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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. What is Hester wearing on the public holiday in Chapter 21?

2. Who inherited money and property from Chillingworth?

3. Who, according to the narrator, is at the "head of the social system" in Puritan times?

4. John Wilson is described as having what relationship to Dimmesdale?

5. What is the holiday referred to in the title of Chapter 21?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why does Hester say that Dimmesdale should travel somewhere, "whether in some remote village or in vast London, [...] in Germany, in France," etc?

2. In Chapter 14, why is Chillingworth in the woods?

3. In Chapter 14, what does Hester ask of Chillingworth?

4. How does Pearl decorate herself at the end of Chapter 18 differently from how she did in the woods when Hester met Chillingworth?

5. Why does Hester go to meet Dimmesdale in the woods?

6. Why does Hawthorne describe Pearl, in Chapter 19, as a "living hieroglyphic."

7. Describe the three suspected causes of the "A" carved into Dimmesdale's chest.

8. How does Hawthorne describe Dimmesdale, either physically or emotionally, at the beginning of Chapter 13?

9. When Dimmesdale refuses to travel and quit his post as minister, how does Hester change his mind?

10. Why does Chillingworth attempt to stop Hester and Pearl from joining Dimmesdale on the scaffold?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

On your first read, "The Custom House" seems to have little or nothing to do with the "real" narrative of The Scarlet Letter, the story of Hester Prynne, yet Hawthorne's introductory essay establishes his narrative voice and justifies the origins of Hester's story. Write an analytical essay that argues the importance of this introduction to the narrative structure of the book. Key terms to consider are: frame narrative, narrative voice/point-of-view, symbolism, public/private life, etc.

Essay Topic 2

A source of psychological conflict in this novel is the relationship between Arthur Dimmesdale and Roger Chillingworth. Using textual examples, write an descriptive analysis of how Hawthorne 1) establishes this relationship, and 2) uses the relationship to develop conflict and drive the engine of the plot. You should be sure to include examples that demonstrate how this relationship intensifies conflict at various spots in the novel.

Essay Topic 3

Despite the dark tone and dour mood of this novel, Hawthorne's narrative voice does offer some levity, irony and humor to lighten the mood at key points in this novel, including the irony in some of the chapter titles. Pick several examples of this irony, other forms of irony, archness/humor, and explain how these examples help lighten the mood.

(see the answer keys)

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