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The Scarlet Letter: Large Print by Nathaniel Hawthorne

9 reviews

gaypoetree's review against another edition

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dark reflective slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

4 stars: I liked it better than expected and would read it again!

Who decides what is wrong, and for whom? What is the “right” way to approach guilt? What are the consequences of accountability, and lack thereof? Can (and should) one take “accountability” for a wrong that wasn’t even all that wrong? These are the questions that most compelled The Scarlet Letter for me.

I’ve read some people talk about this book in terms of the relationship between the supposed sinners; to me, that may be the least important part. The narrative begins after the affair is concluded because, for Hawthorne, scandal is the least interesting part of the story; what he really cares about is interested parties cope afterward. I think that perspective is what makes this book worth reading over 200 years later. The scale of Hester Prynne’s sin seems even more minute now than it did in 1850. If anything, I think that helps the experience. In an age where everything is online forever, a metaphorical scarlet letter can get pinned to anyone at any time; the question of how harsh a treatment such a person might deserve, as well as how to go about living with it, is an important one to consider.

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teatunesandtales's review against another edition

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challenging dark reflective sad tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.75

Finally finished. While the chapters were short, the book as a whole was a slow crawl. Hawthorne's excessive use of details created lengthy paragraphs that was easy to get lost in the story, and not in a good way. And I've never been more ready to finish the book, and never read the word "ignominy" again.

Puritanicalism is not for the faint of heart. If you can't be perfect, you won't make it in their world.

I loved Pearl's wild heart and imagination. It was a bright spot to the book.

Long love Hester Prynne's legacy.

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sat0rii's review against another edition

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challenging dark reflective sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

Although it's technically competent and thematically marvelous, even Robert Jordan's most copious tangents don't come close to Nathaniel Hawthorne's mind-numbing detours. And unlike James Joyce, he's not even funny or whimsical about it.

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lovelymisanthrope's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

I purchased a special edition of this book and wanted to give it a reread.
"The Scarlet Letter" is an American classic that follows Hester Prynne in mid-seventeenth century Boston. Hester has a child out of wedlock and is forced by her Puritan town to wear a scarlet letter "A" on her chest for the rest of her days. No one knows who the father is, and Hester is tight lipped and refuses to give the town more reason to gossip.
I have long said that this is one of my favorite classics, but I have not read it in quite a few years. I was very happy to see that this story held up, and I enjoyed it as much today as I did over ten years ago when I read it in high school. Additionally, I think this story has some timely themes that we as a society need to reflect upon given the political climate of America today.
This is a classic that is very approachable to read. The writing is not pretentious or dense (in my opinion), and the story is just scandalous enough to keep the reader's attention. The novel itself is also not exceptionally long.
I will definitely continue to reread this in the future.

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erins_bookshelf_'s review against another edition

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Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

If I am being completely honest, I only actually read the first half of this and a few chapters in class, but the final four or so were me reading the cliffsnotes summaries because reading this was just so tedious. I didn’t hate it and I kind of liked the story (I love when things call out religious hypocrisy) but it was just okay. I know it’s an older book and a classic so the language and pacing wasn’t exactly like how books are now, but there was far too much description of things for me to handle. The chapters (and the book) would have been much shorter if Hawthorne had just cut out about half the descriptions. The story itself was interesting and pretty good, but it was a bit difficult to get through (hence the use of cliffsnotes towards the end).

ALSO if Dimmesdale was really feeling that guilty WHY DIDNT HE JUST CONFESS like he ranted about “oh Hester you’ve had it much easier than I” and blah blah blah as if he wasn’t the most beloved man in the town while she was shunned by literally everyone 🙄
Honestly, Pearl was my favorite part of the book because she was funny and just the most relatable (yes I know she’s 7)- doesn’t like people, hates affection unless it’s from someone she’s close to/ affection she starts, prefers to play with animals/ by herself rather than other children, etc. Pearl is the best and everyone else can go away (Hester can stay cus she’s her mom and also she pushed through everything so she’s cool)

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