Lawrence called it 'a perfect work of American imagination. The novel has been consistently popular since its publication, with it being required reading in many American high schools. First published in 1850, The Scarlet Letter is Nathaniel Hawthornes masterpiece and one of the greatest American novels. This prompted Hawthorne to republish the book 'without the change of a word,' but with a reassurance that the introduction was meant in good spirits. The introduction angered the residents of Salem, who thought the introduction was poking mean-spirited fun at them. Hawthorne initially thought the novel was too short for publication on its own to pad the length, he included the 'Customhouse' introduction. Characters have symbolic names and appearances, and many aspects of the narrative can be viewed in a symbolist lens. It explores themes of sin, guilt, repentance, forgiveness, alienation, and legalism. While the plot is simple, the novel is highly allegorical. For her sin, she is made to wear an embroidered scarlet A on her clothes-for 'Adulteress.' She now faces a life of unending shame in the stern and religious Puritan colony, in a part of the world where there are no others to turn to. Nathaniel Hawthorne (Author) Visit Amazons Nathaniel Hawthorne Page. Hester Prynne has had a child out of wedlock, and its father is a mystery. Buy The Scarlet Letter by Hawthorne, Nathaniel, Baym, Nina (ISBN: 9780143107668) from Amazons Book Store. The novel is set in the Puritan Massachusetts Bay Colony between the years 16. Its first printing of 2,500 books sold out in ten days. The first edition of The Scarlet Letter sold out in ten days and “made Hawthorne’s fame, changed his fortune and gave to our literature its first symbolic novel a year before the appearance of Melville’s Moby-Dick” (Bradley).The Scarlet Letter was published in 1850 it was one of the first books to be mass-produced in America, which helped ensure its immediate popularity and ubiquitous presence on contemporary shelves. She becomes the archetype of the free-thinking American woman grappling with herself and her sexuality in a cold, patriarchal society' (The Guardian).

Hawthorne's achievement is to make her passion noble, her defiance heartbreaking and her frailty inspiring. 'The most memorable and original aspect of The Scarlet Letter lies in Hawthorne's portrait of Hester Prynne, who has been described as 'the first true heroine of American fiction', a woman whose experience evokes the biblical fate of Eve.

A near fine example with minor rubbing to the extremities, with the spine gilt title quite bright. makes every effort to verify the accuracy of the information published, accepts no responsibility for the content of this book. First edition, with 4 pages publisher’s advertisements inserted between preliminary blanks, dated March 1, 1850.

The scarlet letter paperback