The Scarlet Letter (Nathaniel Hawthorne)

Summary of each chapter:

Chapter 1:
- Boston in the 17th century
- Puritan colonists gathered in front of the prison to see a public punishment.
- The colony is established and filled with people embedded within nature
- The scene is ugly compared to the beauty of a wild rosebush by the jail door
- A depressing somber mood is established here at the onset of the Scarlet Letter.
Chapter 2:
- It opens with women standing outside the jail viciously discussing the prisoner,
Hester Prynne, she has been found guilty of adultery
- Hester will be punished by public humiliation
- Hester comes out of the jail holding Pearl, her 3-month-old daughter clutched on her
breast, but she also has a Scarlet Letter embroidered beautifully
- Hester walks to a scaffold where people have gatherers, she wears the Scarlet Letter
directly on her chest, symbolizing her crime and punishment the A is not plain as the
Puritans would likely have liked but embroidered intricately red and gold
- While Hester stands before the hostile crowd she thinks back to her life in England
and her marriage to a much older misshapen scholar whom she didn't love.
- The seventh commandment forbids adultery.
- Puritans considered a punishment the death of both parties involved.
- Colony leaders spared Hester’s life, however, because they considered that she
thought her husband was dead and that her partner would not reveal his identity
- Hester was exquisitely embroidered the A showing her defiance of the scornful
judgment. She makes the A beautiful, she believes in her loved ones rather than
shame.
Chapter 3:
- Hester recognized an older man in the back of the crowd.
- This mas is the “stranger”. (Chillingworth)
- A man in the audience tells the inquiring stranger about Hester landing in t Boston
from England two years ago.
- Her husband was to arrive after, but he didn't
- She was there by herself and fell in love with another man, giving birth to her
daughter.
- Her youth and thinking about her husband was what saved her from death.
- She did, after all, think her husband had passed away.
- John Wilson, a well-respected elder in the Puritan church, pushes Arthur
Dimmesdale, Hester’s charismatic young pastor to ask Hester to reveal the name of
her lover.
- Hester refuses
- Governor Bellingham also urges Dimmesdale to get Hester to confess the name.
Dimmesdale reluctantly asks. Hester continues to refuse.
- Wilson delivers a sermon on sin, referring to Hester’s Scarlet Letter.
- Hester is taken back to prison
Chapter 4.
- Hester is upset back in jail and her baby is convulsing in pain the jailer sends to find
a doctor and comes back with Roger Chillingworth the “stranger”
- He says he is a doctor He gives the baby medicine to sleep and gives Hester a
sedative and then they talk
- Chillingworth is Hester’s husband
- He takes partial blame for her affair, he demands to know her lover’s identity, she
refuses to name him
- Chilligwth promises to figure it out and makes Hester swear not to tell anyone else
that he is her husband
- Chillingworth wants revenge
- Chillingworth was with the native Americas learning traditional medicine when he was
missing for two years.
- This separates him from the Puritans who rejected Native Americans as savages and
non-believers
- His practicing medicine connects Chillingworth with the forest rather than the settled
Puritan city
- Chillingworth is good and bad, is a doctor who can cure a disease but he is also a
tormentor who uses his intelligence in dangerous ways
Chapter 5:
- Hester is free at last, her prison term is over
- She stays in an isolated part of town and supports herself as a seamstress. Her
needlework becomes much in demand to everyone but the brides after all Hester is
still an outcast.
- She feels relief when someone stares at her. She feels that that person shares her
pain.
- Hester develops an ability to sense everyone's secret sins, including the clergyman
- Even through the stigma associated with her, Hester stays in Boston because it is
fitting to be in the scene of her earthly punishment.
- She hopes she could purge her soul and gain another purity than that what she had
lost.
- Her decision to stay develops themes of sin, guilt, and personal and public truth
- Hester didn’t see her action as sinful, she accepts that the town’s people see them as
such
- Hester is an outcast yet her work is in demand her handiwork has become the
fashion of the town, the admiration for her work.
Chapter 6:
- Hester’s daughter's name is revealed: Pearl (Because of the great price at which she
was born)
- Pearl is beautiful, but a wild child
- She throws violent tantrums (berrinches) and does not follow the rules
- Pearl has been taught the basics of Puritan religion
- There a complex relationship here between mom and daughter, a mixture of love,
worry and a dogmatic sense of responsibility.
- Hester dresses Pearl in finery to indulge Pearl and the thumper nose at society
- Sometimes Hester matches Pearl's clothes with the Scarlet Letter
- Hester dotes a bit on Pearl and doesn't discipline and correct much of Pearl’s
aggressive behavior.
 - Pearl is a passionate child
- Hester recognizes herself in that quality, but fears pearls will develop some of the
very cloud shapes of gloom ad despondency she felt.
- When Pearl shows her temper Hester clutches her to her breast, not so much from
overflowing love as to assure herself Pearl was flesh and blood
- Pearl is an outcast like her mom, she has no playmates, she shuns them and throws
stones at them to chase them.
Chapter 7:
- This chapter takes place in the governor’s Hall.
- Two to three years pass and Hester and Pearl go to governors Bellingham Hall
- Hester brings a pair of sewn and embroidered gloves
- Her primary purpose is to block the plan to take Pearl away from her.
- Authorities say she’s an unfit mom due to her affair
- Pearl is dressed in a fancy Scarlet dress embroidered with gold thread.
- Children tease her and Hester on the way, but Pearl chases them away
- Hester and Pearl enter to the governor’s entrance hall and Pearl is delighted to see
the Scarlet Letter reflected in the armor on display grossly enlarged by its reflection
- Hester takes Pearl to the garden and she cries for a red rose only calming down
when some men approach
- Pearl is seen as the living embodiment of Hester’s Sin
- Hester dresses Pearl as a miniature A
- Hester makes this parallel even more obvious when she showed scorn for the
Puritans moral cruelty
- The symbol of sin is repeated in the red rose Pearl cries for.
- People do not see Hester, only her sin.
Chapter 8:
- Characters present: Governors Bellighan, Reverend Wilson, Chillingworth, and
Dimmesdale.
- Hester insists on not losing custody of Pearl
- Wilson asks Pearl who made her. Pearl did know that God created her, but she said
she was plucked from the rosebush outside the prison
- Bellingham was horrified so he decided is unfit and Pearl should be removed from
her custody
- Hester says that Pearl is her happiness and her pain, and that she is the Scarlet
Letter
- Hester begs Dimmesdale to help her to pursue the other to keep Pearl
- Dimmesdale confirm that Pearl was made by God (Father’s guilt and mother’s
shame) and pursued other to let Hester keep Pearl
- Chillingworth is analyzing Pearl to determine who’s the father
- Wilson sid to Chillingworth that he should let God when the identity is reveal
- Mistress Hibbins, a witch. Invited Hester to come to do a meeting with other witches
in the forest that very night. Hester refuses because she was alow to keep Pearl (this
may not be true)
- Dimmesdale stays in the shadow during his meeting concealing his sin, but Hester
reveals herself
- Pearl takes Dimmesdale's hands, symbolically recognizing that he is her father.
Dimmesdale is not yet ready to admit that he was Hester’s lover and Pearl’s dad.
- Dimmesdale seems to be a good Puritan, but that is not the reality.
 - Dimmesdale does not want to admit the shared sin with Hester
- Chillingworth has become uglier, he has been corrupted by evil.
- Hester is a good mother, he has taught Pearl about religion. Pearl is rebellious, so
she refused to give the right answer to the question.
Chapter 9:
- Dimmesdale is thin and pale, due to a strange illness. The people praise him as a
saint
- Chillingworth offers his help and moves with Dimmesdale to watch him
- Puritans applaud Chillingworth hoping he can cure Dimmesdale
- Dimmesdale holds his hand in his heart
- Chillingworth is even uglier due to the evil
- The town’s people turn against him wondering if he is satan
- Leech has a double meaning, referring to the one the doctors used to take blood
from patients and Chillingworth himself is a leech because he is sucking
Dimmesdale’s life, praying for him, increasing his guilt and agony.
Chapter 10:
- Chillingworth goes deeper into Dimmesdale's heart, asking him to reveal all his
secrets to relieve his soul
- Dimmesdale refuses
- They see Hester and Pearl walking in the graveyard.
- Pearl places burs on the Scarlet Letter and Pearl notices that Dimmesdale is
watching them so she throws burn at Dimmesdale
- Chillingworth sees Dimmesdale sleeping on a chair and opens Dimmesdale’s shirt to
see his chest, when he sees something on his chest he started dancing, he looked
like Satan himself
- Chillingworth is overjoyed of what he sees of Hester’s chest. We can see secrecy
and hypocrisy in Chillingworth persistent effort to get Dimmesdale to reveal the truth
while Chiligworth hides his own identity.
Chapter 11:
- Chillingworth plans a more intimate revenge, so he goes everywhere with
Dimmesdale.
- Dimmesdale tries to reveal the secrete even during his sermons
- He whips himself, he starves, and stays up late as punishment for his sin.
- During the nights he sees Hester and Pearl in his mind
- One night Dimmesdale finally leaves at night.
- The more Dimmesdale tries to confess his guilt the more holy his follower thinks he
is.
Chapter: 12
- Dimmesdale climbs the scaffold and cries out in guilt
- Wilson walks by on his way home from Governor John Winthrop's deathbed.
- Dimmesdale does not speak to him
- He imagines townspeople finding him in the morning and he laughs.
- Then Pearl and Hester were on their way back from Winthdrop’s deathbed, and
Dimmesdale ask them to join him on the scaffold
- They all hold hand and Dimmesdale says they will stand together on Judgement Day
- A meteor streaks through the sky forming a letter A. At that moment Pearl points to
Chillingworth who was standing in front of the scaffold
 - Dimmesdale asks Hester who Chillingworth really is, admitting that he hates and
fears the man. Hester does not answer
- Chlligworth reaches out and Dimmesdale returns home with him
- The next day Dimmesdale gives one of his best sermons and the old sexton gives
Dimmesdale the glove that he left on the scaffold claiming it was the devil’s work to
try to make the minister look bad
- The A in the sky is a symbol for the Scarlet Letter, so is Pearl. Is something that the
main character understands and recognizes but no one else in the town does, they
think that A stands for angel a reference to Winthrop whose dying.
Chapter 13:
- 7 years have passed in the colony and things have changed
- Hester has become well respected for her aid to the needy and the unselfish nursing
of the ill
- She has become a religious figure
- Hester has become severe and plain as the rest of the Puritan. She is more joined to
the community more
- At the beginning of the book Hester wears the scarlet letter as a symbol of shame,
now it symbolizes goodness, respect, and admiration.
- Hester’s good deeds redeemed her reputation, however, she continues to be denied
adult companionship and love and remains isolated from the rest of the community.
- Hester continues to be close to Pearl
- Hester has lost her beauty

Chapter 14:
- Hester is shocked of how Dimmesdale looks because of the disease
- Hester decides to help him
- She sends Pearl to play and then goes to speak to Chillingworth
- He says that people are saying that officials may let her remove her scarlet letter
- Hester says that it does not lie in the magistrate to take of the letter
- Hester berates Chillingworth for his cruelty toward Dimmesdale
- Chillingworth says he saved Dimmesdale’s life, but finally confessed that he has
been tormenting Dimmesdale, but blames him for turning into a fiend (demonio)
- Hester takes blame for Chillingworth’s actions and says she must reveal that she is
his wife. Chillingworth leaves it up to her to make the call.
- By torturing Dimmesdale Chillingworth has become a fiend, corrupted by evil
- Chillingworth sin is greater than Hester's and Dimmesdale's
- Chillingworth reveals how hard-hearted he is by placing the blame on Hester his lack
of charity is evident when he refuses to pardon Dimmesdale or quit tormenting, he
absolves himself of responsibility.
Chapter 15:
- Hester thinks of her hate toward Chillingworth
- Pearl approaches and had made an “A” made of seaweed and placed it on her chest
- Hester asks Pearl if she knows why she wears an “A”. Pearl asks Hester what the A
means and why Dimmesdale places his hand in his heart. Hester was about to reveal
all the secrets, but she stops
- Hester feels as though she has not been true to the A or herself
- In that instant Hester abandons private truth.
Chapter 16:
- Dimmesdale has gone to a Native American village
- Hester is determined t warn him about Chillingworth, and takes Pearl with her to
meet Dimmesdale in the forest
- Pearl asks Hester if she will wear a scarlet letter one day, Hester said that she hopes
not
- Pearl and Hester were playing, and Pearl asks Hester if she has met the “Black man”
(satan), Hester said that they have met once and then the scarlet letter came
- Suddenly they heard some noise and Pearl ask if it was the Black Man but it was
Dimmesdale
- Dimmesdale approaches to Hester with his hand over his heart
Chapter 17:
- Hester and Dimmesdale discuss their shared unhappiness
- Dimmesdale wants someone to know that he is a sinner
- Hester reveals that Chillingworth is her husband
- Dimmesdale laments his failure to recognize Chillingworth’s evil and then he blames
Hester
- Hester asks him forgiveness for not revealing the secret earlier
- Dimmesdale didnt wanted to forgive Hester but he ends up fovgiving her and called
Chillingworth a worse sinner
- Hester urges Dimmesdale to leave Boston and make a new life for himself.
Dimmesdale is afraid that Chillingworth will reveal his secret. He says he is not
strong enough to make the trip alone
- Hester says that she and Pearl will go with him
- Dimmesdale has become weaker while Hester has become stronger
- Dimmesdale leans on Hester to save him when he should be saving her by revealing
the truthy
- Hester asks Dimmesdale whether or not there is no place to hide his hearth from the
gaze of Chillingworth
Chapter 18:
- Dimmesdale is shocked at Hester. But he is also happy that his misery will end with
their escape
- Delighted Hester took off her scarlet letter and tossed it off her dress it lands on the
banks of the stream. Finally, she takes off her cap and lets her long hair be free
- Suddenly all her beauty and youth return, and the sun breaks through the trees
- Hester says to Dimmesdale that he must officially meet Pearl so that the family can
be reunited
- Hester calls Pearl, she was playing with red berries, birds, squirrels, and a fox
- The fact that the scarlet letter lands on the side of the stream and is not carrying
away in the water, suggests that Hester’s sin and guilt cannot be discarded so easily.
Chapter 19:
- Pearl is standing across the brook (arroyo) looking at her reunited parents
- Hester questions Dimmesdale to stay calm and he places his hand over his heart
- Pearl point Hester’s chest, because she is no wearing the scarlet letter
- Hester commands Pearl to cross the brook, but Pearl throws a temper tantrum
- Hester pins the letter back to her chest and covers her hair again
- Pearls hugs Hester nd kisses the A
- Dimmesdale kisses Pearl in the forehead but Pearl washed his kiss away.
 - Only when Hester puts the letter back on, Pearl called her “My mother indeed”
Chapter 20:
- Dimmesdale thinks about his escape plan with Hester and Pearl.
- In four days they will depart on a ship to England
- The day before they are about to leave, Dimmesdale plans to resign his position right
before the big election day sermon he es planning
- As Dimmmesdale walks back to town everything seems different to him we can see
by his strange actions that the change is within him not externally caused
- He wants to say a do wicked evil things to everyone: A deacon, an old woman, a
young woman and even a group of children.
- Mistress Hibbins talks to Dimmesdale about meeting in the forest, and he wonders if
he has sold his soul to the devil
- Back at home Dimmesdale refuses the medicine that Chillingworth offers
- When he is alone, he throws his sermon into the fire and starts a new one
- Dimmesdale resolved to deliver the sermon is not something noble but a sign of a
subtle disease that was destroying his character, no man cause wear two faces
without getting bewildered as to which may be true.
- Dimmesdale is uncharacteristically full of energy when he leaves Hester and Pearl
and returns to the town at a sprightly pace
- He is not quite himself and he’s revealing wicked urges his happiness at the prospect
of running off with Hester glosses over the fact that in doing so they are committing
themselves to a life of sin
Chapter 21:
- Is election day and people are arriving at the marketplace, is an important day and
everyone will gather to hear Dimmesdale sermon
- Hester and Pearl gathers with the rest of the community and Pearl ask to her mother
if Dimmesdale will speak to them
- Hester said that they must not greet him in public
- The shipmaster that will take them to England tells Hester that casually Chillingworth
has also made a reservation to travel on the ship
- This information shocks and upsets Hester
Chapter 22:
- The honored officials enter the marketplace with Dimmedale among them he looks so
strong that Pearl doesn’t recognized him
- Dimmesdale doesn’t even glance in Hester’s direction and this behavior causes her
great distress
- In a moment of foreshadowing Mistress Hibbins comments that Dimmesdale will
soon reveal that he carries the black man’s mark on his chest
- Hester’s agitation ncreases when people stared at the scarlet letter on her chest
more intently thate ever
- They look at Dimmesdale as he were a saint
- Hester anxiously awaits Dimmesdal sermon
Chapter 23:
- Dimmesdale’s speech is a huge success and is the most brilliant moment of his life
the crowd of the marketplace roars its approval, but it stops when they see how pale
an weak Dimmesadal was
 - Dimmesdale was about to collapse, Reverend Wilson and governors Belligham try to
help him, but Dimmesdale pushes them aside pausing at the scaffold where Hester
and Pear are standing and he asks them to join him up on the scaffold
- Chillingworth tries to stop Dimmesdale but then follows them up the steps
- Chillingworth tells Dimmesdale there was no place where you could have escaped
from him
- The crowd is astonished as Dimmesdale tells Hester that he is dying and so must
reveal his secret. He turns to the crowd and at last, confesses his guilt, he is the
father
- Ripping his shirt aside he shouts that he has his own red stigma, his own sign of guilt
- The crowd is horrified, and Dimmesdale falls to the ground
- Chillingworth mutters: ” Thou hast escaped me”
- Dimmesdale request Pearl if she can kiss him, so she kisses him and cries
- Dimmesdale last word to Hester was that their ultimate reunion in the afterlife rests in
God’s hands and then he dies
- Dimmesdale sermon concerns the relationship between God and man, especially
relating to Puritans in England. Thai shows that Dimmesdale is focused on his
relationship with God and his place within the community.
- His last sermon preaches a glorious destiny for the Puritans
- When Dimmesdale pushes Wilson and Winthdrow, he pushes church and state away.
- Pearl’s kiss symbolizes acceptance and forgiveness.
Chapter 24:
- There are conflicting reports of what was on Dimmesdale’s chest
- Some say it was an A he carved himself, some said it was a mark left by magic
potions from Chillingworth and some say there was nothing there at all, and some
said guilt brought a mark out of him naturally
- Chillingworth dies within a year and leaves Pearl a great fortune and she becomes
America’s richest heiress as result
- After Chillingworth’s death Hester and Pearl leave Boston
- Hester comes back a few years later puts the Scarlet Letter back on and spends the
rest of her life helping people
- She’s ultimately buried next to Dimmesdale under a single headstone that has an A
on it. Hester is buried next to Dimmesdale but with a space between them, they
shared a tombstone with an A on it in this way Hester and Dimmesdale are linked in
death, as they were not in life by the symbol of their sin.

The Scarlet Letter Chapter Questions

CHAPTER 1
1. Why are prisons necessary in human society?
Prisons are necessary for human society to protect us from criminals who the government
believes are a danger to themselves and those around them.
2. What does Hawthorne say the rose symbolizes?
The rose is nature taking pity on and showing kindness to the criminal
3. How does the use of the church, prison, and graveyard as symbols indicate a Biblical view
of human nature?
Hawthorne uses these things to represent the moral direction and hopes needed in a world
of sin and death.
4. From what point of view is the story told? What tone is set from the beginning by the use
of these symbols?
The story is told in a third-person point of view, and the symbols create a tragic tone.
5. According to the last sentence, what kind of tale is The Scarlet Letter?
Frailty and sorrow

CHAPTER 2
1. What did the women of the town think of Hester Prynne? ·
The women of the town believed that Hester Prynne was a horrible adulterer and that she
deserved death as punishment for her sins.
2. Describe Hester's physical appearance.
Hester Prynne was tall, with long, dark hair, a rich complexion, and deep black eyes.
3. What were some Of Hester’s character traits?
Hester was very strong, even with the weight of caring for a child and baring the scarlet A on
her chest weighing on her shoulders every moment. She had a passionate nature and
refused to hide her sin.
4 What were Hester’s thoughts as she approached the scaffold?
Hester thought of insignificant details to keep herself from going crazy, like a protective shell.
5. How does Hawthorne enlist the reader’s sympathy for Hester?
Hawthorne emphasizes her exposure to ridicule and depicting the people as harsh, cold, and
cruel.

CHAPTER 3
1. Exodus 20:14 states, “Thou shalt not commit adultery.” During Puritan times people took
the Bible seriously and based their civil laws on it. Although death was the penalty for
adultery in Old Testament times, the Puritans often whipped offenders publicly. What should
the penalty have been for Hester's ·crime? What was her penalty?
Hester's penalty should have been a whipping, or death, but was instead to stand for three
hours in the pillory and wear a scarlet A on her dress for the rest of her life.
2. How does Hawthorne characterize Reverend John Wilson?
Reverend John Wilson is characterized as a great scholar with a kind spirit, but he was more
scholarly than kind
3. What did the community think of the Reverend Mr. Dimmesdale?
The community believed him to be a scholarly and eloquent speaker, and a man of great
religious speech. People were greatly affected by his speech.
4. How did Hester Prynne respond to the pleading of Mr. Wilson and Mr. Dimmesdale?
Hester refuses to respond at all to the pleading of the men, refusing to reveal the name of
the child's father.
5. According to Mr. Dimmesdale, what admirable trait was shown by Hester's refusal to
identify the father of the child?
According to Mr. Dimmesdale, Hester showed great strength with her refusal to identify the
father of her child.

CHAPTER 4
1. What was Roger Chillingworth's relationship to Hester Prynne?
Was her husband
2. Why was Hester hesitant about receiving the medicine for her baby and herself?
Hester believed that Roger was trying to avenge himself, believing that he was going to use
the medicine to harm her and her child.
3. What information did Chillingworth want from Hester?
He wanted to know the baby’s father’s name.
4. Why do you suppose Chillingworth's marriage failed? What serious consequences did the
failure of this marriage help to bring about for Hester? ·
The marriage failed because Chillingworth was much older than Hester. He was scholarly
and deformed, and Hester never loved him. Hester came alone to America while he stayed
in England. This allowed Hester's unfaithfulness.
5. What did Hester promise Chillingworth?
Hester promised not to reveal Chillingworth's identity to anyone.

CHAPTER 5
1. What does the fact that Hester remained in the town and bore her shame tell us about her
character?
Hester was not a coward, she was strong enough to wear her shame so that she may stay to
support herself and her child. She had a strong will and great determination to endure.
2. For what occasions did people avail themselves of Hester’s needlework? For what
occasions was her work unacceptable?
People wanted Hester's needlework for public ceremonies and funerals, and even for their
babies. Her work was unacceptable for the veil of a bride
3. How was Hester regarded in the community? What did she do for the poor? How did they
act toward her?
Hester was banished from society for her sins. She spent her time making clothing for the
poor, but even they would scorn and insult her.
4. Hawthorne states, "It is probable that there was an idea of penance in this mode of
occupation." What is penance? What does the Bible teach about it?
Penance is an act of self-punishment to show repentance for sin. The Bible teaches that one
should repent and receive forgiveness through Jesus Christ.
5. What effect did the scarlet letter seem to have on Hester as other people looked upon it?
What did the scarlet letter seem to reveal about the various people who looked upon
it?
Hester felt great agony anytime someone laid eyes on the scarlet letter. It revealed to Hester
that she may not be alone in her sin. She could sense the guilt of the various people who
looked upon her scarlet letter.
CHAPTER 6
1. Explain the significance of the child's name.
The child was named Pearl, as of great price, for Hester had purchased her with all she had.
2. What appears to be Hawthorne's attitude toward Biblical discipline as given in Proverbs
3:11?
Hawthorne doesn't seem to agree with Biblical discipline. Hester never punished Pearl.
3.How did Pearl get along with other children?
Pearl was an outcast and never associated with other children.
4. What did Pearl do when she played?
Pearl pretended that sticks, flowers, weeds, and anything else she could find were her
enemies and she would battle and destroy them.
5. What was the first thing Pearl noticed about her mother?
The Scarlet Letter

CHAPTER 7
1. What were Hester's two reasons for visiting Governor Bellingham?
Hester was delivering a pair of gloves to the Governor and she also wanted to talk to him
about Pearl.
2. Describe the way Pearl walked with her mother.
Pearl ran alongside her mother lightly and was constantly in motion, sometimes demanding
to be taken up into her mother's arms.
3. Describe Governor Bellingham's mansion.
The mansion was large, wooden, and grand, standing apart from all other houses. It has an
arched door, lattice windows, and wooden shutters. The house is overspread with stucco in
which fragments of broken glass are intermixed which brilliantly sparkled in the sunlight. It is
also decorated with strange figures and diagrams which had been drawn in the stucco.

CHAPTER 8
1. According to Hawthorne, what was the true Puritan attitude toward comfort and luxury?
Not a total rejection; some people accepted the idea of comfort and luxury
2. What impression did the men have of Pearl's religious training?
She was lacking; needed a better one
3. What plan did the men conceive for Pearl's future? What did Hester think of this plan?
How did she reason?
Wanted to take her away from Hester; hated it; God gave Pearl to her for happiness and
torture so it was her duty to raise Pearl
4. Who defended Hester and how did he do it? What was the result of his defense?
Reverend Dimmesdale; By saying Hester would teach Pearl to fear God and Pearl would
teach Hester the lessons she needed to learn; Pearl stayed with Hester
5. According to the Bible, who is responsible for the rearing of children?
Parents

CHAPTER 9
1. How did Roger Chillingworth and Mr. Dimmesdale become such good friends?
Chillingworth attached himself to Dimmesdale, Chillingworth is Dimmesdale's doctor, and the
town pushes the two together
2. How did Roger Chillingworth learn about herbs and roots?
A German University and the Indians
3. What were the symptoms of Mr. Dimmesdale's failing health?
Paling, thinning, weak, tremulous voice, and kept putting his hand over his heart
4. What was Dimmesdale's attitude toward his health?
If he were to die, it meant God didn't see him worthy enough to continue His earthly mission.
5. How did the people feel about Roger Chillingworth? With what practices was he
associated? How do these characterize his satanic nature?
Most distrust him; think he is Satan or Satan's emissary; few thought he was divinely sent by
Providence to heal Dimmesdale; Summoning demons; using black magic; leeching from
Dimmesdale's soul; his face became uglier and eviler; Satan is evil and ugly and leeches
from peoples' souls just as Chillingworth is/does

CHAPTER 10
1. What was it about Chillingworth that made Dimmesdale uncomfortable?
Probed; asked questions; made Dimmesdale think
2. What was Dimmesdale's view of confession of sin?
People only need to confess to God; not other men
3. What was Chillingworth's view of confession?
Need to confess to other men to relieve the guilt
4. What is the Biblical view of confession? See 1 John 1:9 and James 5:16.
We should confess our sins to God.
5. What did Chillingworth say was the cause of Dimmesdale's physical problem?
A sickness in his spirit
6. What did Chillingworth ask Dimmesdale to do? How did he respond?
Tell him what was in his heart; ran out of the room but came back to apologize later

CHAPTER 11
1. What advantage did Chillingworth have over Dimmesdale?
Knows the secret of what is on Dimmesdale's chest; knew Dimmesdale's secret
2. How did the people come to regard Dimmesdale? Why?
A miracle of holiness and heaven's mouthpiece of wisdom, rebuke, and Gods love; was
intellectual, moral, and a good communicator
3. When Dimmesdale condemned himself before his congregation, how did the people
respond?
Didn't believe him, and thought it was a sign of his great humility and spirituality.
4. What Roman Catholic practices did Dimmesdale follow? Why were these practices to no
avail?
Scourging, fasting, and vigils; no need to self-inflict pain on ourselves because God's
grace/forgiveness is free
5. What were some of Dimmesdale’s visions?
Shining angels, ghosts of his dead friends, his father, and mother, and Hester and Pearl

CHAPTER 12
1. Where did Dimmesdale observe his vigil? Which people saw him?
Scaffold Hester stood on as punishment for her adultery; Mistress Hibbins, Hester, Pearl,
and Roger Chillingworth
2. Did Dimmesdale speak to the Reverend Mr. Wilson?
No; only imagined he did
3. What did Pearl ask Dimmesdale to do? What was his reply?
Stand with her and her mother on the scaffold at noon the next day; he wouldn't stand the
next day, but he would stand with them on Judgement Day
4. What signs were seen in the sky? How were they interpreted?
The letter A framed by red lines and a meteor; supernatural revelations
5. What item of Dimmesdale’s did the sexton find on the scaffold? What was the sexton's
explanation of how it got there?
Black glove; Satan dropped it there as a joke against Dimmesdale's reverence and purity

CHAPTER 13
1. Explain the general attitude of the community now toward Hester. What group of people
were slower to accept Hester's kindnesses? Why?
One of love and respect; Government officials, rulers, and wise men;they thought if they
didn't condemn her sin, others would follow in her footsteps and do what she did
2. What secondary meaning now was given to Hester's scarlet letter? Explain the irony
involved in the way people came to regard Hester's scarlet letter.
A came to mean able instead of adultery; the letter meant to signify adultery/adulterer now
means able
3. What changes in Hester had taken place through the years?
Becomes less fearful and becomes more independent and has more freedom in her thinking
4. Explain the statement, "The scarlet letter had not done its office."
It was meant to bring Hester shame and embarrassment, but it actually brought her respect
and strength
5. What was Hester now planning to do?
Confront Chillingworth in an attempt to rescue Dimmesdale

CHAPTER 14
1. What had the magistrates been considering regarding Hester's scarlet letter? What was
Hester's attitude toward it?
Removing it; said it was for her to decide, and if she were worthy of its removal, it would fall
away of its own nature
2. How had Chillingworth changed through the years?
Became more devil-like in appearance and character
3. Why had Chillingworth not gotten revenge on Hester?
Left it up to the scarlet letter to bring her punishment
4. What did Hester want to reveal to Dimmesdale? Why?
Chillingworth's identity as her past husband; it would reveal Chillingworth's character to
Dimmesdale and save Dimmesdale
5. How did Chillingworth account for the way everything had happened?
It was beyond his control and everything that had happened had been a dark necessity

CHAPTER 15
1. What was Hester's feeling toward Chillingworth?
Hates him
2. What had Pearl been doing while Hester was talking to Chillingworth
Throwing rocks at birds, playing in a pool of water, looking at her reflection in the water,
melting jellyfish, and making little boats; using seaweed to make herself a mermaid and
grass to make an A on her chest
3. With what did Pearl associate her mother's scarlet letter?
Dimmesdale keeps his hand over his heart
4. What questions did Pearl repeat to her mother?
Why did she wear the scarlet letter? What did it mean? Why did the minister keep his hand
over his heart?
5. What was Hester's reply to Pearl's questions?
Telling Pearl that she is silly, that she-Hester-doesn't know the minister's heart, and she
wears the A for the gold thread in it

CHAPTER 16
1. What had Hester resolved to do?
Reveal Chillingworth's true character to Dimmesdale
2. Why did Hester not wish to talk to Dimmesdale in his study?
Feared Chillingworth's interference
3. Where did she plan to meet him? Explain the significance of this setting.
Beneath the open sky in the dark woods; the forest symbolized the moral wilderness in
which Hester and Dimmesdale have/had been wandering
4. What was the story that Pearl heard from old Mistress Hibbins?
The Black Man wandered the forest carrying a big, black book with iron clasps in which
people wrote their names in blood with an iron pen, and then the Black Man put his mark on
their bosoms
5. What did Pearl ask about Dimmesdale's mark of the Black Man?
Why does he not wear his mark outside his bosom as her mother does?

CHAPTER 17
1. Why had Dimmesdale's life been more painful than Hester's?
Living a lie by pretending to be a spiritual leader while covering his sin
2. When Dimmesdale learned the true identity of Chillingworth, what was his first response
to Hester?
He had a look of violence and passion, and he told Hester he couldn't forgive her
3. Did Dimmesdale forgive Hester for keeping the secret?
Yes, Dimmesdale did forgive Hester for keeping the secret.
4. Where did Dimmesdale turn for strength?
Dimmesdale turned to Hester for strength
5. What did Dimmesdale fear regarding Chillingworth?
He was fearful about what Chillingworth would do now that Hester had revealed his identity
to Dimmesdale
6. What did Hester advise Dimmesdale to do?
She advised him to leave Boston and explore the wilderness or sail to Europe
CHAPTER 18
1. How are the experiences of Hester and Arthur contrasted?
Hester was outcasted from society and openly wore her shame, but she was free.
Dimmesdale hides his shame and society loved him, but he was trapped by his position.
2. Which of the two characters (Hester and Arthur) possesses more strength?
Hester possesses more strength than Dimmesdale
3. What did Hester do with the scarlet letter? What did this signify?
She threw it off into the forest; Hester throwing off her shame and anguish
4. In the meantime, what had Pearl been doing in the forest?
She had been playing with the animals, eating berries, and putting flowers and twigs in her
hair
5. Why was Arthur hesitant about getting to know Pearl?
He is scared that she won't love him or like him; he always avoided children because they
did not trust him

CHAPTER 19
1. How did children usually respond to Arthur Dimmesdale?
They fear him and he makes babies cry when he holds them
2. What bothered Pearl about her mother's appearance? What does this show about the
conscience of a child?
Her mother let her hair down and wasn't wearing the scarlet letter; Black-and-white; right or
wrong
3. How did Pearl respond to Arthur Dimmesdale?
Didn't like him; washed his kiss off of her forehead after being forced by her mother to go to
him; avoided him after.
CHAPTER 20
1. Where had Hester and Arthur decided to go? Why?
Bristol, England;Because it offered a more eligible shelter and concealment that the New
World; Dimmesdale was too weak to survive in the wilderness and would only be successful
in a more civilized area
2. What great change took place in Arthur Dimmesdale?
He became more energized, and he wanted to do something strange, wild, and wicked
3. Describe Dimmesdale's interview with the old deacon, the elderly lady, and the young girl.
Old Deacon: Dimmesdale carefully concealed certain, blasphemous suggestions, and he
turned pale with the effort to control himself
Elderly Lady: He was going to whisper some verse in her ear, but the only thing he could
think of was an argument against the immortality of the human soul
Young Girl: Dimmesdale is strongly tempted to do something horrible to her so he avoids her
4. Describe the encounter with Mistress Hibbins.
She commented on his visit to the forest and invited him to meet her Satanic friends. He
replied saying he only went to visit the Apostle Eliot and declined her offer
5. What did Chillingworth suspect about Dimmesdale?
Dimmesdale knew his identity as Hester's past husband
CHAPTER 21
1. Describe the spirit of the day.
One of merry celebration
2. What did Hester tell Pearl to expect regarding the minister's behavior toward them?
Not to expect him to acknowledge them; she told her not to greet him
3. What contrast was made between the American Puritan celebrations and the celebrations
in England?
The English would have bonfires, banquets, parades, and a good time. The Puritans were
gloomy, serious, and didn't have as much fun.
4. Describe the diversity of the crowd.
Craftsmen, people from the forest settlements, soldiers, wrestlers, and sports figures were
all there
5. What plans had Hester and Arthur made to leave town? Who is the unexpected
passenger about whom Hester learned?
They planned to sail on a ship that left the Spanish Main, landed at Boston, and is going to
sail to Bristol, England. Chillingworth

CHAPTER 22
1. Describe the procession.
Had a small military band, a military escort, the town magistrates, and the minister Arthur
Dimmesdale who marches slowly and stately.
2. Describe Dimmesdale on this occasion.
Exhibits energy and does not put his hand over his heart
3. What did Pearl ask her mother about the minister?
Pearl asks her mother if Dimmesdale will hold both of their hands as they did by the brook
the day before.
4. What did Mistress Hibbins say regarding Hester and Dimmesdale?
Mistress Hibbins tells her that she knows Dimmesdale and her met in the woods. She says
that she knows that Dimmesdale received the badge of sin and knows that he is hiding it.
5. What was the message given to Pearl by the shipmaster?
Chillingworth has secured passage for himself and Dimmesdale on the ship.

CHAPTER 23
1. How did the people respond to the minister's sermon?
Had awe and respect for Dimmesdale and his sermon
2. Where did they think he would soon be going?
Die and go to heaven
3. What was the subject of the Election Sermon?
The relation between the Deity and the communities of mankind, with a specific reference to
New England and the colony they are at; foretold a glorious destiny for the people gathered
4. Describe Dimmesdale's revelation to the people.
He goes to Hester and Pearl after his sermon, takes them by the hand, goes up on the
scaffold. and confesses his sin. He is physically supported by Hester and Chillingworth (Who
did not want him to confess because it'd ease his suffering), and he dies on the scaffold after
a few words to Hester.
5. How did the people respond to Dimmesdale's revelation?
They felt wonder and awe
CHAPTER 24

1. What were the various theories about Dimmesdale's scarlet letter?

He carved the A into his chest as an act of penance when Hester started to wear her letter;
Roger Chillingworth used his drugs and magic induced the letter; thought his guilt gnawed
out of his heart and became a visible presence on his chest; it didn't exist
2. What sentence is suggested as the moral for Arthur Dimmesdale's story?
"Be true. Be true. Be true. Show freely to the world, if not your worst, yet some trait whereby
the worst may be inferred"
3. What happened to Chillingworth right after the death of Dimmesdale? Why?
He shriveled up and died a year later; fulfilled self-appointed purpose in life so had no other
mission or reason to remain on Earth
4. What did Pearl inherit? What probably happened to Pearl?
A large amount of land in England and New England;Her nature softened and subdued and
she got married in another country, had a baby, and lived happily; probably became the
richest heiress of the New World
5. Describe Hester at the end of the novel.
Returns to her little cottage, continues to wear the scarlet letter, and people love her and
seek her for advice
 Quotes:

1. “I charge thee to speak out the name of thy fellow-sinner and fellow-sufferer!”
This quote was said by Dimmesdale. This phrase is said by Dimmesdale when
Governor Bellingham and Mr. Wilson told him to talk to Hester and reveal the name
of her lover. This quote takes place when Hester was on the scaffold in front of the
people with Pearl. This quote is important because we can see that Dimmesdale
seems uncomfortable, this is a hint of the next chapters (Dimmesdale results to be
Hester’s lover)

2. “Even if I imagine a scheme of vengeance, what could I do better for my object than
to let thee live.”
This quote was said by Chillingworth. The context of the quote is that, after Hester
was on the scaffold she was taken again to prison. There Pearl is convulsing in pain,
so the officer send for a doctor, and the doctor who helped Pearl was Chillingworth.
In this quote, we can see that Chillingworth wants revenge. After this quote,
Chillingworth made Hester promise that she will not reveal that he is her husband.

3. “Thou must gather thine own sunshine. I have none to give thee!”
This quote was said by Pearl to Hester. The context of this quote is when Hester and
Pearl went to the governor’s house. This quote happened before the governor
Winthrop, Wilson and Dimmesdale said to Hester that she was not capable of taking
care of Pearl, so she might lose custody of Pearl.

4. “She is my happiness! –she is my torture, none the less!”

This quote was said by Hester when she was with Dimmesdale, Governor Winthrop,
and Mr. Wilson. They wanted to take custody of Pearl. Bellingham was horrified after
Wilson asked Pearl who created her and she answers that she was plucked from the
rosebush outside prison

5. “I…whom you so reverence and trust, am utterly a pollution and a lie!”

Was said by Dimmesdale. Dimmesdale multiple times try to say the truth in his
sermons, but it was not working, people see him more as a saint every time he said
he was a sinner. This quote happened in a sermon in which he was been consumed
by the guilt and he said this referring to him, and his sin.

6. “Wilt thou stand here with mother and me, tomorrow noontide?”
This quote was said by Pearl to Dimmesdale. Dimmesdale went to the scaffold and
cries in guilt, then he sees Mr. Wilson walk to his house from Governor Withdrop’s
deathbed. Then he sees Hester and Pearl going home from Governor Withdrop’s
deathbed and he invited them to join him, and that moment is when Pearl says this.
After this Pearl sees Chillingworth and Dimmesdale went home with him.

7. “That he now breathes, and creeps about on earth, is owing all to me!”
The quote is Chillingworth to Hester. Before this Hester was astonished when she
saw how bad Dimmesdale looked, so she went to talk to Chillingworth. First
Chillingworth said to Hester that people were saying that magistrates might remove
her scarlet letter, Hester responded that that does not depend on them. Then
 Chillingworth said he saved Dimmedsale’s life and right after he confessed he has
been tormenting him and because of him he has been turned into a fiend.

8. “What does this scarlet letter mean?—and why dost thou wear it on thy
bosom?—and why does the minister keep his hand over his heart?”
This is Pearl to Hester. After Hester talks to Chillingworth about Dimmesdale, Hester
thinks about how much she hates Chillingworth. Then Hester approaches Pearl and
saw that she had a letter A in her chest made of seaweed. Then she asks the quote
and in that moment Hester was about to tell Pearl all the truth, but she decided not
to.

9. “How am I to live longer, breathing the same air with this deadly enemy?”
Dimmesdale to Hester. Before the quote happened Dimmesdale was with some
Native American in the forest, Hester went to look for him because she decided to
confess to him that Chillingworth was her husband. Hester ad Dimmesdale reunited
and Hester confused to Dimmesdale. Hester asks for forgiveness but Dimmesdale at
firth didn’t want to. He ends up forgiving her. The quote was Dimmesdale surprised
by what Hester told him. After this, they decided they will leave Boston.

10. “Wilt thou come across the brook, and own thy mother, now that she has her shame
upon her,—now that she is sad?”
This is Hester to Pearl. Hester threw her scarlet letter and she takes off her cap. She
is completely different. Also, Hester did what she did because she was delighted of
the plan she made with Dimmesdale. Pearl was astonished, so Hester put again the
scarlet letter ad her cap, and Pearl went to her and kiss the scarlet letter,
Dimmesdale kiss her forehead and she washed the kiss away.

11. “They say, child, thou art of the lineage of the Prince of the Air! Wilt thou ride with me,
some fine night, to see thy father?”
Mistress Hibbins to Pearl. They were at the big sermon on Dimmesdale and Mistress
Hibbins was referring that Dimmesdale will soon reveal that he carries the black
man’s mark on his chest. Then Hester was anxiously waiting for the sermon to begin.

12. “Thou hast escaped me!”

This quote was said by Chillingworth, right after Pearl ad Hester went up to the
scaffold. After Chillingworth said this quote to Dimmesdale, Dimmesdale confessed
to Hester that he was dying and that he needed to reveal his secret. He reveals the
secret and then he falls down, he asks Pearl for a kiss and said to Hester that God’s
call is they reunited in the other life, and finally, he dies.