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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. How many years have passed so far in this novel, in Chapter 13?

2. What does Hester threaten to do at the end of Chapter 14?

3. According to the narrator, which of the following has NOT been one of Hester's "teachers"?

4. Whom does Dimmesdale set out to meet?

5. Why will Pearl not come to Hester in Chapter 19?

Short Essay Questions

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

2. In Chapter 15, when Pearl asks Hester what the letter stands for, what does Hester reply?

3. What, according to the narrator, enlivened the public holiday with "some diversity of hue?"

4. In Chapter 13, Hawthorne says that some people would think that Hester's scarlet letter stands for "Able." Why?

5. According to the narrator, what appeared to be Dimmesdale's subject, in his sermon in Chapter 23?

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

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

8. Where does Dimmesdale go at the beginning of Chapter 12, and why?

9. Why does Hester's heart sink when she sees Dimmesdale in the procession during the public holiday?

10. Many people pass Dimmesdale by in this chapter; why are so many people up so late and walking about?

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

One major set of symbols in this work has to do with an interplay of the supernatural and the natural, both of which express various emotions or meanings at particular times in the book. Incorporating at least three examples from each category (three examples of the natural and three of the supernatural), define these concepts in terms of Hawthorne's novel, and interpret your examples in a comparative manner to show how they function in helping Hawthorne's narrator tell this story.

Essay Topic 3

Specific colors play a role in telling the story, especially the colors red and black. While "red" is manifested in the scarlet letter (and other symbolic objects), "black" often remains a metaphorical color in this novel. Write an analytical essay that examines Hawthorne's use of these colors, in terms of metaphor as well as literal meaning in the novel.

(see the answer keys)

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