The Scarlet Letter: Secondary Student Edition

THE SCARLET LETTER is “a masterpiece of beauty and power,” declared one early critic. Another called it simply “the greatest book of the age.” Nathaniel Hawthorne’s story, based loosely on the history of early Puritan New England, has held a cherished place in American literature for over 150 years. A timeless tale of passion, guilt, and innocence, it touches its readers today as it has from its first publication. THE SCARLET LETTER is not a story about witches. It does, however, concern itself with the Puritan legacy of sin, guilt, and authority that lay at the heart of the Salem witch trials. Hawthorne wrote during the height of a movement centered in New England and known as “transcendentalism.” Transcendentalists reacted against the Puritan legacy by celebrating independent thought over blind obedience to authority and tradition. They celebrated the goodness in life and nature and rejected the Puritan idea of the evil nature of man. This edition is designed for use in secondary classrooms. Six-chapter readings are briefly introduced and are followed by reading quizzes. Each quiz includes multiple-choice “reading,” vocabulary, literary terms, essay, and critical thinking sections.