The Scarlet Letter

The Scarlet Letter is considered Nathaniel Hawthorne’s masterpiece. Set in 17th-century Salem, Massachusetts during the years 1642 to 1649 under Puritan rule, it tells the story of Hester Prynne, who conceives a daughter through an adulterous affair and struggles to create a new life of repentance and dignity. She refuses to reveal who is Pearl’s father and agrees to protect the identity of her long-missing husband, until fate and long-imprisoned guilt make it clear she is not the only one to wear the scarlet letter A.