Nathaniel Hawthorne - The Scarlet Letter (Readers' Guides to Essential Criticism) - Softcover

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1840460415 ISBN 13: 9781840460414

Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan, 1999

Synopsis

With the publication of The Scarlet Letter in 1850, Nathaniel Hawthorne achieved not only critical recognition in his native New England, but an undisputed place amongst the newly-emerging ranks of great American writers. From the very first words of the novel, Hawthorne undertakes a searching re-assessment of the moral doctrines of Calvinism upon which his nation was founded. In his treatment of the relationships between the condemned adulteress Hester Prynne, her child Pearl, her lover Arthur Dimmesdale and the relentless accuser Roger Chillingworth, Hawthorne sets up a series of dense symbolic contrasts between the harshness of human law and the expansive, accepting laws of nature. The scarlet letter that Hester is forced to wear as a signal of her sin is transformed into a lasting symbol of the moral ambiguities underlying the Puritan beliefs of early American settlement.

In this Readers' Guide, Elmer Kennedy-Andrews introduces and sets in context the enormous range of critical arguments that have been generated by this enduring work. From the comments and reviews of Hawthorne's contemporaries, to discussions of the novel by fellow artists such as Henry James and D.H. Lawrence, to radical re-readings of the post-war decades, the reader is given an invaluable guide to the critical progress of this key American text.

About this title

About the Author:

ELMER KENNEDY-ANDREWS is Senior Lecturer in English at the University of Ulster at Coleraine.

Review:

'I continue to find the Readers' Guides indispensable for teaching - they really give students a sense of criticism having a history' - Professor Rachel Bowlby, University of York 'The series looks really excellent - attractively produced, user friendly; and outstanding value for money' - Ronald Knowles, Reader, University of Reading

About this edition

• Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan
• Publication date: 1999
• ISBN 10: 1840460415
• ISBN 13: 9781840460414
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 208
• Editor: Kennedy-Andrews Elmer