# The Scarlet Letter

By Nathaniel Hawthorne.

"The Scarlet Letter" by Nathaniel Hawthorne is a historical novel published in 1850. Set in Puritan Massachusetts during the 1640s, it follows Hester Prynne, who bears a child out of wedlock and must wear a scarlet "A" as punishment for adultery. While she refuses to name the father, her long-lost husband arrives in town seeking revenge. The story explores themes of sin, guilt, and redemption as secrets threaten to destroy lives in this unforgiving community. (Summary by Project Gutenberg, written by machine.)

- Language: English
- Engraver: A. V. S. Anthony
- Illustrator: Mary Hallock Foote
- Illustrator: Ludvig Sandöe Ipsen
- Subjects: Adultery -- Fiction; Historical fiction; Revenge -- Fiction; Psychological fiction; Married women -- Fiction; Clergy -- Fiction; Triangles (Interpersonal relations) -- Fiction; Illegitimate children -- Fiction; Women immigrants -- Fiction; Puritans -- Fiction; Boston (Mass.) -- History -- Colonial period, ca. 1600-1775 -- Fiction

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From Project Gutenberg. Public domain in the United States.