ownership inscriptions; shelf rubbed and with wear to head and heel Edition: Many illustrations by H. Argosy Book Store Published: Color woodblock illustrated by Valenti Angelo.
Limited Edition, one of numbered copies. Ships with Tracking Number! Buy with confidence, excellent customer service! Spine creases, wear to binding and pages from reading. May contain limited notes, underlining or highlighting that does affect the text. Accessories such as CD, codes, toys, may not be included. Illust by George H.
The Scarlet Letter - Wikipedia
Houghton with 13 plates in two states, the second in color. As Hester looks out over the crowd, she notices a small, misshapen man and recognizes him as her long-lost husband, who has been presumed lost at sea. When the husband sees Hester's shame, he asks a man in the crowd about her and is told the story of his wife's adultery. He angrily exclaims that the child's father, the partner in the adulterous act, should also be punished and vows to find the man.
He chooses a new name, Roger Chillingworth, to aid him in his plan. The Reverend John Wilson and the minister of Hester's church, Arthur Dimmesdale, question the woman, but she refuses to name her lover. After she returns to her prison cell, the jailer brings in Roger Chillingworth, a physician, to calm Hester and her child with his roots and herbs. He and Hester have an open conversation regarding their marriage and the fact that they were both in the wrong. Her lover, however, is another matter and he demands to know who it is; Hester refuses to divulge such information.
He accepts this, stating that he will find out anyway, and forces her to hide that he is her husband. If she ever reveals him, he warns her, he will destroy the child's father. Hester agrees to Chillingworth's terms although she suspects she will regret it. Following her release from prison, Hester settles in a cottage at the edge of town and earns a meager living with her needlework, which is of extraordinary quality.
She lives a quiet, somber life with her daughter, Pearl, and performs acts of charity for the poor. She is troubled by her daughter's unusual fascination with Hester's scarlet "A". The shunning of Hester also extends to Pearl, who has no playmates or friends except her mother. As she grows older, Pearl becomes capricious and unruly. Her conduct starts rumors, and, not surprisingly, the church members suggest Pearl be taken away from Hester. Hester, hearing rumors that she may lose Pearl, goes to speak to Governor Bellingham.
With him are ministers Wilson and Dimmesdale. Hester appeals to Dimmesdale in desperation, and the minister persuades the governor to let Pearl remain in Hester's care. Because Dimmesdale's health has begun to fail, the townspeople are happy to have Chillingworth, a newly arrived physician, take up lodgings with their beloved minister. Being in such close contact with Dimmesdale, Chillingworth begins to suspect that the minister's illness is the result of some unconfessed guilt.
He applies psychological pressure to the minister because he suspects Dimmesdale is Pearl's father. One evening, pulling the sleeping Dimmesdale's vestment aside, Chillingworth sees a symbol that represents his shame on the minister's pale chest. Tormented by his guilty conscience, Dimmesdale goes to the square where Hester was punished years earlier. Climbing the scaffold, he admits his guilt but cannot find the courage to do so publicly.
Hester, shocked by Dimmesdale's deterioration, decides to obtain a release from her vow of silence to her husband. Several days later, Hester meets Dimmesdale in the forest and tells him of her husband and his desire for revenge. She convinces Dimmesdale to leave Boston in secret on a ship to Europe where they can start life anew.
Renewed by this plan, the minister seems to gain new energy. On Election Day, Dimmesdale gives what is called one of his most inspired sermons. But as the procession leaves the church, Dimmesdale climbs upon the scaffold and confesses his sin, dying in Hester's arms. Later, most witnesses swear that they saw a stigma in the form of a scarlet "A" upon his chest, although some deny this statement.
Chillingworth, losing his will for revenge, dies shortly thereafter and leaves Pearl a substantial inheritance. After several years, Hester returns to her cottage and resumes wearing the scarlet letter. When she dies, she is buried near the grave of Dimmesdale, and they share a simple slate tombstone engraved with an escutcheon described as: The major theme of The Scarlet Letter is shaming and social stigmatizing, both Hester's public humiliation and Dimmesdale's private shame and fear of exposure.
Notably, their liaison is never spoken of, so the circumstances that lead to Hester's pregnancy, and how their affair was kept secret never become part of the plot. This combination of "dreaminess" and realism gave the author space to explore major themes. The experience of Hester and Dimmesdale recalls the story of Adam and Eve because, in both cases, sin results in expulsion and suffering.
But it also results in knowledge - specifically, in knowledge of what it means to be immoral. For Hester, the Scarlet Letter is a physical manifestation of her sin and reminder of her painful solitude. She contemplates casting it off to obtain her freedom from an oppressive society and a checkered past as well as the absence of God. Because the society excludes her, she considers the possibility that many of the traditions held up by the Puritan culture are untrue and are not designed to bring her happiness.
As for Dimmesdale, the "cheating minister", his sin gives him "sympathies so intimate with the sinful brotherhood of mankind, so that his chest vibrate[s] in unison with theirs. The subtlety is that the minister's belief is his own cheating, convincing himself at every stage of his spiritual pilgrimage that he is saved. The rose bush's beauty forms a striking contrast to all that surrounds it; as later the beautifully embroidered scarlet "A" will be held out in part as an invitation to find "some sweet moral blossom" in the ensuing, tragic tale and in part as an image that "the deep heart of nature" perhaps God may look more kindly on the errant Hester and her child than her Puritan neighbors do.