Scarlet letter custom house summary. The Scarlet Letter Chapter Summaries 2022-10-24

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The Scarlet Letter, written by Nathaniel Hawthorne, is a novel set in the early days of the Massachusetts Bay Colony. The story follows the life of Hester Prynne, a young woman who is sentenced to wear a scarlet "A" as punishment for committing adultery. The novel begins with a brief summary of Hester's past and the events leading up to her punishment, including her marriage to a much older man, Roger Chillingworth, who later disappears and is believed to be dead.

Hester is then introduced as a resident of the town of Boston, where she has been living for several years and working as a seamstress. One day, she is seen walking through the town square wearing the scarlet letter on her breast, which is a symbol of her sin and shame. Despite her punishment, Hester is a strong and courageous woman who refuses to reveal the identity of her lover or the father of her child, Pearl.

The novel then shifts to the Custom House, a government building where the narrator, who is also the main character, works as a surveyor. The narrator, who is not named in the novel, becomes interested in Hester's story and begins to investigate her past. He learns about her marriage to Chillingworth and becomes increasingly suspicious of the man's true identity and motives.

As the narrator delves deeper into Hester's story, he begins to uncover the secrets of the town and its citizens. He discovers that Hester's lover is actually the town's minister, Arthur Dimmesdale, and that Chillingworth is actually alive and has been seeking revenge on Dimmesdale for his affair with Hester.

The novel ends with the reveal of Dimmesdale's true identity as Hester's lover and the revelation of Chillingworth's true identity as Hester's husband. Dimmesdale, unable to bear the guilt and shame of his sin, confesses to the town and dies soon after. Hester, meanwhile, decides to leave the town and start a new life with Pearl, leaving behind the scarlet letter and the judgment of the community.

In summary, The Scarlet Letter is a powerful and poignant tale of love, sin, and redemption set in the early days of the Massachusetts Bay Colony. It follows the story of Hester Prynne, a young woman who is punished for committing adultery, and the people whose lives are affected by her actions. The novel begins with a summary of Hester's past and the events leading up to her punishment, and then shifts to the Custom House, where the narrator, a surveyor, becomes interested in Hester's story and begins to investigate her past. The novel ends with the reveal of Hester's lover and the revelation of Chillingworth's true identity as Hester's husband, and the tragic consequences that follow.

The Scarlet Letter The Custom House Summary & Analysis

scarlet letter custom house summary

There can be little doubt of Hawthorne's disdain for the stern morality and rigidity of the Puritans, and he imagines his predecessors' disdainful view of him: unsuccessful in their eyes, worthless and disgraceful. The narrator is not just a stand-in for Hawthorne; he is carefully constructed to enhance the book aesthetically and philosophically. Hester sews this letter herself in prison. Many considered her an angel, but there were people who found her nosy. Throughout the novel, he takes the side of Hester against her Puritan community that punishes her.

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The custom

scarlet letter custom house summary

He finds the establishment to be a run-down place, situated on a rotting wharf in a half-finished building. This, obviously, greatly upsets Prynne, who goes to speak with Governor Bellingham. Chillingworth moves in with Dimmesdale to care for him full-time and begins to suspect a connection between Dimmesdale's heart ailment and Hester's crime. She feels satisfied thinking that four days are enough for Dimmesdale to end his decent career by delivering the final Election sermon. He watches Hester and her 3 months old child when she is taken out of the prison in front of the town.

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The Custom

scarlet letter custom house summary

The novel tells us the story of Hester Prynne who carries a child because of her extra-marital affair. Hester cautions Dimmesdale to stay calm. It is then that he examines the manuscript that was with the letter and explains its purpose. Hester thinks that she hates him and it was the worst decision of her life to marry him. He prepares himself for the final sermon of his life. Hester and Dimmesdale start discussing how Pearl looks like both of her parents. The narrator is suggesting that the story goes against the social mores that preserve order among the people.

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The Scarlet Letter The Custom

scarlet letter custom house summary

Hawthorne tells the reader that he could not bring himself to fire any of them, so after he assumed leadership, things stayed the same. . However, he asks Hester to keep his identity secret and she agrees. He begins to ask Dimmesdale about his mental state, which the minister resents; this pushes them apart. The urge of taking revenge transforms Chillingworth into a devil.


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The Custom House in The Scarlet Letter: Summary

scarlet letter custom house summary

Hawthorne descended from a historically important family. At that time, he agrees but later he worries about this decision. . Second, he knows that his audience will be small, mostly because he is relating events that happened some two hundred years ago. In htis awy, I hknti an utaohr can eitrw touba his ilef wuhtito ongrciss the line thiw the eadrre or with flismeh.


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The Scarlet Letter Summary and Analysis

scarlet letter custom house summary

The condition of Dimmesdale seems terrible. Therefore, he gets frightened to carry the burden of his sin that he committed. She still wears her letter "A. The black man is also a word used for Satan. After two years she fell into sin, committing the adultery that resulted in her baby and the scarlet "A" on her breast.

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No Fear Literature: The Scarlet Letter: The Custom House: Introductory to The Scarlet Letter Page 1

scarlet letter custom house summary

A number of critics argue that this style presents one of the first examples of distinctly American writing, with its own history and stories and language. Though there is no need of wearing it now, yet she accepts it as her identity and wears it throughout her life. It is as if once he finally began doing what he was meant to do, his mind erased all the time he wasted, all the resentment that he associated with "Uncle Sam," who sucked away his passion and imagination. Pearl becomes the owner of both of his properties in Europe and in the U. She tries to draw his attention towards her by squeezing her daughter until she cries. Sure enough, in 1849, the Democrats were swept out of office when Zachary Taylor, the leader of the Whig Party, was elected president. She suffers everything alone.

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The Custom

scarlet letter custom house summary

After confessing his crime in front of people, he dies. Hester and Pearl are also present there and Hester asks Pearl to see how everyone is celebrating. She suggests Dimmesdale escape to Europe. When he discovers that Dimmesdale has carved a mark over his heart that resembles Hester's scarlet letter, Chillingworth realizes that Dimmesdale is Hester's lover. Chillingworth tells her that the magistrates are considering the matter of removing the letter from her dress. He took his revenge in the essay by savagely attacking his former coworkers and the people who had fired him, a tone not unfamiliar in political writings of the time. Themes in the Scarlet Letter Sin It is the major theme of this novel.

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The Scarlet Letter Quiz: Check Your Knowledge

scarlet letter custom house summary

Even after death, her gravestone also carries the same scarlet letter. He performed his job at a custom house, a building where government officials filled out forms to allow goods to be imported and exported through Salem's port. The scarlet letter becomes a permanent part of her personality. The regret and guilt start affecting his health. Soon Roger Chillingworth appears and he looks evil. He confesses his sin to the crowd and bares his chest, revealing a scarlet letter carved into his own skin. People even start looking at it with a changed mind.


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No Fear Literature: The Scarlet Letter: The Custom House: Introductory to The Scarlet Letter Page 2

scarlet letter custom house summary

When it was published it earned great fame. He places it on his chest and "experienced a sensation not altogether physical, yet almost so, as of burning heat; and as if the letter were not of red cloth, but red-hot iron. Chapter 2: The Marketplace The people of the town gather to watch the punishment given to Hester Prynne. After coming out, she becomes a very good seamstress but everyone mocks and looks down upon her glancing the scarlet letter. Chillingworth suspects that Dimmesdale is concealing something from him. She was old at the time, but gracious in her posture, with a habit to go about the country and help people as a kind of voluntary nurse.

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