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The Scarlet Letter PDF
The Scarlet Letter PDF
Nathaniel Hawthorne
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EMC/Paradigm Publishing
St. Paul, Minnesota
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For EMC/Paradigm Publishing, St. Paul, Minnesota
Laurie Skiba Eileen Slater
Editor Editorial Consultant
Shannon O’Donnell Taylor
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ISBN 0–8219–1617–3
Nathaniel Hawthorne
1808 Nathaniel Hathorne’s father catches yellow fever and dies in Surinam
(Dutch Guiana) while working as a sea captain. Elizabeth Hathorne moves
Nathaniel and his two sisters into the Manning family’s house.
April 1813 Nathaniel is injured when a ball hits his foot. Unable to attend school for
almost two years after this injury, he begins reading widely on his own.
1825 Hawthorne graduates from college and returns to live with his family in
Salem.
1834 Some of the stories Hawthorne planned to include in The Story Teller are
published in New England Magazine.
1839–1840 Hawthorne works as a salt and coal measurer in the Boston Custom House
to save money for his marriage.
1841 Hawthorne tries communal living in the experimental Brook Farm community.
Hawthorne’s Mosses from an Old Manse is published and receives critical 1846
acclaim. Hawthorne is appointed surveyor of customs in Salem by President
James K. Polk. Julian, Hawthorne’s first son, is born.
Hawthorne is removed from office after Zachary Taylor, a Whig, is elected 1849
President. He begins writing The Scarlet Letter and “The Custom-House.”
The House of the Seven Gables is published. The Hawthornes move to West 1851
Newton, Massachusetts. Rose, Hawthorne’s second daughter and third
child, is born.
Hawthorne and his family travel to Rome and take up residence there and, 1858
later, in Florence. He begins writing a romance based on his observations
in Italy.
Hawthorne returns to England and continues writing his Italian romance. 1859
The Marble Fawn is published. Hawthorne returns with his family to The 1860
Wayside in Concord.
Hawthorne’s English sketches are published under the title Our Old Home. 1863
Hawthorne dies in Plymouth, New Hampshire, while traveling with Pierce. 1864
Main Characters
ILLUSTRATIONS xv
WEST
HILL
■ BEACON
PRISON ■
WILLIAM HIBBON ■
■ REVEREND WILSON
ILLUSTRATIONS xvii
1. footnote. This is a footnote.
2. footnote. This is another footnote.
3. footnote. This is another footnote.
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Words invariably (phonetic here) adj., meaning here
For ponderous (phonetic here) adj., meaning here
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pertain (phonetic here) v., meaning here
Use
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Words dis • in • clined (dis´´in kl¯nd´) adj., unwilling, reluctant
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THE CUSTOM-HOUSE 1
thawed by this genial consciousness, we may prate of the cir-
cumstances that lie around us, and even of ourself, but still
keep the inmost Me behind its veil. To this extent and within
these limits an author, methinks, may be autobiographical,
without violating either the reader’s rights or his own.
® According to the It will be seen, likewise, that this Custom-House sketch has
narrator, what will
the custom house
a certain propriety, of a kind always recognized in literature,
sketch explain? as explaining how a large portion of the following pages
came into my possession, and as offering proofs of the
authenticity of a narrative therein contained. This, in fact—
a desire to put myself in my true position as editor, or very
little more, of the most prolix among the tales that make up
my volume3—this, and no other, is my true reason for
assuming a personal relation with the public. In accomplish-
ing the main purpose, it has appeared allowable, by a few
extra touches, to give a faint representation of a mode of life
not heretofore described, together with some of the charac-
ters that move in it, among whom the author happened to
make one.
W
Words gen • i • al (jēn´´yəl) adj., friendly and sympathetic
For di • lap • i • dat • ed (də lap´ə dāt´´id) adj., shabby, neglect-
Everyday ed, and broken down
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lan • guid (laŋ´wid) adj., indifferent; dull
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Words in • fir • mi • ty (in f"r´mə tē) n., weakness
!
For truc • u • len • cy (truk´yo—o lən cē) n., meanness, ferocity
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THE CUSTOM-HOUSE 3
own wife has greeted him, you may greet the sea-flushed
ship-master, just in port, with his vessel’s papers under his
arm in a tarnished tin box. Here, too, comes his owner,
cheerful or somber, gracious or in the sulks, accordingly as
his scheme of the now accomplished voyage has been real-
ized in merchandise that will readily be turned to gold, or
has buried him under a bulk of incommodities, such as
nobody will care to rid him of. Here, likewise—the germ of
the wrinkle-browed, grizzly-bearded, careworn merchant—
we have the smart young clerk, who gets the taste of traffic as
a wolf-cub does of blood, and already sends adventures8 in his
master’s ships, when he had better be sailing mimic boats
upon a mill-pond. Another figure in the scene is the outward-
bound sailor, in quest of a protection; or the recently arrived
one, pale and feeble, seeking a passport to the hospital. Nor
must we forget the captains of the rusty little schooners that
bring firewood from the British provinces; a rough-looking
set of tarpaulins, without the alertness of the Yankee aspect,
but contributing an item of no slight importance to our
decaying trade.
Cluster all these individuals together, as they sometimes
were, with other miscellaneous ones to diversify the group,
and, for the time being, it made the Custom-House a stirring
scene. More frequently, however, on ascending the steps,
you would discern—in the entry, if it were summer time, or
in their appropriate rooms, if wintry or inclement weather—
® What are the cus-
tom house officers a row of venerable figures, sitting in old-fashioned chairs,
like? Do the officers which were tipped on their hind legs back against the wall.
take their jobs seri- Oftentimes they were asleep, but occasionally might be
ously? How do you
heard talking together, in voices between a speech and a
know this?
snore, and with that lack of energy that distinguishes the
occupants of alms-houses,9 and all other human beings who
depend for subsistence on charity, on monopolized labor, or
anything else but their own independent exertions. These
old gentlemen—seated, like Matthew, at the receipt of cus-
tom,10 but not very liable to be summoned thence, like him,
for apostolic errands—were Custom-House officers.
8. sends adventures. Young men who worked in shipping houses often invested
some of their money in trading ventures.
9. alms-houses. Homes for poor, often elderly, people
10. Matthew . . . custom. Allusion to Matthew 9:9: “And as Jesus passed forth
from thence, he saw a man, named Matthew, sitting at the receipt of custom:
and he saith into him, Follow me. And he arose, and followed him.”
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Words vo • lu • mi • nous (və lo—om´ə nəs) adj., having a large
For capacity or interior area
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THE CUSTOM-HOUSE 5
years—possesses, or did possess, a hold on my affections, the
force of which I have never realized during my seasons of
actual residence here. Indeed, so far as its physical aspect is
concerned, with its flat, unvaried surface, covered chiefly
with wooden houses, few or none of which pretend to archi-
tectural beauty—its irregularity, which is neither picturesque
nor quaint, but only tame—its long and lazy street, lounging
wearisomely through the whole extent of the peninsula,
with Gallows Hill and New Guinea17 at one end, and a view
of the alms-house at the other—such being the features of
my native town, it would be quite as reasonable to form a
sentimental attachment to a disarranged checkerboard. And
yet, though invariably happiest elsewhere, there is within
me a feeling for old Salem, which, in lack of a better phrase,
I must be content to call affection. The sentiment is proba-
bly assignable to the deep and aged roots which my family
has struck into the soil. It is now nearly two centuries and a
quarter since the original Briton, the earliest emigrant of my
name, made his appearance in the wild and forest-bordered
settlement, which has since become a city. And here his
descendants have been born and died, and have mingled
their earthly substance with the soil; until no small portion
of it must necessarily be akin to the mortal frame wherewith,
for a little while, I walk the streets. In part, therefore, the
attachment which I speak of is the mere sensuous sympathy
of dust for dust. Few of my countrymen can know what it is;
nor, as frequent transplantation is perhaps better for the
stock, need they consider it desirable to know.
® What sentiment, But the sentiment has likewise its moral quality. The figure
or feeling, connects of that first ancestor, invested by family tradition with a dim
the narrator to the and dusky grandeur, was present to my boyish imagination,
town of Salem?
as far back as I can remember. It still haunts me, and induces
a sort of home-feeling with the past, which I scarcely claim
in reference to the present phase of the town. I seem to have
a stronger claim to a residence here on account of this grave,
bearded, sable-cloaked, and steeple-crowned progenitor18—
who came so early, with his Bible and his sword, and trode
the unworn street with such a stately port, and made so large
a figure, as a man of war and peace—a stronger claim than
for myself, whose name is seldom heard and my face hardly
known. He was a soldier, legislator, judge; he was a ruler in
the Church; he had all the Puritanic traits, both good and
17. Gallows Hill and New Guinea. Gallows Hill was the site of the hangings
during the Salem witchcraft hysteria. New Guinea was the part of Salem where
immigrants from southern Europe first settled.
18. progenitor. Ancestor
19. His son. John Hathorne (1641–1717), who persecuted the Quakers
20. martyrdom of the witches. Salem Witch Trials of 1692, in which 150 peo-
ple were imprisoned and 20 people were executed
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Words con • spic • u • ous (kən spik´yo—o əs) adj., noticeable
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THE CUSTOM-HOUSE 7
traits of their nature have intertwined themselves with
mine.
Planted deep, in the town’s earliest infancy and child-
hood, by these two earnest and energetic men, the race has
ever since subsisted here; always, too, in respectability;
never, so far as I have known, disgraced by a single unwor-
thy member; but seldom or never, on the other hand, after
the first two generations, performing any memorable deed,
or so much as putting forward a claim to public notice.
Gradually, they have sunk almost out of sight; as old houses,
here and there about the streets, get covered half-way to the
eaves by the accumulation of new soil. From father to son,
for above a hundred years, they followed the sea; a gray-
headed shipmaster, in each generation, retiring from the
quarter-deck to the homestead, while a boy of fourteen
took the hereditary place before the mast, confronting the
salt spray and the gale, which had blustered against his sire
and grandsire. The boy, also, in due time, passed from the
forecastle to the cabin, spent a tempestuous manhood, and
returned from his world-wanderings, to grow old, and die,
®Does the narrator
believe his family and mingle his dust with the natal earth. This long con-
resided in Salem for nection of a family with one spot, as its place of birth and
so many years burial, creates a kindred between the human being and the
because they loved
the town? Explain.
locality, quite independent of any charm in the scenery or
moral circumstances that surround him. It is not love, but
instinct. The new inhabitant—who came himself from a
foreign land, or whose father or grandfather came—has lit-
tle claim to be called a Salemite; he has no conception of
the oyster-like tenacity with which an old settler, over
whom his third century is creeping, clings to the spot
where his successive generations have been imbedded. It is
no matter that the place is joyless for him; that he is weary
of the old wooden houses, the mud and dust, the dead level
of site and sentiment, the chill east wind, and the chillest
of social atmospheres;—all these, and whatever faults
besides he may see or imagine, are nothing to the purpose.
The spell survives, and just as powerfully as if the natal spot
were an earthly paradise. So has it been in my case. I felt it
almost as a destiny to make Salem my home; so that the
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! !
Words ac • cu • mu • la • tion (ə kyo—om´yo—o lā´shən) n., collection
For or pile that has increased over time
Everyday !
tem • pes • tu • ous (tem pes´´cho—o əs) adj., violent, turbulent
Use
te • nac • i • ty (tə nas´´ə tē) n., stubborn persistance
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Words in • do • lent (in´´də lənt) adj., lazy; idle
!
For vi • cis • si • tude (vi sis´ə to—od´) n., change
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THE CUSTOM-HOUSE 9
through which he had held office, he had been the safety of
his subordinates in many an hour of danger and heart-quake.
General Miller was radically conservative; a man over whose
kindly nature habit had no slight influence; attaching him-
self strongly to familiar faces, and with difficulty moved to
change, even when change might have brought unquestion-
able improvement. Thus, on taking charge of my depart-
ment, I found few but aged men. They were ancient sea-
captains, for the most part, who, after being tost on every
sea, and standing up sturdily against life’s tempestuous
blast, had finally drifted into this quiet nook; where, with
little to disturb them, except the periodical terrors of a
Presidential election, they one and all acquired a new lease of
existence. Though by no means less liable than their fellow-
men to age and infirmity, they had evidently some talisman
® Why did the nar-
or other that kept death at bay. Two or three of their num-
rator fire the two
customs officers? ber, as I was assured, being gouty and rheumatic, or perhaps
bed-ridden, never dreamed of making their appearance at
the Custom-House, during a large part of the year; but, after
a torpid winter, would creep out into the warm sunshine of
May or June, go lazily about what they termed duty, and, at
their own leisure and convenience, betake themselves to bed
again. I must plead guilty to the charge of abbreviating the
official breath of more than one of these venerable servants
of the republic. They were allowed, on my representation, to
rest from their arduous labors, and soon afterwards—as if
their sole principle of life had been zeal for their country’s
service; as I verily believe it was—withdrew to a better world.
It is a pious consolation to me, that, through my interfer-
ence, a sufficient space was allowed them for repentance of
the evil and corrupt practices, into which, as a matter of
course, every Custom-House officer must be supposed to fall.
® Some civil service Neither the front nor the back entrance of the Custom-
jobs, in Hawthorne’s
day and in our own, House opens on the road to Paradise.
are political appoint- The greater part of my officers were Whigs. It was well for
ments. Does the nar- their venerable brotherhood, that the new Surveyor was not
rator approve of this a politician, and, though a faithful Democrat in principle,
method of filling gov-
ernment positions? neither received nor held his office with any reference to
Why, or why not? political services. Had it been otherwise—had an active
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Words tor • pid (tôr´pid) adj., dormant, sluggish
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Words in • cum • ben • cy (in kum´bən sē) n., term of office
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THE CUSTOM-HOUSE 11
and the happy consciousness of being usefully employed—in
their own behalf, at least, if not for our beloved country—
these good old gentlemen went through the various formali-
ties of office. Sagaciously, under their spectacles, did they
peep into the holds of vessels! Mighty was their fuss about lit-
tle matters, and marvelous, sometimes, the obtuseness that
allowed greater ones to slip between their fingers! Whenever
such a mischance occurred—when a wagon-load of valuable
merchandise had been smuggled ashore, at noonday, per-
haps, and directly beneath their unsuspicious noses—noth-
ing could exceed the vigilance and alacrity with which they
proceeded to lock, and double-lock, and secure with tape and
sealing-wax, all the avenues of the delinquent vessel. Instead
of a reprimand for their previous negligence, the case seemed
rather to require an eulogium on their praiseworthy caution,
after the mischief had happened; a grateful recognition of the
promptitude of their zeal, the moment that there was no
longer any remedy!
® Do you agree that Unless people are more than commonly disagreeable, it is
the narrator primarily my foolish habit to contract a kindness for them. The better
considers “the better part of my companion’s character, if it have a better part, is
part” of the customs
officers’ personalities?
that which usually comes uppermost in my regard, and
Why, or why not? forms the type whereby I recognize the man. As most of
these old Custom-House officers had good traits, and as my
position in reference to them, being paternal and protective,
was favorable to the growth of friendly sentiments, I soon
grew to like them all. It was pleasant, in the summer
forenoons—when the fervent heat, that almost liquefied the
rest of the human family, merely communicated a genial
warmth to their half-torpid systems—it was pleasant to hear
them chatting in the back entry, a row of them all tipped
against the wall, as usual; while the frozen witticisms of past
generations were thawed out, and came bubbling with
laughter from their lips. Externally, the jollity of aged men
has much in common with the mirth of children; the intel-
lect, any more than a deep sense of humor, has little to do
with the matter; it is, with both, a gleam that plays upon the
surface, and imparts a sunny and cheery aspect alike to the
green branch, and gray, moldering trunk. In one case, how-
ever, it is real sunshine; in the other, it more resembles the
W
Words sa • ga • cious • ly (sə ā´shəs lē) adv., in a manner that
For shows keen perception or sound judgment
!
Everyday ob • tuse • ness (ab to—os´´nəs) n., slowness of understanding
Use a • lac • ri • ty (ə lak´rə tē) n., eager willingess or readiness
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Words unc • tion (uŋk´shən) n., earnestness
For flor • id (flôr´id) adj., ruddy, red
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THE CUSTOM-HOUSE 13
indeed—but a kind of new contrivance of Mother Nature in
the shape of man, whom age and infirmity had no business
to touch. His voice and laugh, which perpetually reëchoed
through the Custom-House, had nothing of the tremulous
quaver and cackle of an old man’s utterance; they came
strutting out of his lungs, like the crow of a cock, or the
blast of a clarion. Looking at him merely as an animal—and
there was very little else to look at—he was a most satisfac-
tory object, from the thorough healthfulness and whole-
someness of his system, and his capacity, at that extreme
age, to enjoy all, or nearly all, the delights which he had
ever aimed at, or conceived of. The careless security of his
life in the Custom-House, on a regular income, and with but
slight and infrequent apprehensions of removal, had no
doubt contributed to make time pass lightly over him. The
original and more potent causes, however, lay in the rare per-
fection of his animal nature, the moderate proportion of
intellect, and the very trifling admixture of moral and spiri-
tual ingredients; these latter qualities, indeed, being in barely
enough measure to keep the old gentleman from walking on
all-fours. He possessed no power of thought, no depth of feel-
ing, no troublesome sensibilities; nothing, in short, but a few
commonplace instincts, which, aided by the cheerful temper
which grew inevitably out of his physical well-being, did
duty very respectably, and to general acceptance, in lieu of a
® What tragedies heart. He had been the husband of three wives, all long since
have occurred in the dead; the father of twenty children, most of whom, at every
inspector’s life? How age of childhood or maturity, had likewise returned to dust.
does the inspector
Here, one would suppose, might have been sorrow enough
respond to thoughts
of these tragedies? to imbue the sunniest disposition, through and through,
What does his with a sable tinge. Not so with our old Inspector! One brief
response reveal sigh sufficed to carry off the entire burden of these dismal
about him?
reminiscences. The next moment, he was as ready for sport
as any unbreeched infant; far readier than the Collector’s
junior clerk, who, at nineteen years, was much the elder and
graver man of the two.
I used to watch and study this patriarchal personage with,
I think, livelier curiosity than any other form of humanity
there presented to my notice. He was, in truth, a rare phe-
nomenon; so perfect in one point of view; so shallow, so
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Words trem • u • lous (trem´yo—o ləs) adj., trembling, quivering
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THE CUSTOM-HOUSE 15
and sensual. A tenderloin of beef, a hind-quarter of veal, a
spare-rib of pork, a particular chicken, or a remarkably
praiseworthy turkey, which had perhaps adorned his board
in the days of the elder Adams, would be remembered; while
all the subsequent experience of our race, and all the events
®According to the that brightened or darkened his individual career, had gone
narrator, what is the over him with as little permanent effect as the passing
“tragedy” of the old breeze. The chief tragic event of the old man’s life, so far as I
inspector’s life? Given
could judge, was his mishap with a certain goose, which
the actual events of
the inspector’s life, lived and died some twenty or forty years ago; a goose of
what does the man’s most promising figure, but which, at table, proved so invet-
concern about the erately tough that the carving-knife would make no impres-
tough goose reveal
sion on its carcass; and it could only be divided with an axe
about him?
and handsaw.
®What makes the But it is time to quit this sketch; on which, however, I
inspector incapable should be glad to dwell at considerably more length, because,
of suffering “moral of all men whom I have ever known, this individual was
detriment”?
fittest to be a Custom-House officer. Most persons, owing to
causes which I may not have space to hint at, suffer moral
detriment from this peculiar mode of life. The old Inspector
was incapable of it, and, were he to continue in office to the
end of time, would be just as good as he was then, and sit
down to dinner with just as good an appetite.
There is one likeness, without which my gallery of
Custom-House portraits would be strangely incomplete; but
which my comparatively few opportunities for observation
enable me to sketch only in the merest outline. It is that of
the Collector, our gallant old General, who, after his brilliant
military service, subsequently to which he had ruled over a
wild Western territory, had come hither, twenty years before,
to spend the decline of his varied and honorable life.
The brave soldier had already numbered, nearly or quite,
his threescore years and ten, and was pursuing the remain-
der of his earthly march, burdened with infirmities which
even the martial music of his own spirit-stirring recollections
could do little towards lightening. The step was palsied now,
that had been foremost in the charge. It was only with the
assistance of a servant, and by leaning his hand heavily on
the iron balustrade, that he could slowly and painfully
ascend the Custom-House steps, and, with a toilsome
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Words in • vet • er • ate • ly (in vet´´ər it lē) adv., firmly, habitually
For det • ri • ment (de´´trə mənt) n., damage, injury, harm
Everyday
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30. Ticonderoga. Fort in New York, captured by the British in 1759 and by the
Americans in 1775
31. cumbrous. Unwieldy; hard to handle
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Words coun • te • nance (koun´´tə nəns) n., face
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THE CUSTOM-HOUSE 17
characterized by an uneasy activity; it must, at any period of
his life, have required an impulse to set him in motion; but,
once stirred up, with obstacles to overcome, and an adequate
object to be attained, it was not in the man to give out or fail.
The heat that had formerly pervaded his nature, and which
was not yet extinct, was never of the kind that flashes and
flickers in a blaze, but, rather, a deep, red glow, as of iron in
a furnace. Weight, solidity, firmness; this was the expression
of his repose, even in such decay as had crept untimely over
him at the period of which I speak. But I could imagine, even
then, that, under some excitement which should go deeply
into his consciousness—roused by a trumpet-peal, loud
enough to awaken all of his energies that were not dead, but
only slumbering—he was yet capable of flinging off his infir-
mities like a sick man’s gown, dropping the staff of age to
seize a battle-sword, and starting up once more a warrior.
And, in so intense a moment, his demeanor would have still
been calm. Such an exhibition, however, was but to be pic-
®In what way is the tured in fancy; not to be anticipated, nor desired. What I saw
general like Fort in him—as evidently as the indestructible ramparts of Old
Ticonderoga? Ticonderoga, already cited as the most appropriate simile—
were the features of stubborn and ponderous endurance,
which might well have amounted to obstinacy in his earlier
days; of integrity, that, like most of his other endowments,
lay in a somewhat heavy mass, and was just as unmalleable
and unmanageable as a ton of iron ore; and of benevolence,
which, fiercely as he led the bayonets on at Chippewa or Fort
Erie, I take to be of quite as genuine a stamp as what actuates
any or all the polemical philanthropists of the age. He had
slain men with his own hand, for aught I know;—certainly,
they had fallen, like blades of grass at the sweep of the
scythe, before the charge to which his spirit imparted its tri-
umphant energy;—but, be that as it might, there was never in
his heart so much cruelty as would have brushed the down off
a butterfly’s wing. I have not known the man, to whose innate
kindliness I would more confidently make an appeal.
Many characteristics—and those, too, which contribute
not the least forcibly to impart resemblance in a sketch—
must have vanished, or been obscured, before I met the
General. All merely graceful attributes are usually the most
W
Words pon • der • ous (pan´´dər əs) adj., labored
For ob • sti • na • cy (ab´stə nə sē) n., stubbornness
Everyday
un • mal • le • a • ble (un mal´ē ə bəl) adj., not pliable, not
Use
adaptable
32. laurel. Plant from which, in ancient Greece and Rome, ceremonial crowns
were woven for victors or champions
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Words tu • mult (to—o´mult´´) n., commotion, confusion
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THE CUSTOM-HOUSE 19
There was one thing that much aided me in renewing and
re-creating the stalwart soldier of the Niagara frontier—the
man of true and simple energy. It was the recollection of
those memorable words of his—“I’ll try, Sir!”—spoken on the
very verge of a desperate and heroic enterprise, and breath-
ing the soul and spirit of New England hardihood, compre-
hending all perils, and encountering all. If, in our country,
valour were rewarded by heraldic honor, this phrase—which
it seems so easy to speak, but which only he, with such a task
of danger and glory before him, has ever spoken—would be
the best and fittest of all mottoes for the General’s shield of
arms.
®According to the It contributes greatly towards a man’s moral and intellectual
narrator, what helps health, to be brought into habits of companionship with indi-
a person to grow
morally and intellec-
viduals unlike himself, who care little for his pursuits, and
tually? Do you agree whose sphere and abilities he must go out of himself to appre-
with him? ciate. The accidents of my life have often afforded me this
advantage, but never with more fullness and variety than
during my continuance in office. There was one man, espe-
cially, the observation of whose character gave me a new idea
® What gifts suit of talent. His gifts were emphatically those of a man of busi-
this “man of busi- ness; prompt, acute, clear-minded; with an eye that saw
ness” to his job? through all perplexities, and a faculty of arrangement that
made them vanish, as by the waving of an enchanter’s
wand. Bred up from boyhood in the Custom-House, it was
his proper field of activity; and the many intricacies of busi-
ness, so harassing to the interloper, presented themselves
before him with the regularity of a perfectly comprehended
system. In my contemplation, he stood as the ideal of his
class. He was, indeed, the Custom-House in himself; or, at all
events, the main-spring that kept its variously revolving
wheels in motion; for, in an institution like this, where its
officers are appointed to subserve their own profit and con-
venience, and seldom with a leading reference to their fitness
for the duty to be performed, they must perforce seek else-
where the dexterity which is not in them. Thus, by an
inevitable necessity, as a magnet attracts steel-filings, so did
our man of business draw to himself the difficulties which
everybody met with. With an easy condescension, and kind
forbearance towards our stupidity—which, to his order of
mind, must have seemed little short of crime—would he
W
Words con • de • scen • sion (kan´´di sen´´shən) n., act of descending
For voluntarily to the level of another
Everyday
Use
THE CUSTOM-HOUSE 21
altogether different qualities, and never murmur at the
change.
® In what way does Literature, its exertions and objects, were now of little
working at the cus-
tom house change
moment in my regard. I cared not, at this period, for books;
the narrator? they were apart from me. Nature—except it were human
nature—the nature that is developed in earth and sky, was,
in one sense, hidden from me; and all the imaginative
delight, wherewith it had been spiritualized, passed away out
of my mind. A gift, a faculty, if it had not been departed, was
suspended and inanimate within me. There would have been
something sad, unutterably dreary, in all this, had I not been
conscious that it lay at my own option to recall whatever was
valuable in the past. It might be true, indeed, that this was a
life which could not, with impunity, be lived too long; else,
it might make me permanently other than I had been, with-
out transforming me into any shape which it would be
worth my while to take. But I never considered it as other
than a transitory life. There was always a prophetic instinct,
a low whisper in my ear, that, within no long period, and
whenever a new change of custom should be essential to my
good, change would come.
Meanwhile, there I was, a Surveyor of the Revenue, and, so
far as I have been able to understand, as good a Surveyor as
need be. A man of thought, fancy, and sensibility, (had he ten
times the Surveyor’s proportion of those qualities,) may, at
any time, be a man of affairs, if he will only choose to give
himself the trouble. My fellow-officers, and the merchants
and sea-captains with whom my official duties brought me
into any manner of connection, viewed me in no other light,
and probably knew me in no other character. None of them,
I presume, had ever read a page of my inditing, or would have
cared a fig the more for me, if they had read them all; nor
would it have mended the matter, in the least, had those
same unprofitable pages been written with a pen like that of
Burns40 or of Chaucer,41 each of whom was a Custom-House
officer in his day, as well as I. It is a good lesson—though it
may often be a hard one—for a man who has dreamed of
40. Burns. Robert Burns (1759–1796), Scottish poet and songwriter, appointed
officer in the excise at Dumfries in 1791
41. Chaucer. Geoffrey Chaucer (c. 1342–1400), English narrative poet, appoint-
ed Controller of the Customs in London in 1374
W
!
Words im • pu • ni • ty (im pyo—o´ni tē) n., exemption
For tran • si • to • ry (tran´´sə tôr´ē) adj., temporary, fleeting
Everyday
Use
W
Words de • void (di void´) adj., completely without
!
For re • buke (ri byo—ok´) n., sharp reprimand
Everyday
vogue (vō) n., popularity
Use
THE CUSTOM-HOUSE 23
room, in which the brick-work and naked rafters have never
been covered with paneling and plaster. The edifice—origi-
nally projected on a scale adapted to the old commercial
enterprise of the port, and with an idea of subsequent pros-
perity destined never to be realized—contains far more space
than its occupants know what to do with. This airy hall,
therefore, over the Collector’s apartments, remains unfin-
ished to this day, and, in spite of the aged cobwebs that fes-
toon its dusky beams, appears still to await the labor of the
carpenter and mason. At one end of the room, in a recess,
were a number of barrels, piled one upon another, contain-
®Why do the ing bundles of official documents. Large quantities of similar
“musty papers” sad-
rubbish lay lumbering the floor. It was sorrowful to think
den the narrator?
Why do forgotten how many days, and weeks, and months, and years of toil,
creative works sad- had been wasted on these musty papers, which were now
den the narrator only an encumbrance on earth, and were hidden away in
even more?
this forgotten corner, never more to be glanced at by human
eyes. But, then, what reams of other manuscripts—filled, not
with the dullness of official formalities, but with the thought
of inventive brains and the rich effusion of deep hearts—had
gone equally to oblivion; and that, moreover, without serv-
ing a purpose in their day, as these heaped-up papers had,
and—saddest of all—without purchasing for their writers the
comfortable livelihood which the clerks of the Custom-
House had gained by these worthless scratchings of the pen.
Yet not altogether worthless, perhaps, as materials of local
history. Here, no doubt, statistics of the former commerce of
Salem might be discovered, and memorials of her princely
merchants—old King Derby—old Billy Gray—old Simon
Forrester—and many another magnate in his day; whose
powdered head, however, was scarcely in the tomb, before
his mountain-pile of wealth began to dwindle. The founders
of the greater part of the families which now compose the
aristocracy of Salem might here be traced, from the petty and
obscure beginnings of their traffic, at periods generally much
posterior to the Revolution, upward to what their children
look upon as long-established rank.
Prior to the Revolution, there is a dearth of records; the earli-
er documents and archives of the Custom-House having, prob-
ably, been carried off to Halifax, when all the king’s officials
W
Words en • cum • brance (en kum´brəns) n., hindrance, burden
!
For ef • fu • sion (e fyo—o´zhən) n., emotional expression
Everyday
Use
W
Words en • gross (en rōs) vt., express formally
For
Everyday
Use
THE CUSTOM-HOUSE 25
left of my respected predecessor, save an imperfect skeleton,
and some fragments of apparel, and a wig of majestic frizzle;
which, unlike the head that it once adorned, was in very sat-
isfactory preservation. But, on examining the papers which
the parchment commission served to envelop, I found more
traces of Mr. Pue’s mental part, and the internal operations
of his head, than the frizzled wig had contained of the ven-
erable skull itself.
They were documents, in short, not official, but of a pri-
vate nature, or, at least, written in his private capacity, and
apparently with his own hand. I could account for their
being included in the heap of Custom-House lumber only by
the fact, that Mr. Pue’s death had happened suddenly; and
that these papers, which he probably kept in his official desk,
had never come to the knowledge of his heirs, or were sup-
posed to relate to the business of the revenue. On the trans-
fer of the archives to Halifax, this package, proving to be of
no public concern, was left behind, and had remained ever
since unopened.
The ancient Surveyor—being little molested, I suppose, at
that early day, with business pertaining to his office—seems
to have devoted some of his many leisure hours to researches
as a local antiquarian, and other inquisitions of a similar
nature. These supplied material for petty activity to a mind
that would otherwise have been eaten up with rust. A portion
of his facts, by the by, did me good service in the preparation
of the article entitled “MAIN STREET,” included in the present
volume. The remainder may perhaps be applied to purposes
equally valuable, hereafter; or not impossibly may be worked
up, so far as they go, into a regular history of Salem, should
my veneration for the natal soil ever impel me to so pious
a task. Meanwhile, they shall be at the command of any
gentleman, inclined and competent, to take the unprof-
itable labor off my hands. As a final disposition, I contem-
plate depositing them with the Essex Historical Society.
®What object in the But the object that most drew my attention to the mysteri-
package immediately ous package was a certain affair of fine red cloth, much worn
catches the narrator’s
attention? What does
and faded. There were traces about it of gold embroidery,
the narrator believe which, however, was greatly frayed and defaced; so that
this object was? none, or very little, of the glitter was left. It had been
W
Words ven • er • a • tion (ven´´ər ā´shən) n., feeling of deep
For respect
Everyday im • pel (im pel´) vt., force, urge
Use
W
Words ev • a • nes • cent (ev´ə nes´´ənt) adj., ephemeral; short-
For lived; likely to vanish or disappear
Everyday e • vade (ē vād´) vi., escape
Use
THE CUSTOM-HOUSE 27
Prynne, who appeared to have been rather a noteworthy per-
sonage in the view of our ancestors. She had flourished dur-
ing the period between the early days of Massachusetts and
the close of the seventeenth century. Aged persons, alive in
the time of Mr. Surveyor Pue, and from whose oral testimony
he had made up his narrative, remembered her, in their
youth, as a very old, but not decrepit woman, of a stately and
solemn aspect. It had been her habit, from an almost
immemorial date, to go about the country as a kind of vol-
untary nurse, and doing whatever miscellaneous good she
might; taking upon herself, likewise, to give advice in all
matters, especially those of the heart; by which means, as a
person of such propensities inevitably must, she gained from
many people the reverence due to an angel, but, I should
imagine, was looked upon by others as an intruder and a nui-
sance. Prying farther into the manuscript, I found the record
of other doings and sufferings of this singular woman, for
®What does the most of which the reader is referred to the story entitled
narrator say about “THE SCARLET LETTER”; and it should be borne carefully in
the story “The mind that the main facts of that story are authorized and
Scarlet Letter”? What
does he say he has authenticated by the document of Mr. Surveyor Pue. The
allowed himself to original papers, together with the scarlet letter itself—a most
do? Has the narrator curious relic—are still in my possession, and shall be freely
actually served only exhibited to whomsoever, induced by the great interest of
as an “editor” as he
earlier claimed? the narrative, may desire a sight of them. I must not be
understood as affirming that, in the dressing up of the tale,
and imagining the motives and modes of passion that influ-
enced the characters who figure in it, I have invariably con-
fined myself within the limits of the old Surveyor’s half a
dozen sheets of foolscap. On the contrary, I have allowed
myself, as to such points, nearly or altogether as much
license as if the facts had been entirely of my own invention.
What I contend for is the authenticity of the outline.
This incident recalled my mind, in some degree, to its old
track. There seemed to be here the groundwork of a tale. It
impressed me as if the ancient Surveyor, in his garb of a hun-
dred years gone by, and wearing his immortal wig—which
was buried with him, but did not perish in the grave—had
met me in the deserted chamber of the Custom-House. In his
port was the dignity of one who had borne his Majesty’s
W
Words de • crep • it (dē krep´it) adj., broken down or worn out by
For age
Everyday pro • pen • si • ty (prə pen´´sə tē) n., inclination
Use
W
!
Words ob • scure • ly (əb skyo—or´lē) adv., indistinctly
For ex • hort (e zôrt) vt., urge strongly
Everyday in • de • fat • i • ga • ble (in´´di fat´i ə bəl) adj., untiring;
Use not yielding to fatigue
THE CUSTOM-HOUSE 29
House to the delicate harvest of fancy and sensibility, that,
had I remained there through ten Presidencies yet to come,
I doubt whether the tale of “The Scarlet Letter” would ever
have been brought before the public eye. My imagination
was a tarnished mirror. It would not reflect, or only with mis-
erable dimness, the figures with which I did my best to peo-
ple it. The characters of the narrative would not be warmed
and rendered malleable, by any heat that I could kindle at
my intellectual forge. They would take neither the glow of
passion nor the tenderness of sentiment, but retained all the
rigidity of dead corpses, and stared me in the face with a
fixed and ghastly grin of contemptuous defiance. “What
have you to do with us?” that expression seemed to say. “The
little power you might have once possessed over the tribe of
unrealities is gone! You have bartered it for a pittance of the
public gold. Go, then, and earn your wages!” In short, the
almost torpid creatures of my own fancy twitted me with
imbecility, and not without fair occasion.
® In what way does It was not merely during the three hours and a half which
the narrator claim to Uncle Sam claimed as his share of my daily life, that this
have been changed
by working in the
wretched numbness held possession of me. It went with me
custom house? on my sea-shore walks and rambles into the country, when-
ever—which was seldom and reluctantly—I bestirred myself
to seek that invigorating charm of Nature, which used to
give me such freshness and activity of thought, the moment
that I stepped across the threshold of the Old Manse. The
same torpor, as regarded the capacity for intellectual effort,
accompanied me home, and weighed upon me in the cham-
ber which I most absurdly termed my study. Nor did it quit
me, when, late at night, I sat in the deserted parlor, lighted
only by the glimmering coal-fire and the moon, striving to
picture forth imaginary scenes, which, the next day, might
flow out on the brightening page in many-hued description.
If the imaginative faculty refused to act at such an hour,
it might well be deemed a hopeless case. Moonlight, in a
familiar room, falling so white upon the carpet, and show-
ing all its figures so distinctly—making every object so
minutely visible, yet so unlike a morning or noontide visi-
bility—is a medium the most suitable for a romance-writer
to get acquainted with his illusive guests. There is the little
W
!
Words con • temp • tu • ous (kə temp´cho—o əs) adj., scornful, dis-
For dainful
Everyday
Use
W
Words tri • fling (tr¯´flin) adj., trivial, of little value
For im • bue (im byo— o´) vt., fill or permeate
Everyday
Use
THE CUSTOM-HOUSE 31
remove farther from the actual, and nearer to the imagina-
® According to the tive. Then, at such an hour, and with this scene before him,
narrator, what does if a man, sitting all alone, cannot dream strange things, and
a person have to be make them look like truth, he need never try to write
able to do in order to
write romances? romances.
But, for myself, during the whole of my Custom-House
experience, moonlight and sunshine, and the glow of fire-
light, were just alike in my regard; and neither of them was
of one whit more avail than the twinkle of a tallow-candle.
An entire class of susceptibilities, and a gift connected with
them—of no great richness or value, but the best I had—was
gone from me.
It is my belief, however, that, had I attempted a different
order of composition, my faculties would not have been
found so pointless and inefficacious. I might, for instance,
have contented myself with writing out the narratives of a
veteran shipmaster, one of the Inspectors, whom I should be
most ungrateful not to mention, since scarcely a day passed
that he did not stir me to laughter and admiration by his
marvellous gifts as a story-teller. Could I have preserved the
picturesque force of his style, and the humorous coloring
which nature taught him how to throw over his descrip-
tions, the result, I honestly believe, would have been some-
thing new in literature. Or I might readily have found a
more serious task. It was a folly, with the materiality of this
daily life pressing so intrusively upon me, to attempt to
fling myself back into another age; or to insist on creating
the semblance of a world out of airy matter, when, at every
moment, the impalpable beauty of my soap-bubble was bro-
ken by the rude contact of some actual circumstance. The
wiser effort would have been, to diffuse thought and imagi-
nation through the opaque substance of to-day, and thus to
make it a bright transparency; to spiritualize the burden
that began to weigh so heavily; to seek, resolutely, the true
and indestructible value that lay hidden in the petty and
wearisome incidents, and ordinary characters, with which I
was now conversant. The fault was mine. The page of life
that was spread out before me seemed dull and common-
place, only because I had not fathomed its deeper import. A
better book than I shall ever write was there; leaf after leaf
W
Words im • pal • pa • ble (im pal´pə bəl) adj., lacking substance;
For not perceivable through touch
Everyday
Use
THE CUSTOM-HOUSE 33
has ever been. But this seldom happens. He usually keeps his
ground just long enough for his own ruin, and is then thrust
out, with sinews all unstrung, to totter along the difficult
footpath of life as he best may. Conscious of his own infir-
mity—that his tempered steel and elasticity are lost—he for
ever afterwards looks wistfully about him in quest of support
®According to the external to himself. His pervading and continual hope—a
narrator, what is the hallucination, which, in the face of all discouragement, and
one hope of most making light of impossibilities, haunts him while he lives,
custom house officers
who lose their posi-
and, I fancy, like the convulsive throes of the cholera,53 tor-
tions? ments him for a brief space after death—is, that, finally, and
in no long time, by some happy coincidence of circum-
stances, he shall be restored to office. This faith, more than
anything else, steals the pith and availability out of whatever
enterprise he may dream of undertaking. Why should he toil
and moil, and be at so much trouble to pick himself up out
of the mud, when, in a little while hence, the strong arm of
his Uncle will raise and support him? Why should he work
for his living here, or go to dig gold in California, when he
is so soon to be made happy, at monthly intervals, with a lit-
tle pile of glittering coin out of his Uncle’s pocket? It is sadly
curious to observe how slight a taste of office suffices to
®To what does the infect a poor fellow with this singular disease. Uncle Sam’s
narrator compare gold—meaning no disrespect to the worthy old gentleman—
government pay?
has, in this respect, a quality of enchantment like that of the
Devil’s wages. Whoever touches it should look well to him-
self, or he may find the bargain to go hard against him,
involving, if not his soul, yet many of its better attributes; its
sturdy force, its courage and constancy, its truth, its self-
reliance, and all that gives the emphasis to manly character.
Here was a fine prospect in the distance! Not that the
Surveyor brought the lesson home to himself, or admitted
that he could be so utterly undone, either by continuance in
office or ejectment. Yet my reflections were not the most
comfortable. I began to grow melancholy and restless; con-
tinually prying into my mind, to discover which of its poor
properties were gone, and what degree of detriment had
already accrued to the remainder. I endeavored to calculate
how much longer I could stay in the Custom-House, and yet
W
!
Words at • trib • ute (ə trib´ yo—ot) n., characteristic or quality
!
For ac • crue (ə kro—o´) vi., come as a natural growth
Everyday
Use
W
Words te • di • ous (tē´dē əs) adj., tiresome, boring
For irk • some ("rk´səm) adj., annoying
Everyday
Use
THE CUSTOM-HOUSE 35
were a literal fact, instead of one of the most apt of
metaphors, it is my sincere belief, that the active members of
the victorious party were sufficiently excited to have
chopped off all our heads, and have thanked Heaven for the
opportunity! It appears to me—who have been a calm and
curious observer, as well in victory as defeat—that this fierce
and bitter spirit of malice and revenge has never distin-
guished the many triumphs of my own party as it now did
that of the Whigs. The Democrats take the offices, as a gen-
eral rule, because they need them, and because the practice
of many years has made it the law of political warfare, which
unless a different system be proclaimed, it was weakness and
cowardice to murmur at. But the long habit of victory has
made them generous. They know how to spare, when they
see occasion; and when they strike, the axe may be sharp,
indeed, but its edge is seldom poisoned with ill-will; nor is it
their custom ignominiously to kick the head which they
have just struck off.
In short, unpleasant as was my predicament, at best, I saw
much reason to congratulate myself that I was on the losing
side, rather than the triumphant one. If, heretofore, l had
been none of the warmest of partisans, I began now, at this
season of peril and adversity, to be pretty acutely sensible
with which party my predilections lay; nor was it without
something like regret and shame, that, according to a reason-
able calculation of chances, I saw my own prospect of retain-
ing office to be better than those of my democratic brethren.
But who can see an inch into futurity, beyond his nose? My
own head was the first that fell!
® Does the narrator The moment when a man’s head drops off is seldom or
take a negative or a never, I am inclined to think, precisely the most agreeable of
positive view of his life. Nevertheless, like the greater part of our misfortunes,
adversity? Explain. even so serious a contingency brings its remedy and consola-
tion with it, if the sufferer will but make the best, rather than
the worst, of the accident which has befallen him. In my par-
ticular case, the consolatory topics were close at hand, and,
indeed, had suggested themselves to my meditations a con-
siderable time before it was requisite to use them. In view of
my previous weariness of office, and vague thoughts of resig-
nation, my fortune somewhat resembled that of a person
W
Words ig • no • min • i • ous • ly (i´nə min´´ē əs lē) adv., shame-
For fully; despicably
Everyday pred • i • lec • tion (pred´l ek´shən) n., preference;
Use preconceived liking
W
Words di • verge (d¯ v"rj´) vi., go or move in different directions
For com • pel (kəm pel´) vt., force
Everyday
Use
THE CUSTOM-HOUSE 37
Now it was, that the lucubrations of my ancient predeces-
sor, Mr. Surveyor Pue, came into play. Rusty through long idle-
ness, some little space was requisite before my intellectual
machinery could be brought to work upon the tale, with an
effect in any degree satisfactory. Even yet, though my
thoughts were ultimately much absorbed in the task, it
wears, to my eye, a stern and somber aspect; too much
ungladdened by genial sunshine; too little relieved by the
tender and familiar influences which soften almost every
scene of nature and real life, and, undoubtedly, should soft-
en every picture of them. This uncaptivating effect is perhaps
due to the period of hardly accomplished revolution, and
still seething turmoil, in which the story shaped itself. It is
no indication, however, of a lack of cheerfulness in the
writer’s mind; for he was happier, while straying through the
gloom of these sunless fantasies, than at any time since he
had quitted the Old Manse. Some of the briefer articles,
which contribute to make up the volume, have likewise been
written since my involuntary withdrawal from the toils and
honors of public life, and the remainder are gleaned from
annuals and magazines, of such antique date that they have
gone round the circle, and come back to novelty again.
Keeping up the metaphor of the political guillotine, the
whole may be considered as the POSTHUMOUS PAPERS OF A
DECAPITATED SURVEYOR; and the sketch which I am now
bringing to a close, if too autobiographical for a modest per-
son to publish in his lifetime, will readily be excused in a
gentleman who writes from beyond the grave. Peace be with
all the world! My blessing on my friends! My forgiveness to
my enemies! For I am in the realm of quiet!
The life of the Custom-House lies like a dream behind me.
The old Inspector—who, by-the-bye, l regret to say, was over-
thrown and killed by a horse, some time ago; else he would
certainly have lived for ever—he, and all those other venera-
ble personages who sat with him at the receipt of custom, are
but shadows in my view; white-headed and wrinkled images,
which my fancy used to sport with, and has now flung aside
for ever. The merchants—Pingree, Phillips, Shepard, Upton,
Kimball, Bertram, Hunt—these and many other names,
which had such classic familiarity for my ear six months
W
Words glean (lēn) vi., collect or gather
For
Everyday
Use
W
Words a • bode (ə bōd´) n., home
For
Everyday
Use
THE CUSTOM-HOUSE 39
Responding to the Selection
Would you have found work at the custom house inter-
esting, or would it have dulled your spirits as it did those of
the narrator? What kind of work would you find engaging
and empowering? Why is it important for a person to find
such work? Write about these questions in your journal.
Synthesizing
9. Why does Hawthorne want to tell the story of the cus-
tom house? What does the place mean to him, and what
does his essay tell you about his character?
10. What does this essay teach about the importance, to a
creative person, of finding the right surroundings?
THE CUSTOM-HOUSE 41
I
The Prison-Door
W
Words ed • i • fice (ed´i fis) n., large, imposing building
For —!
nuc • le • us (no o ´ klē əs) n., center
Everyday pon • der • ous (päń dər əs) adj., heavy
Use con • ge • nial (kən jēn´yəl) adj., compatible
4. portal. Doorway
5. threshold. Entrance or doorsill
6. Ann Hutchinson. Hutchinson (1591–1643) was a religious leader banished
from the Massachusetts Bay Colony because of her beliefs. See The Historical
Context of The Scarlet Letter on page x.
W
Words in • aus • pi • cious (in´ô spish ´əs) adj., unfavorable,
For unlucky
Everyday
Use
THE PRISON-DOOR 43
II
The Market-Place
W
Words au • gur (ô´er) vt., foretell, prophesize adv., unquestionably
For se • ver • i • ty (sə ver´ə tē) n., strictness de • mean • or (di mēn´ər) n., conduct
Everyday in • fer • ence (in´fər əns) n., conclusion ven • er • a • ble (ven´ər ə bəl) adj.,
!
Use in • du • bi • ta • bly (in do—o ´bi tə blē) impressive; worthy of respect
W
Words in • fa • my (in´ fə mē) n., dishonor, disgrace
For
Everyday
Use
THE MARKET-PLACE 45
® Who is the crimi- if we women, being of mature age and church-members in
nal who will be pun- good repute, should have the handling of such malefac-
ished? What does
the “hard-featured
tresses8 as this Hester Prynne. What think ye, gossips? If the
dame” think would hussy stood up for judgment before us five, that are now
be good for their here in a knot together, would she come off with such a sen-
town? tence as the worshipful magistrates have awarded? Marry, I
trow not!”
“People say,” said another, “that the Reverend Master
Dimmesdale, her godly pastor, takes it very grievously to
heart that such a scandal should have come upon his con-
gregation.”
® How will Hester “The magistrates are God-fearing gentlemen, but merciful
Prynne be punished? overmuch—that is a truth,” added a third autumnal matron.
How does the third “At the very least, they should have put the brand of a hot
matron think she
should be punished?
iron on Hester Prynne’s forehead. Madame Hester would
have winced at that, I warrant me. But she—the naughty
baggage—little will she care what they put upon the bodice
of her gown.9 Why, look you, she may cover it with a brooch,
or such like heathenish adornment, and so walk the streets
as brave as ever.”
® What does the “Ah, but,” interposed, more softly, a young wife, holding a
young wife say about child by the hand, “let her cover the mark as she will, the
the mark that Hester
will be forced to
pang of it will be always in her heart.”
wear? “What do we talk of marks and brands, whether on the
bodice of her gown or the flesh of her forehead?” cried
another female, the ugliest as well as the most pitiless of
these self-constituted judges. “This woman has brought
shame upon us all, and ought to die. Is there not law for it?
Truly there is, both in the Scripture10 and the statute-book.
Then let the magistrates, who have made it of no effect,
thank themselves if their own wives and daughters go
astray!”
“Mercy on us, goodwife,” exclaimed a man in the crowd,
“is there no virtue in woman, save what springs from a
wholesome fear of the gallows? That is the hardest word yet!
Hush, now, gossips; for the lock is turning in the prison-
door, and here comes Mistress Prynne herself.”
The door of the jail being flung open from within, there
appeared, in the first place, like a black shadow emerging
into sunshine, the grim and grisly presence of the town-
beadle,11 with a sword by his side, and his staff of office in
his hand. This personage prefigured and represented in his
aspect the whole dismal severity of the Puritanic code of law,
8. malefactresses. Female criminals or evildoers
9. upon the bodice . . . gown. Hester has been condemned to wear a scarlet
letter A on the bodice, or upper part, of her dress.
10. Scripture. The Bible
11. town-beadle. Messenger of a court of law
W
Words haugh • ty (hôt´ ē) adj., proud, scornful
For
Everyday
Use
THE MARKET-PLACE 47
Prynne appeared more lady-like, in the antique interpreta-
tion of the term, than as she issued from the prison. Those
who had before known her, and had expected to behold her
dimmed and obscured by a disastrous cloud, were aston-
ished, and even startled, to perceive how her beauty shone
out, and made a halo of the misfortune and ignominy in
which she was enveloped. It may be true, that, to a sensitive
observer, there was something exquisitely painful in it. Her
attire, which, indeed, she had wrought for the occasion, in
prison, and had modeled much after her own fancy, seemed
to express the attitude of her spirit, the desperate reckless-
ness of her mood, by its wild and picturesque peculiarity. But
the point which drew all eyes, and, as it were, transfigured
the wearer—so that both men and women, who had been
familiarly acquainted with Hester Prynne, were now
impressed as if they beheld her for the first time—was that
SCARLET LETTER, so fantastically embroidered and illuminated
® What effect does upon her bosom. It had the effect of a spell, taking her out
the scarlet letter have of the ordinary relations with humanity, and inclosing her in
on Hester Prynne?
a sphere by herself.
® What do some of “She hath good skill at her needle, that’s certain,”
the female spectators remarked one of her female spectators; “but did ever a
think about the way woman, before this brazen hussy, contrive such a way of
in which Hester has
embroidered the
showing it! Why, gossips, what is it but to laugh in the faces
letter? of our godly magistrates, and make a pride out of what they,
worthy gentlemen, meant for a punishment?”
“It were well,” muttered the most iron-visaged of the old
dames, “if we stripped Madame Hester’s rich gown off her
dainty shoulders; and as for the red letter, which she hath
stitched so curiously, I’ll bestow a rag of mine own rheumatic
flannel, to make a fitter one!”
“Oh, peace, neighbors—peace!” whispered their youngest
companion. “Do not let her hear you! Not a stitch in that
embroidered letter, but she has felt it in her heart.”
The grim beadle now made a gesture with his staff. “Make
way, good people, make way, in the King’s name,” cried he.
“Open a passage; and I promise ye, Mistress Prynne shall be
set where man, woman, and child may have a fair sight of
her brave apparel, from this time till an hour past meridian.13
W
Words ig • no • min • y (i´nə min´ē) n., shame, dishonor
For
Everyday
Use
14. pillory. Wooden device with openings for the hands and the head, used to
confine minor offenders and to display them for public scorn and ridicule
W
Words in • iq • ui • ty (i nik´wi tē) n., wickedness
For man • i • fest (man´ə fest´) adj., apparent to the senses
Everyday
Use
THE MARKET-PLACE 49
methinks, against our common nature—whatever be the
delinquencies of the individual—no outrage more flagrant
than to forbid the culprit to hide his face for shame; as it was
the essence of this punishment to do. In Hester Prynne’s
instance, however, as not unfrequently in other cases, her
sentence bore, that she should stand a certain time upon the
platform, but without undergoing that gripe about the neck
and confinement of the head, the proneness to which was
the most devilish characteristic of this ugly engine. Knowing
well her part, she ascended a flight of wooden steps, and was
thus displayed to the surrounding multitude, at about the
height of a man’s shoulders above the street.
® With whom does Had there been a Papist15 among the crowd of Puritans, he
the narrator contrast
might have seen in this beautiful woman, so picturesque in
Hester Prynne?
her attire and mien, and with the infant at her bosom, an
object to remind him of the image of Divine Maternity,
which so many illustrious painters have vied with one
another to represent; something which should remind him,
indeed, but only by contrast, of that sacred image of sinless
motherhood, whose infant was to redeem the world. Here,
there was the taint of deepest sin in the most sacred quality
of human life, working such effect, that the world was only
the darker for this woman’s beauty, and the more lost for the
infant that she had borne.
The scene was not without a mixture of awe, such as must
always invest the spectacle of guilt and shame in a fellow-
creature, before society shall have grown corrupt enough to
smile, instead of shuddering, at it. The witnesses of Hester
Prynne’s disgrace had not yet passed beyond their simplicity.
They were stern enough to look upon her death, had that
been the sentence, without a murmur at its severity, but had
none of the heartlessness of another social state, which would
find only a theme for jest in an exhibition like the present.
Even had there been a disposition to turn the matter into
® What important ridicule, it must have been repressed and overpowered by
figures witness the solemn presence of men no less dignified than the gov-
Hester’s punishment? ernor, and several of his counselors, a judge, a general, and
What effect does the
presence of these fig-
ures have on the 15. Papist. Roman Catholic
spectacle?
W
fla • grant (flā´rəny) adj., outrageous
Words
mien (mēn) n., manner, bearing
For
Everyday vie (v¯) vi., compete
Use taint (tānt) n., corruption or evil; a moral defect considered
as a stain or spot
W
—!
Words con • sti • tute (kän´stə to o t´) vt., form rem • i • nis • cence (rem´ə nis ´ əns ) n.,
For sus • tain (sə stāń) vt., support, buoy up memory, recollection
Everyday pre • ter • nat • u • ral • ly (prē´tər nach´ər
Use əl lē) adv., abnormally, supernaturally
THE MARKET-PLACE 51
intermingled with recollections of whatever was gravest in
her subsequent life; one picture precisely as vivid as another;
as if all were of similar importance, or all alike a play.
Possibly, it was an instinctive device of her spirit, to relieve
itself, by the exhibition of these phantasmagoric18 forms,
from the cruel weight and hardness of the reality.
Be that as it might, the scaffold of the pillory was a point
of view that revealed to Hester Prynne the entire track along
which she had been treading, since her happy infancy.
Standing on that miserable eminence, she saw again her
native village, in Old England, and her paternal home; a
decayed house of gray stone, with a poverty-stricken aspect,
but retaining a half obliterated shield of arms over the por-
tal, in token of antique gentility. She saw her father’s face,
with its bald brow, and reverend white beard, that flowed
over the old-fashioned Elizabethan ruff; her mother’s, too,
with the look of heedful and anxious love which it always
wore in her remembrance, and which, even since her death,
had so often laid the impediment of a gentle remonstrance
in her daughter’s pathway. She saw her own face, glowing
with girlish beauty, and illuminating all the interior of the
dusky mirror in which she had been wont to gaze at it. There
® What power does
the scholar have? she beheld another countenance, of a man well stricken in
years, a pale, thin, scholar-like visage, with eyes dim and
bleared by the lamp-light that had served them to pore over
many ponderous books. Yet those same bleared optics had a
strange, penetrating power, when it was their owner’s pur-
pose to read the human soul. This figure of the study and the
cloister,19 as Hester Prynne’s womanly fancy failed not to
recall, was slightly deformed, with the left shoulder a trifle
higher than the right. Next rose before her, in memory’s
picture-gallery, the intricate and narrow thoroughfares, the
tall, gray houses, the huge cathedrals, and the public edifices,
ancient in date and quaint in architecture, of a Continental
city;20 where new life had awaited her, still in connection
W
Words grave (rāv) adj., serious; grievous im • ped • i • ment (im ped´ə mənt) n.,
For em • i • nence (em´i nəns) n., high place obstacle
Everyday heed • ful (hēd´ fəl) adj., careful re • mon • strance (ri män ´strəns) n., act
Use of protesting or objecting
THE MARKET-PLACE 53
Responding to the Selection
Describe what you think of Hester Prynne as she stands
with her child before her community. Describe what you
think of the members of Hester’s community as they watch
her.
Synthesizing
9. What about Hester’s appearance and her crime seems
to bother the community, particularly the other women,
the most?
10. What do the attitudes of the crowd say about early
Puritan society?
THE MARKET-PLACE 55
III
The Recognition
W
Words dis • cern (di z"rn´) vt, recognize con • vul • sive (kən vul´ siv) adj., having the
For het • er • o • ge • ne • ous (het´ər ō´jē´nē əs) nature of violent, involuntary spasms
Everyday adj., varied; made up of unlike parts writh • ing (r¯th́ iŋ) adj., twisting, distressing
Use a • bate (ə bāt´) vt., lessen, diminish
W
Words so • journ (sō´ j"rn) n., brief or temporary stay
For
Everyday
Use
THE RECOGNITION 57
after some necessary affairs. Marry, good Sir, in some two
years, or less, that the woman has been a dweller here in
Boston, no tidings have come of this learned gentleman,
Master Prynne; and his young wife, look you, being left to her
own misguidance—”
“Ah!—aha!—I conceive you,” said the stranger, with a bit-
ter smile. “So learned a man as you speak of should have
learned this too in his books. And who, by your favor, Sir,
may be the father of yonder babe—it is some three or four
months old, I should judge—which Mistress Prynne is hold-
ing in her arms?”
“Of a truth, friend, that matter remaineth a riddle; and the
Daniel1 who shall expound it is yet a-wanting,” answered the
townsman. “Madame Hester absolutely refuseth to speak, and
the magistrates have laid their heads together in vain.
Peradventure the guilty one stands looking on at this sad spec-
tacle, unknown of man, and forgetting that God sees him.”
“The learned man,” observed the stranger with another
smile, “should come himself to look into the mystery.”
“It behooves him well, if he be still in life,” responded the
townsman. “Now, good Sir, our Massachusetts magistracy,
® Why didn’t the bethinking themselves that this woman is youthful and
magistrates condemn fair, and doubtless was strongly tempted to her fall—and
Hester to death?
How have they
that, moreover, as is most likely, her husband may be at the
shown their leniency? bottom of the sea, they have not been bold to put in force
the extremity of our righteous law against her. The penalty
thereof is death. But in their great mercy and tenderness of
heart, they have doomed Mistress Prynne to stand only a
space of three hours on the platform of the pillory, and
then and thereafter, for the remainder of her natural life, to
wear a mark of shame upon her bosom.”
® How does the “A wise sentence!” remarked the stranger, gravely bowing his
stranger feel about
the punishment that
head. “Thus she will be a living sermon against sin, until the
Hester is receiving? ignominious letter be engraved upon her tombstone. It irks
Why do you think me, nevertheless, that the partner of her iniquity should not,
the stranger says “he at least, stand on the scaffold by her side. But he will be
will be known!” three
times? Who might
known!—he will be known!—he will be known!”
this stranger be? He bowed courteously to the communicative townsman,
and whispering a few words to his Indian attendant, they
both made their way through the crowd.
While this passed, Hester Prynne had been standing on her
pedestal, still with a fixed gaze towards the stranger; so fixed
a gaze, that, at moments of intense absorption, all other
objects in the visible world seemed to vanish, leaving only
him and her. Such an interview, perhaps, would have been
W
Words sa • gac • i • ty (sə as´ə tē) n., shrewdness; intelligence and
For sound judgment
Everyday em • i • nent (em´ə nent) adj., famous; distinguished
Use
THE RECOGNITION 59
authority were felt to possess the sacredness of divine insti-
® What does the tutions. They were, doubtless, good men, just, and sage. But,
narrator say about out of the whole human family, it would not have been easy
the judges? Why
might the judges be
to select the same number of wise and virtuous persons, who
unable to judge should be less capable of sitting in judgment on an erring
Hester wisely? woman’s heart, and disentangling its mesh of good and evil,
than the sages of rigid aspect towards whom Hester Prynne
now turned her face. She seemed conscious, indeed, that
whatever sympathy she might expect lay in the larger and
warmer heart of the multitude; for, as she lifted her eyes
towards the balcony, the unhappy woman grew pale, and
trembled.
The voice which had called her attention was that of the
reverend and famous John Wilson,4 the eldest clergyman of
Boston, a great scholar, like most of his contemporaries in
the profession, and withal5 a man of kind and genial spirit.
This last attribute, however, had been less carefully devel-
oped than his intellectual gifts, and was, in truth, rather a
matter of shame than self-congratulation with him. There he
stood, with a border of grizzled locks beneath his skull-cap;6
while his gray eyes, accustomed to the shaded light of his
study, were winking, like those of Hester’s infant, in the
unadulterated7 sunshine. He looked like the darkly engraved
portraits which we see prefixed to old volumes of sermons;
and had no more right than one of those portraits would
have, to step forth, as he now did, and meddle with a ques-
tion of human guilt, passion, and anguish.
“Hester Prynne,” said the clergyman, “I have striven with
my young brother here, under whose preaching of the word
you have been privileged to sit”—here Mr. Wilson laid his
hand on the shoulder of a pale young man beside him—“I
have sought, I say, to persuade this godly youth, that he
should deal with you, here in the face of Heaven, and before
these wise and upright rulers, and in hearing of all the peo-
ple, as touching the vileness and blackness of your sin.
Knowing your natural temper better than I, he could the bet-
ter judge what arguments to use, whether of tenderness or
W
Words vile • ness (v¯l´nəs) n., evilness, offensiveness
For
Everyday
Use
W
Words pre • vail (prē vāl´) vi., triumph
For fer • vor (f"r´vər) n., zeal, passion
Everyday
ap • pre • hen • sive (ap´rē hen´siv) adj., anxious or fearful
Use
THE RECOGNITION 61
Such was the young man whom the Reverend Mr. Wilson
and the Governor had introduced so openly to the public
notice, bidding him speak, in the hearing of all men, to that
mystery of a woman’s soul, so sacred even in its pollution.
The trying nature of his position drove the blood from his
cheek, and made his lips tremulous.
“Speak to the woman, my brother,” said Mr. Wilson. “It is
of moment to her soul, and therefore, as the worshipful
Governor says, momentous to thine own, in whose charge
hers is. Exhort her to confess the truth!”
The Reverend Mr. Dimmesdale bent his head, in silent
prayer, as it seemed, and then came forward.
“Hester Prynne,” said he, leaning over the balcony, and
looking down steadfastly into her eyes, “thou hearest what
this good man says, and seest the accountability under
® What is which I labor. If thou feelest it to be for thy soul’s peace, and
Dimmesdale asking that thy earthly punishment will thereby be made more
Hester to do? Why?
effectual to salvation, I charge thee to speak out the name of
thy fellow-sinner and fellow-sufferer! Be not silent from any
mistaken pity and tenderness for him; for, believe me,
Hester, though he were to step down from a high place, and
stand there beside thee, on thy pedestal of shame, yet better
were it so, than to hide a guilty heart through life. What can
® According to thy silence do for him, except it tempt him—yea, compel him,
Dimmesdale, what as it were—to add hypocrisy to sin? Heaven hath granted thee
type of sin is worse—
an open ignominy, that thereby thou mayest work out an
an open one or a
hidden one? For open triumph over the evil within thee, and the sorrow with-
what does out. Take heed how thou deniest to him—who, perchance,
Dimmesdale blame hath not the courage to grasp it for himself—the bitter, but
Hester? What does
wholesome, cup that is now presented to thy lips!”
he say about her
partner in sin? The young pastor’s voice was tremulously sweet, rich, deep,
and broken. The feeling that it so evidently manifested,
rather than the direct purport of the words, caused it to
vibrate within all hearts, and brought the listeners into one
® What does accord of sympathy. Even the poor baby, at Hester’s bosom,
Hester’s baby do was affected by the same influence; for it directed its hitherto
after hearing vacant gaze towards Mr. Dimmesdale, and held up its little
Dimmesdale’s plea?
arms, with a half-pleased, half plaintive murmur. So powerful
seemed the minister’s appeal, that the people could not
believe but that Hester Prynne would speak out the guilty
W
Words plain • tive (plān´ tiv) adj., mournful; sad
For
Everyday
Use
W
Words trans • gress (trans res´) vi., break a law or commandment;
For commit a sin
Everyday
Use
THE RECOGNITION 63
beneath a stony crust of insensibility, while the faculties of
animal life remained entire. In this state, the voice of the
preacher thundered remorselessly, but unavailingly, upon
her ears. The infant, during the latter portion of her ordeal,
pierced the air with its wailings and screams; she strove to
hush it mechanically, but seemed scarcely to sympathize
with its trouble. With the same hard demeanor, she was led
back to prison, and vanished from the public gaze within its
® What did the peo- iron-clamped portal. It was whispered, by those who peered
ple say that they saw after her, that the scarlet letter threw a lurid gleam along the
as Hester walked into dark passage-way of the interior.
the prison?
The Interview
1. sagamores. Chiefs
W
Words per • pe • trate (p"r´pe trāt´) vt., commit; do something wrong
For in • sub • or • di • na • tion (in´ sə bor´də nā ´shən) n., dis-
Everyday obedience
Use per • vade (pər vād´) vt., be prevalent throughout
THE INTERVIEW 65
“Prithee, friend, leave me alone with my patient,” said the
practitioner. “Trust me, good jailer, you shall briefly have
peace in your house; and, I promise you, Mistress Prynne
shall hereafter be more amenable to just authority than you
may have found her heretofore.”
“Nay, if your worship can accomplish that,” answered
Master Brackett, “I shall own you for a man of skill, indeed!
Verily, the woman hath been like a possessed one; and there
lacks little that I should take in hand to drive Satan out of
her with stripes.”
The stranger had entered the room with the characteristic
quietude of the profession to which he announced himself
as belonging. Nor did his demeanor change, when the with-
drawal of the prison-keeper left him face to face with the
woman, whose absorbed notice of him, in the crowd, had
intimated so close a relation between himself and her. His
first care was given to the child; whose cries, indeed, as she
lay writhing on the trundle-bed, made it of peremptory
necessity to postpone all other business to the task of sooth-
ing her. He examined the infant carefully, and then pro-
ceeded to unclasp a leathern case, which he took from
beneath his dress. It appeared to contain certain medical
preparations, one of which he mingled with a cup of water.
® What has Roger “My old studies in alchemy,”2 observed he, “and my
Chillingworth sojourn, for above a year past, among a people well versed in
studied?
the kindly properties of simples, 3 have made a better physi-
cian of me than many that claim the medical degree. Here,
woman! The child is yours—she is none of mine—neither
will she recognize my voice or aspect as a father’s. Administer
this draught, therefore, with thine own hand.”
® Why does Hester Hester repelled the offered medicine, at the same time gaz-
refuse to give the ing with strongly marked apprehension into his face.
baby the medicine
prepared by Roger
“Wouldst thou avenge thyself on the innocent babe?”
Chillingworth? whispered she.
“Foolish woman!” responded the physician, half coldly,
half soothingly. “What should ail me to harm this misbegot-
ten and miserable babe? The medicine is potent for good;
W
Words a • me • na • ble (ə mē´nə bəl) adj., obedient
For per • emp • to • ry (pər emp´tə rē) adj., unable to be
Everyday delayed
Use
a • venge (ə venj´) vt., get revenge
W
Words ef • fi • ca • cy (ef´i kə sē) n., effectiveness
For pro • found (prō found´) adj., very deep
Everyday !
—
scru • ti • ny (skro ot´ nē) n., close examination
Use
THE INTERVIEW 67
and peril of life—so that this burning shame may still blaze
upon thy bosom?”—As he spoke, he laid his long forefinger
on the scarlet letter, which forthwith seemed to scorch into
Hester’s breast, as if it had been red-hot. He noticed her
involuntary gesture, and smiled. “Live, therefore, and bear
about thy doom with thee, in the eyes of men and women—
in the eyes of him whom thou didst call thy husband—in
the eyes of yonder child! And, that thou mayest live, take off
this draught.”
Without further expostulation or delay, Hester Prynne
drained the cup, and, at the motion of the man of skill, seated
herself on the bed where the child was sleeping; while he
drew the only chair which the room afforded, and took his
own seat beside her. She could not but tremble at these
preparations; for she felt that—having now done all that
humanity, or principle, or, if so it were, a refined cruelty,
impelled him to do, for the relief of physical suffering—he
was next to treat with her as the man whom she had most
deeply and irreparably injured.
“Hester,” said he, “I ask not wherefore, nor how, thou hast
fallen into the pit, or say rather, thou hast ascended to the
® According to pedestal of infamy, on which I found thee. The reason is not
Roger, what is the far to seek. It was my folly, and thy weakness. I—a man of
reason for Hester’s thought—the book-worm of great libraries—a man already in
fall?
decay, having given my best years to feed the hungry dream
of knowledge—what had I to do with youth and beauty like
thine own! Misshapen from my birth-hour, how could I
delude myself with the idea that intellectual gifts might veil
physical deformity in a young girl’s fantasy? Men call me
wise. If sages were ever wise in their own behoof, I might
have foreseen all this. I might have known that, as I came out
of the vast and dismal forest, and entered this settlement of
Christian men, the very first object to meet my eyes would be
thyself, Hester Prynne, standing up, a statue of ignominy,
before the people. Nay, from the moment when we came
® What does Roger
down the old church-steps together, a married pair, I might
say he should have
recognized as have beheld the bale-fire7 of that scarlet letter blazing at the
inevitable? When end of our path!”
should he have
recognized this?
7. bale-fire. Funeral pyre
W
Words ex • pos • tu • la • tion (eks päś chə lā ´ shən) n., objection
For
Everyday
Use
W
Words feign (fān) vt., make a false show of; pretend
For
Everyday
Use
THE INTERVIEW 69
The eyes of the wrinkled scholar glowed so intensely upon
her, that Hester Prynne clasped her hand over her heart,
dreading lest he should read the secret there at once.
“Thou wilt not reveal his name? Not the less he is mine,”
resumed he, with a look of confidence, as if destiny were at
® Where does Roger one with him. “He bears no letter of infamy wrought into his
claim he will see the garment, as thou dost; but I shall read it on his heart. Yet fear
man’s guilt? not for him! Think not that I shall interfere with Heaven’s
own method of retribution, or, to my own loss, betray him
to the gripe of human law. Neither do thou imagine that I
shall contrive aught against his life; no, nor against his fame,
if, as I judge, he be a man of fair repute. Let him live! Let him
hide himself in outward honor, if he may! Not the less he
shall be mine!”
“Thy acts are like mercy,” said Hester, bewildered and
appalled. “But thy words interpret thee as a terror!”
® What does Roger “One thing, thou that wast my wife, I would enjoin upon
Chillingworth ask of thee,” continued the scholar. “Thou hast kept the secret of
Hester? thy paramour. Keep, likewise, mine! There are none in this
land that know me. Breathe not, to any human soul, that
thou didst ever call me husband! Here, on this wild outskirt
of the earth, I shall pitch my tent; for, elsewhere a wanderer,
and isolated from human interests, I find here a woman, a
man, a child, amongst whom and myself there exist the clos-
est ligaments. No matter whether of love or hate; no matter
whether of right or wrong! Thou and thine, Hester Prynne,
belong to me. My home is where thou art, and where he is.
But betray me not!”
“Wherefore dost thou desire it?” inquired Hester, shrink-
ing, she hardly knew why, from this secret bond. “Why not
announce thyself openly, and cast me off at once?”
“It may be,” he replied, “because I will not encounter the
dishonor that besmirches the husband of a faithless woman.
It may be for other reasons. Enough, it is my purpose to live
and die unknown. Let, therefore, thy husband be to the
world as one already dead, and of whom no tidings shall ever
come. Recognize me not, by word, by sign, by look! Breathe
not the secret, above all, to the man thou wottest8 of.
8. wottest. Know
W
!
—
Words ret • ri • bu • tion (re´tre byo o ´shen) n., punishment
For con • trive (kən tr¯v´) vt., scheme, plan
Everyday ap • palled (ə pôld´) adj., filled with horror or dismay
Use
8. Black . . . forest. The Puritans associated the forest with Satan. Forests, or
dark woods, are traditional symbols of moral confusion or of being lost.
W
Words en • tice (en t¯s´) vt., tempt, lure
For
Everyday
Use
THE INTERVIEW 71
Responding to the Selection
Do you understand Hester’s wish to keep the baby’s
father a secret? What are your feelings toward Roger
Chillingworth? Explain your responses.
Synthesizing
9. By the end of chapter 4, what two important facts
related to Hester’s situation are being concealed? Whose
ruin do you think Chillingworth is predicting at the end of
chapter 4?
10. Why does Hester associate Chillingworth with the Black
Man? What ominous character traits does Chillingworth have?
What might be the significance of Chillingworth’s name?
THE INTERVIEW 73
V
W
Words con • vert (kən v"rt´) vt., transform
For !
lu • rid (lo or´ id) adj., shocking, sensational
Everyday suf • fice (sə fs̄´´) vi., be sufficient; be enough
Use an • ni • hi • late (ə n¯´ə lāt´) vt., destroy completely; kill
W
Words con • dem • na • tion (kän´dəm nā´sheń) as • sim • i • late (ə sim´ə lāt́) vt., make like
For n., severe reproof or censure in • ev • i • ta • ble (in ev´i tə bəl) adj.,
Everyday !
—
in • scru • ta • ble (in skro o t´ə bəl) adj., mys- unavoidable
Use terious gal • ling (ôl´ liŋ) adj., annoying; bitter
W
—!
Words ret • ri • bu • tion (rétrə byo o ´shən) n., punishment
For in • quis • i • to ri • al (in kwiz´ə tôr´ē əl) adj., questioning;
Everyday prying
Use
W
Words in • cur (in k"r´) vt., bring upon oneself
!
—
For in • ge • nu • i • ty (in´jə no o ´ə tē) adj., cleverness
Everyday —!
e • mol • u • ment (ē mäl ´yo o ment) n., payment for work
Use
W
Words as • cet • ic (ə set´ik) adj., severe; self-denying
For —!
su • per • flu • ous (sə p"r´flo o əs) adj., excessive; unnecessary
Everyday
Use
3. set a mark . . . Cain. In Genesis, the first book of the Bible, Cain kills his
brother Abel, is marked by God, and becomes an outcast.
W
Words re • pug • nance (ri pu´nəns) n., extreme dislike; aversion
For suc • cor (suk´ər) vt., assist, help
Everyday mal • ice (mal´is) n., ill will; spite
Use
W
Words ir • re • press • i • bly (ir´ri pres´ə ble ) adv., unrestrainably
For ex • hor • ta • tion (e´zôr tā´shən) n., plea; warning
Everyday im • bibe (im b¯b´) vi., drink
Use
W
Words po • tent (pōt´ nt´) adj., powerful in • op • por • tune • ness (in äp´ər
!
en • dow (en dou´) vt., provide with a quality to on´nes) n., inappropriateness; poor timing
For !
Everyday in • sid • i • ous (in sid´ē əs) adj., sly, crafty con • tu • ma • cious • ly (kän´ tyo—o
ir • rev • er • ent (ir rev´ər ənt) adj., disre- mā´shəs lē) adv., rebelliously
Use
spectful
W
Words a • ver (ə v"r´) vt., affirm; declare to be true
!
For in • cre • du • li • ty (in´ krə do—o ´lə tē) n., unwillingness to
Everyday believe; doubt
Use
Pearl
PEARL 83
bought the richest tissues that could be procured, and
allowed her imaginative faculty its full play in the arrange-
ment and decoration of the dresses which the child wore,
before the public eye. So magnificent was the small figure,
when thus arrayed, and such was the splendor of Pearl’s own
proper beauty, shining through the gorgeous robes which
might have extinguished a paler loveliness, that there was an
absolute circle of radiance around her, on the darksome cot-
tage-floor. And yet a russet gown, torn and soiled with the
child’s rude play, made a picture of her just as perfect. Pearl’s
aspect was imbued with a spell of infinite variety; in this one
child there were many children, comprehending the full
scope between the wild-flower prettiness of a peasant-baby,
and the pomp, in little, of an infant princess. Throughout
® What quality all, however, there was a trait of passion, a certain depth of
marks Pearl? hue, which she never lost; and if in any of her changes, she
had grown fainter or paler, she would have ceased to be her-
self;—it would have been no longer Pearl!
This outward mutability indicated, and did not more than
fairly express, the various properties of her inner life. Her
nature appeared to possess depth, too, as well as variety;
® What is unusual but—or else Hester’s fears deceived her—it lacked reference
about Pearl? To what and adaptation to the world into which she was born. The
does Hester attribute child could not be made amenable to rules. In giving her
this quality?
existence, a great law had been broken; and the result was a
being, whose elements were perhaps beautiful and brilliant,
but all in disorder; or with an order peculiar to themselves,
amidst which the point of variety and arrangement was dif-
ficult or impossible to be discovered. Hester could only
account for the child’s character—and even then, most
vaguely and imperfectly—by recalling what she herself had
been, during that momentous period while Pearl was imbib-
ing her soul from the spiritual world, and her bodily frame
from its material of earth. The mother’s impassioned state
had been the medium through which were transmitted to
the unborn infant the rays of its moral life; and, however
white and clear originally, they had taken the deep stains of
crimson and gold, the fiery luster, the black shadow, and the
untempered light, of the intervening substance. Above all,
the warfare of Hester’s spirit, at that epoch, was perpetuated
in Pearl. She could recognize her wild, desperate, defiant
W
!
Words pro • cure (prō kyo or´) vt., obtain
!
For mu • ta • bil • i • ty (myo—o ´tə bil´i tē) n., ability to change
Everyday
in • ter • ven • ing (in´tər vēn´ iŋ) adj., coming between
Use
W
Words pro • lif • ic (prō lif´ik) adj., fertile; abounding
For com • pul • sion (kəm pul´shən) n., force, coercion
Everyday ca • price (kə prēś) n., whim
Use per • verse (pər v"rś) adj., stubbornly contrary; wicked
PEARL 85
which she invariably began—to snatch her to her bosom,
with a close pressure and earnest kisses—not so much from
overflowing love, as to assure herself that Pearl was flesh and
blood, and not utterly delusive. But Pearl’s laugh, when she
was caught, though full of merriment and music, made her
mother more doubtful than before.
Heart-smitten at this bewildering and baffling spell, that so
often came between herself and her sole treasure, whom she
had bought so dear, and who was all her world, Hester some-
times burst into passionate tears. Then, perhaps—for there
was no foreseeing how it might affect her—Pearl would
frown, and clench her little fist, and harden her small fea-
® Of what does tures into a stern, unsympathizing look of discontent. Not
Pearl sometimes seldom, she would laugh anew, and louder than before, like
seem incapable? a thing incapable and unintelligent of human sorrow. Or—
but this more rarely happened—she would be convulsed
with a rage of grief, and sob out her love for her mother, in
broken words, and seem intent on proving that she had a
heart, by breaking it. Yet Hester was hardly safe in confiding
herself to that gusty tenderness; it passed as suddenly as it
came. Brooding over all these matters, the mother felt like
one who has evoked a spirit, but, by some irregularity in the
process of conjuration, has failed to win the master-word
that should control this new and incomprehensible intelli-
gence. Her only real comfort was when the child lay in the
placidity of sleep. Then she was sure of her, and tasted hours
of quiet, sad, delicious happiness; until—perhaps with that
perverse expression glimmering from beneath her opening
lids—little Pearl awoke!
® Why can’t Pearl How soon—with what strange rapidity, indeed!—did Pearl
play with the other
children? Does this
arrive at an age that was capable of social intercourse,
seem particularly beyond the mother’s ever-ready smile and nonsense-words!
cruel to you? Why, or And then what a happiness would it have been, could Hester
why not? Prynne have heard her clear, bird-like voice mingling with
the uproar of other childish voices, and have distinguished
and unraveled her own darling’s tones, amid all the entan-
gled outcry of a group of sportive children! But this could
never be. Pearl was a born outcast of the infantile world. An
imp of evil, emblem and product of sin, she had no right
among christened infants. Nothing was more remarkable
than the instinct, as it seemed, with which the child
W
!
Words con • ju • ra • tion (kän´jo—o ra´shən) n., magic; sorcery
For pla • cid • i • ty (plə sid´ə tē) n., calmness, tranquility
Everyday
Use
W
Words in • vi • o • la • ble (in v¯´ōlə bəl) adj., safe a • nath • e • ma (ə nath´ə mə) n., curse
For or secure against envy or violation; sacred out • land • ish (out´lan´dish) adj., very
Everyday in • co • her • ent (in´kō hir ´ənt) adj., not odd, bizarre
Use clearly articulated; not logically connected en • mi • ty (en´mə tē) n., hostility
PEARL 87
soothed away by the softening influences of maternity.
At home, within and around her mother’s cottage, Pearl
wanted not a wide and various circle of acquaintance. The
spell of life went forth from her ever creative spirit, and com-
municated itself to a thousand objects, as a torch kindles a
flame wherever it may be applied. The unlikeliest materials,
a stick, a bunch of rags, a flower, were the puppets of Pearl’s
witchcraft, and, without undergoing any outward change,
became spiritually adapted to whatever drama occupied the
stage of her inner world. Her one baby-voice served a multi-
tude of imaginary personages, old and young, to talk withal.
® What does Pearl The pine-trees, aged, black, and solemn, and flinging groans
imagine when she and other melancholy utterances on the breeze, needed little
plays?
transformation to figure as Puritan elders; the ugliest weeds
of the garden were their children, whom Pearl smote down
and uprooted most unmercifully. It was wonderful, the vast
variety of forms into which she threw her intellect, with no
continuity, indeed, but darting up and dancing, always in a
state of preternatural activity—soon sinking down, as if
exhausted by so rapid and feverish a tide of life—and suc-
ceeded by other shapes of a similar wild energy. It was like
nothing so much as the phantasmagoric play of the north-
ern lights. In the mere exercise of the fancy, however, and
the sportiveness of a growing mind, there might be a little
more than was observable in other children of bright facul-
ties; except as Pearl, in the dearth of human playmates, was
thrown more upon the visionary throng which she created.
The singularity lay in the hostile feelings with which the
child regarded all these offsprings of her own heart and
® Why does Pearl mind. She never created a friend, but seemed always to be
imagine only ene- sowing broadcast the dragon’s teeth, whence sprung a har-
mies, never friends?
vest of armed enemies, against whom she rushed to battle. It
was inexpressibly sad—then what depth of sorrow to a
mother, who felt in her own heart the cause!—to observe, in
one so young, this constant recognition of an adverse world,
and so fierce a training of the energies that were to make
good her cause, in the contest that must ensue.
Gazing at Pearl, Hester Prynne often dropped her work
upon her knees, and cried out with an agony which she
would fain have hidden, but which made utterance for itself,
betwixt speech and a groan—“O Father in Heaven—if Thou
W
Words dearth (d"rth) n., scarcity, lack
For ad • verse (ad v"rś) adj., unfavorable, harmful
Everyday
Use
PEARL 89
handfuls of wild-flowers, and flinging them, one by one, at
her mother’s bosom; dancing up and down, like a little elf,
whenever she hit the scarlet letter. Hester’s first motion had
been to cover her bosom with her clasped hands. But
whether from pride or resignation, or a feeling that her
penance might best be wrought out by this unutterable pain,
she resisted the impulse, and sat erect, pale as death, looking
sadly into little Pearl’s wild eyes. Still came the battery of
flowers, almost invariably hitting the mark, and covering the
mother’s breast with hurts for which she could find no balm
in this world, nor knew how to seek it in another. At last, her
shot being all expended, the child stood still and gazed at
Hester, with that little, laughing image of a fiend peeping
out—or, whether it peeped or no, her mother so imagined
it—from the unsearchable abyss of her black eyes.
“Child, what art thou?” cried the mother.
“O, I am your little Pearl!” answered the child.
But, while she said it, Pearl laughed, and began to dance up
and down, with the humorsome gesticulation of a little imp,
whose next freak2 might be to fly up the chimney.
“Art thou my child, in very truth?” asked Hester.
Nor did she put the question altogether idly, but, for the
moment, with a portion of genuine earnestness; for, such
was Pearl’s wonderful intelligence, that her mother half
doubted whether she were not acquainted with the secret
spell of her existence, and might not now reveal herself.
“Yes; I am little Pearl!” repeated the child, continuing her
antics.
® What impulse “Thou art not my child! Thou art no Pearl of mine!” said the
often comes to mother half playfully; for it was often the case that a sportive
Hester even when
impulse came over her, in the midst of her deepest suffering.
she is suffering?
“Tell me, then, what thou art, and who sent thee hither?”
“Tell me, mother!” said the child, seriously, coming up to
Hester, and pressing herself close to her knees. “Do thou tell
me!”
® Whom does Hester “Thy Heavenly Father sent thee!” answered Hester Prynne.
say sent Pearl into But she said it with a hesitation that did not escape the
this world? How does
Hester say this? What
acuteness of the child. Whether moved only by her ordinary
message does she freakishness, or because an evil spirit prompted her, she put
unwittingly communi- up her small forefinger, and touched the scarlet letter.
cate to Pearl? What is
Pearl’s reaction? 2. freak. Sudden fancy, odd notion
W
Words res • ig • na • tion (rez ´i nā´shən) n., passive acceptance
For !
—
ges • tic • u • la • tion (jes tik´yo o lā´shən) n., energetic motion
Everyday !
—
a • cute • ness (ə kyo o t´nəs) n., quickness of mind; sensitivity
Use to impressions
PEARL 91
Responding to the Selection
Imagine that you were present in Hester’s community.
How would you have treated Hester? What would you say
to the townspeople about their treatment of Hester? What
advice might you offer Hester?
Synthesizing
9. What does the narrator mean when he says that
“Mother and daughter stood together in the same circle of
seclusion from human society”?
10. Do other townspeople judge Hester and Pearl too
severely? Does Hester judge herself and her daughter too
severely? Why, or why not?
W
Words sup • pos • i • tion (sup’ə zish’ ən) n., assumption,
For hypothesis
Everyday lu • di • crous (lo—o ’di krəs) adj., absurd, ridiculous
Use pris • tine (pris’tēn) adj., pure, uncorrupted
W
Words in • trin • sic (in trin’sik) adj., not dependent on exterior
For forces; inherent
Everyday im • per • i • ous (im pir’ē əs) adj., commanding
Use
W
—
Words si • mil • i • tude (sə mil´ə to o d´) n., likeness ex • tant (eks´tənt) adj., existing
For daunt • less (dônt´ les) adj., fearless mel • an • chol • y (mel´ən kal´ē) adj.,
Everyday sad; gloomy
pes • ti • lence (pes´tə ləns) n., fatal, con-
Use
tagious disease
W
Words ca • ba • lis • tic (kab´ə lis´tik) adj., occult
For
im • per • a • tive • ly (im per´ə tiv lē) adv., command-
Everyday
ingly; urgently
Use
W
Words ex • i • gen • cy (eks´´ə jən sē) n, pressing need; demand;
For requirement
Everyday
Use
W
Words re • lin • quish (ri liŋ´kwish) vt., give up; abandon
For
Everyday
Use
1. indue. Dress
2. King James’s reign. James Stuart, king of England from 1603 to 1625
W
Words
ex • pa • ti • ate (eks pā´shē āt´) vi., speak in great detail;
For
elaborate
Everyday un • feign • ed • ly (un fāŋ´id le) adv., genuinely, sincerely
Use be • nev • o • lence (bə nev´ə ləns) n., kindliness; tenden-
cy to be charitable
3. Lord of Misrule. Figure said to rule through the Christmas holidays, and to
be guilty of encouraging scandalous behavior
4. bedizen. Dress or decorate in a cheap, showy way
W
Words tem • po • ral (tem´pə rəl) adj., existing in time;
For worldly; not spiritual
Everyday
Use
6. New England Primer. Early schoolbook used to teach both moral lessons
and the alphabet
7. Westminster Catechism. Statement of Calvinist doctrine
W
Words per • vers • i • ty (pər vr´sə tē) n., wickedness; stub-
For born contrariness
Everyday prox • im • i • ty (praks im´ə tē) n., nearness
Use
W
Words con • strain (kən strān´) vt., force, compel; restrain
For de • prav • i • ty (dē prav´ə tē) n., corruption, wickedness
Everyday in • de • fea • si • ble (in´dē fē´zə bəl) adj., not capable
Use
of being undone
W
Words pro • voke (prō vōk´) vt., excite to some e • ma • ci • at • ed (ē mā´ shē āt´ əd)
For feeling adj., abnormally thin
Everyday a • g • i • ta • tion (aj´ə tā´shən) n., emo- ear • nest • ly (r´ nist lē) adv., seriously
Use tional disturbance and sincerely
W
Words ad • duce (ad´yo—o s) vt., give as reason or proof
For
Everyday
Use
10. parable. Short, simple story designed to teach a moral or religious lesson
W
Words sun • der (sun´dər) vt., break apart, separate
For
Everyday
Use
Synthesizing
9. Why, according to Dimmesdale, should Hester raise
Pearl? In what way is Pearl both Hester’s “happiness,” and
her “torture”?
10. What value does Pearl offer to Hester? How does the
conclusion of this chapter confirm that value and the truth
of Dimmesdale’s argument?
The Leech1
W
Words ex • em • pla • ry (e zem´plə rē) adj., serving as a model
For or example; worth imitating
Everyday fer • vent (fr´vənt) adj., passionate, emotional
Use
W
Words scru • pu • lous (skro—o´pyɵ ləs) adj., extremely careful
For ad • vent (ad´´vent´) n., coming or arrival
Everyday
es • teem (e stēm´) vt., regard highly
Use
W
Words in • ter • po • si • tion (in´tər pə zish´´ən) n., interruption or
For intervention
Everyday
Use
W
Words in • tu • i • tion (in to—o ish´´ən) n., ability to know without
For conscious reasoning
Everyday af • fin • i • ty (ə fin´i tē) n., close relationship; connection
Use
W
Words be • nev • o • lent (bə nev´ə lənt) adj., kind
For con • cord (kan´´kôrd´) n., harmony; agreement
Everyday
Use
4. Gobelin looms. The cloth produced by the Gobelin family in fifteenth cen-
tury Paris was prized all over the world.
5. David and Bathsheba. In 2 Samuel 11, Bathsheba, wife of Uriah, becomes
pregnant by David. David then sends Uriah into battle to be killed.
6. Nathan the Prophet. In 2 Samuel 12, Nathan traps David into condemning
himself by telling a parable about the greed of a rich man who takes from his
neighbor.
W
Words er • u • di • tion (er´yo—o dish´´ən) n., learning acquired by
For study
Everyday vil • i • fy (vil´´ə f¯´) vt., put down; slander
Use ref • u • ta • tion (ref´yə ta´´shən) n., disproof
W
Words im • pli • cate (im´´pli kāt´) vt., show to be connected to a
For crime
Everyday
Use
W
Words in • teg • ri • ty (in teg´rə tē) n., whole- as • pi • ra • tion (as´pə rā´´shən) n., desire,
For ness; soundness characterized by adherence ambition
Everyday to moral principles stealth • i • ly (stel´thə lē) adv., slyly; in a
Use om • i • nous (am´ə nəs) adj., threatening secretive manner
W
Words i • nim • i • cal (i nim´i kəl) adj., in opposition; hostile
For
Everyday
Use
W
Words sol • ace (sal´is) n., consolation; easing of grief or discomfort
For
Everyday
Use
W
Words prop • a • gate (prap´´ə āt´) vt., reproduce
For in • dif • fer • ent • ly (in dif´ər ənt lē) adv., apathetically;
Everyday without interest
Use a • g • i • tate (aj´´i tāt´) vt., excite; stir up strong emotions
W
Words dec • o • rous • ly (dek´ə rəs lē) adv., showing good behavior
For te • na • cious • ly (tə nā´shəs lē) adv., stubbornly; persistently
Everyday
Use
W
Words som • nif • er • ous (sam nif´ər əs) adj., inducing sleep
For
Everyday
Use
W
Words la • tent (lāt´nt) adj., present but not visible
For
Everyday
Use
W
o • di • ous (ō´dē əs) adj., repugnant, ab • hor • rence (ab hôr´əns) n., loathing,
Words detestable detestation
For
im • plic • it • ly (im plis´it lē) adv., absolutely for • lorn (fôr lôrn´) adj., wretched; miserable
Everyday
Use an • tip • a • thy (an tip´ə thē) n., aversion; mach • i • na • tions (mak´ə nā´shəns) n.,
deep dislike evil plans and plotting
1. Pentecost. Christian festival that occurs on the seventh Sunday after Easter
W
!
Words ab • struse (ab stro—o s´) adj., hard to understand
For thwart (thwôrt) vt., hinder, obstruct
Everyday
Use
2. sanctity of Enoch. Enoch had such a perfect relationship with God that he
was taken to Heaven without experiencing death.
W
Words in • con • ceiv • a • ble (in´´kən sēv´ə bəl) adj., that cannot
For be thought of, understood, or believed
Everyday
Use
W
Words a • bom • i • na • tion (ə bam´ə nā´´shən) n., something
For hateful or disgusting
Everyday de • file (dē f¯l´) vt., corrupt, make impure
Use
1. somnambulism. Sleepwalking
2. zenith. Peak, summit
W
in • ex • tri • ca • ble (in eks´tri kə bəl) adj., incapable of
Words being untangled or untied
For
ex • pi • a • tion (eks´ pē ā´´ shən) n., act of making amends;
Everyday
reparation
Use
re • ver • ber • ate (ri v"r´´bə rāt´) vi., echo
W
Words con • jec • ture (kən jek´chər) vi., guess
For
Everyday
Use
W
Words gris • ly (riz´´lē) adj., ghastly; terrifying
For
Everyday
Use
W
Words scant • ly (skant´lē) adv., scarcely, barely
For
Everyday
Use
W
Words con • junc • tion (kən juŋk´shən) n., combination
For
Everyday
Use
W
Words cred • i • bil • i • ty (kred´ə bil´´i tē) n., believability
For dis • tort • ing (di stôrt´iŋ) adj., shape-changing; modifying
Everyday
Use
W
!
Words im • pute (im pyo—o t´) vt., attribute; charge with
For ma • lev • o • lence (mə lev´ə ləns) n., malice, ill will
Everyday
Use
W
!
Words er • u • dite (er´yo—o d¯t´´) adj., scholarly; learned
For
Everyday
Use
W
Words de • spond • en • cy (di span´dən sē) n., dejection; loss of
For hope
Everyday scur • ri • lous (sk"r´ə ləs) adj., vulgar; indecent
Use
W
Words re • pose (ri pōz´) n., rest; peace of mind
For prom • i • nence (pram´ə nəns) n., conspicuous position or state
Everyday
Use
W
Words im • pede (im pēd´) vt., hinder
For ca • lam • i • ty (kə lam´ə tē) n., disaster
Everyday
Use
W
Words zeal • ous • ly (zel´əs lē) adv., enthusiastically, fervently
For des • pot • ic (des pat´ik) adj., autocratic, tyrannical
Everyday
be • nign (bi nī n´) adj., kind
Use
W
Words aus • ter • i • ty (ô ster´ə tē) n., plainness
For
Everyday
Use
W
Words e • man • ci • pate (ē man´´sə pāt´) vt., make free
For
Everyday
Use
W
!
Words ef • flu • ence (ef´lo—o əns) n., flowing forth; emanation
For
Everyday
Use
W
Words prec • i • pice (pres´i pis) n., steep cliff
For ac • qui • esce (ak´wē es´´) vi., consent
Everyday
Use
W
Words en • treat • y (en trēt´ē) n., earnest request
For
Everyday
Use
W
Words de • ri • sive • ly (di rī siv lē) adv., in a ridiculing manner
For de • rive (di rv̄´ ) vt., get or receive
Everyday
Use
W
Words ex • tort (eks tôrt´ ) vt., get something through violence or
For threats
Everyday
Use
W
Words pro • pin • qui • ty (prō piŋ´kwə tē) n., nearness of relationship
For
Everyday
Use
W
Words bane (bān) n., cause of distress, death, or ruin
For
Everyday
Use
W
Words a • wry (ə rī ´) adj., wrong; amiss
For
Everyday
Use
Synthesizing
9. Of the three main characters—Hester, Dimmesdale, and
Chillingworth—who has been most willing to take responsi-
bility for his or her actions?
10. What price for their sins have Hester, Dimmesdale, and
Chillingworth paid?
W
!
Words sed • u • lous (sej´oo ləs) adj., diligent; working hard and steadily
For del • e • te • ri • ous (del´ə tir´´ē əs) adj., harmful to health or
Everyday well-being
Use
ma • lig • nant (mə li´nənt) adj., harmful, dangerous
W
Words re • cip • ro • cate (ri sip´´rə kāt´) vt., give or do in return
For
Everyday
Use
W
Words dex • ter • i • ty (deks ter´ə tē) n., skill in using hands
For
Everyday
Use
W
!
Words in • con • gru • i • ty (in´kan ro—o ´i tē) n., lack of agree-
For ment or appropriateness
Everyday un • wont • ed (un won´´tid) adj., unusual; rare
Use
W
Words pet • u • lant (pech´ə lənt) adj., impatient ´a
cha • os (ka¯ s´) n., extreme disorder and confusion
For or irritable e • nig • ma (i ni´mə) n., mystery
Everyday pre • coc • i • ty (pri kas´ə tē) n., premature in • nate (in´´nāt´) adj., naturally existing
Use development from birth
W
Words as • per • i • ty (ə sper´ə tē) n., harshness of temper
For
Everyday
Use
A Forest Walk
W
Words ul • te • ri • or (ul tir´ē ər) adj., undisclosed; lying beyond
For what is evident or of immediate interest
Everyday
Use
W
Words vi • vac • i • ty (vī vas´ə tē) n., liveliness of spirit
For
Everyday
Use
W
Words lo • quac • i • ty (lō kwas´ə tē) n., talkativeness
For
Everyday
Use
W
Words ca • dence (kād´ns) n., rhythmic flow of sound
For
Everyday
Use
W
Words lam • en • ta • tion (lam´ən tā´´shən) n., expression of grief
For hag • gard (ha´ərd) adj., having a wild, worn look
Everyday
Use
W
Words ve • he • ment • ly (vē´ə mənt lē) adv., passionately; violently
For
Everyday
Use
W
!
—o ´ə tē ) n., nearness or contact
Words con • ti • gu • i • ty (kan´tə yo
For mis • an • thro • py (mis an´thrə pē) n., hatred or distrust of
Everyday all people
Use
W
Words en • fee • ble (en fē´bəl) vt., make weak or frail
For
Everyday
Use
W
Words sanc • ti • ty (sank´tə tē) n., sacredness
For dole • ful • ly (dōl´fəl lē) adv., mournfully
Everyday con • strained (kən strānd´) adj., forced
Use
W
Words ves • tige (ves´tij) n., trace of something that once existed
For
Everyday
Use
W
Words ven • ture (ven´chər) vi., go or do at some risk
For
Everyday
Use
W
Words de • spond • en • cy (di span´dən sē) n., dejection; loss of
For hope
Everyday
Use
A Flood of Sunshine
Arthur Dimmesdale gazed into Hester’s face with a look in √ Why is Hester
bolder than
which hope and joy shone out, indeed, but with fear betwixt
Dimmesdale? What
them, and a kind of horror at her boldness, who had spoken has made Hester
what he vaguely hinted at, but dared not speak. bold?
But Hester Prynne, with a mind of native courage and
activity, and for so long a period not merely estranged, but
outlawed, from society, had habituated herself to such lati-
tude of speculation as was altogether foreign to the clergy-
man. She had wandered, without rule or guidance, in a
moral wilderness; as vast, as intricate, and shadowy as the
untamed forest, amid the gloom of which they were now
holding a colloquy that was to decide their fate. Her intellect
and heart had their home, as it were, in desert places, where
she roamed as freely as the wild Indian in his woods. For
years past she had looked from this estranged point of view
at human institutions, and whatever priests or legislators
had established; criticizing all with hardly more reverence
than the Indian would feel for the clerical band, the judicial
robe, the pillory, the gallows, the fireside, or the church. The
tendency of her fate and fortunes had been to set her free.
The scarlet letter was her passport into regions where other √ To what is the
women dared not tread. Shame, Despair, Solitude! These had scarlet letter com-
pared?
been her teachers—stern and wild ones—and they had made
her strong, but taught her much amiss.
The minister, on the other hand, had never gone through an
experience calculated to lead him beyond the scope of generally
received laws; although, in a single instance, he had so fearful-
ly transgressed one of the most sacred of them. But this had
been a sin of passion, not of principle, nor even purpose. Since
that wretched epoch, he had watched, with morbid zeal and
minuteness, not his acts—for those it was easy to arrange—but
each breath of emotion, and his every thought. At the head of
the social system, as the clergymen of that day stood, he was
only the more trammeled by its regulations, its principles, and
W
!
Words lat • i • tude (lat´´ə to—o d´) n., freedom of opinion and action
For in • tri • cate (in´tri kit) adj., complex
Everyday col • lo • quy (kal´a kwē) n., formal discussion
Use
W
!
Words ex • ten • u • a • tion (ek sten´yo—o ā´´shən) n., partial excuse
For har • row (har´ō) vt., cause mental distress
Everyday
ir • rev • o • ca • bly (ir´rəv´´ə kə blē) adv., unchangeably
Use
sol • ace (sal´is) n., comfort; easing of sorrow
W
Words un • in • tel • li • gi • ble (un´in tel´´i jə bəl) adj., incompre-
For hensible; not understandable
Everyday
Use
W
Words sub • ju • gate (sub´´jə āt´) vt., make subservient
For
Everyday
Use
1. denizens. Inhabitants
Synthesizing
9. Why is Hester, who “for so long a period (was) not mere-
ly estranged, but outlawed, from society,” more comfortable
with the decision to leave than is Dimmesdale, who has
remained at the “head of the social system”? Why does
Hester seem to have been strengthened by her experiences
since the birth of Pearl, while Dimmesdale seems to have
been weakened by his experiences?
10. Do you support Hester and Dimmesdale’s decision to
escape together? What do you hope for them? Explain.
W
#
Words in • ure (in yo or´) vt., make accustomed to
For
Everyday
Use
W
Words mol • li • fy (mal´´ə fī ´) vt., soothe the temper of
For #
—
ges • tic • u • late (jes tik´yo o lāt´ ) vi., express through
Everyday movement
Use
pac • i • fy (pas´´ə fī ´) vt., make calm
W
#
—
Words sub • dued (səb do o d´) adj., softened; diminished
For
Everyday
Use
W
#
—
Words vi • cis • si • tude (vi sis´´ə to o d´) n., state of constant change
For —#
du • plic • i • ty (doo plis´ə tē) adj., deception; double-dealing
Everyday
Use
W
Words ren • der (ren´dər) vt., cause to become, make
For ir • ref • ra • ga • ble (ir ref´rə ə bəl) adj., indisputable
Everyday
Use
W
Words im • por • tu • nate • ly (im pôr´tu nit lē) adv., annoyingly
For urgent or persistent
Everyday #
—
mu • ta • bil • i •ty (myo o t´ə bil´´ə tē) n., change
Use
W
Words in • cite (in sī t ´) vt., urge to action
For o • bei • sance (ō bā´səns) n., feelings of respect; homage
Everyday
im • pi • e • ty (im pī ə tē) n., lack of respect
Use
W
Words pith • y (pith´ē) adj., short and full of meaning
For
Everyday
Use
W
Words ran • sack (ran´´sak´) vt., examine thoroughly
For val • iant • ly (val´yənt lē) adv., with courage, resolutely
Everyday #
—
dis • so • lute (dis´´ə lo o t´ ) adj., immoral
Use
W
Words po • ten • tate (pōt´´n tāt´) n., monarch, ruler
For
Everyday
Use
Synthesizing
9. Why do Hester and Dimmesdale decide to leave
Boston? What are their concerns as they prepare to do this?
Do you think it is realistic to believe that both Hester and
Dimmesdale can leave behind their troubles, particularly
their feelings of guilt, and begin a new life? Why, or why
not?
W
Words in • cor • po • rate (in kôr´pə rāt) vt., make part of another thing
For lan • guor (laŋ´ər) n., lack of interest or spirit; indifference
Everyday and sluggishness
Use
ag • i • ta • tion (aj´ə tā´´shən) n., emotional disturbance
W
Words dis • pel (di spel´) vt., make vanish
For
Everyday
Use
W
Words coun • te • nance (koun´tə nəns) vt., give support or per-
For mission to
Everyday #
—
joc • u • lar • i • ty (jak´yo o lar´ə tē) n., humor
Use
W
Words pos • ter • i • ty (pas ter´ə tē) n., descendants
For fe • roc • i • ty (fə ras´ə tē) n., fierceness, savageness
Everyday
Use
W
Words dep • re • da • tion (dep´rə dā´´shən) n., pro • bi • ty (prō´bə tē) n., good character
For wicked act —#
dis • rep • u • ta • ble (dis rep´yo o tə bəl)
Everyday —#
tem • pes • tu • ous (tem pes´cho o əs) adj., causing a bad reputation
Use adj., violent, stormy
W
Words mien (mēn) n., manner
For con • ster • na • tion (ka´stər nā´´shən) n., great fear that
Everyday makes one feel helpless
Use
The Procession
W
#
—
Words con • tig • u • ous (kən ti´ yo o əs) adj., near, adjacent
For ef • fer • ves • cence (ef´ər ves´´əns) n., lively, high-spirited
Everyday state
Use
2. morions. Helmets
W
Words as • pire (ə spī r´) vi., seek
For —#
for • ti • tude (fôrt´´ə to o d´) n., strength to bear pain and
Everyday misfortune
Use
W
Words ec • cen • tric • i • ty (ek´sən tris´´ə tē) n., oddity
For
Everyday
Use
W
Words com • mence (kə mens´) vt., begin
For dis • course (dis´´kôrs´) n., lecture
Everyday
Use
W
—#
Words un • du • lat • ing (un´´dyo o lāt´ iŋ) adj., wavy
For au • dac • i • ty (ô das´ə tē) n., shameless boldness; daring
Everyday
Use
W
#
—
Words boor • ish (bo or´ish) adj., rude, awkward
For
Everyday
Use
Synthesizing
9. What events on Election Day shake Hester’s confidence
in the future that she and Dimmesdale have planned? In
what way has she lost control of the situation?
W
Words im • per • cep • ti • ble (im´pər sep´´tə bəl) adj., not easily
For noticed
Everyday
Use
W
Words in • ev • i • ta • bly (in ev´i tə blē) adv., unavoidably
For in • ti • ma • tion (in´tə mā´´shən) n., hint; indirect suggestion
Everyday
Use
W
Words fath • om • less (fath´əm lis) adj., incomprehensible, very
For deep
Everyday
Use
Conclusion
CONCLUSION 243
arms of that fallen woman, to express to the world how
utterly nugatory is the choicest of man’s own righteousness.
® What explanation After exhausting life in his efforts for mankind’s spiritual
do these people pro- good, he had made the manner of his death a parable, in
vide for
Dimmesdale’s
order to impress on his admirers the mighty and mournful
actions? lesson, that, in the view of Infinite Purity, we are sinners all
alike. It was to teach them, that the holiest among us has but
attained so far above his fellows as to discern more clearly
the Mercy which looks down, and repudiate more utterly the
phantom of human merit, which would look aspiringly
upward. Without disputing a truth so momentous, we must
® In what way does be allowed to consider this version of Mr. Dimmesdale’s story
the narrator view as only an instance of that stubborn fidelity with which a
these friends of
Dimmesdale?
man’s friends—and especially a clergyman’s—will sometimes
uphold his character; when proofs, clear as the mid-day sun-
shine on the scarlet letter, establish him a false and sin-
stained creature of the dust.
The authority which we have chiefly followed—a manu-
script of old date, drawn up from the verbal testimony of
individuals, some of whom had known Hester Prynne, while
others had heard the tale from contemporary witnesses—
fully confirms the view taken in the foregoing pages. Among
many morals which press upon us from the poor minister’s
miserable experience, we put only this into a sentence:—“Be
® What is the moral true! Be true! Be true! Show freely to the world, if not your
of the story, accord- worst, yet some trait whereby the worst may be inferred!”
ing to the narrator?
Nothing was more remarkable than the change which
took place, almost immediately after Mr. Dimmesdale’s
death, in the appearance and demeanor of the old man
known as Roger Chillingworth. All his strength and energy—
all his vital and intellectual force—seemed at once to desert
him; insomuch that he positively withered up, shriveled away,
and almost vanished from mortal sight, like an uprooted weed
® Why does Roger that lies wilting in the sun. This unhappy man had made the
Chillingworth die not very principle of his life to consist in the pursuit and system-
long after
Dimmesdale?
atic exercise of revenge; and when, by its completest triumph
and consummation, that evil principle was left with no
further material to support it—when, in short, there was
no more devil’s work on earth for him to do, it only
remained for the unhumanized mortal to betake himself
whither his Master would find him tasks enough, and pay
W
#
—
Words nu • ga • to • ry (no o ´ə tôr´ē) adj., worthless
For
Everyday
Use
W
#
—
Words trans • mute (trans myo o t´ ) vi., transform
For
Everyday
Use
CONCLUSION 245
® Who returns to Hester Prynne had dwelt. Near this latter spot, one after-
the cottage many noon, some children were at play, when they beheld a tall
years later?
woman, in a gray robe, approach the cottage-door. In all
those years it had never once been opened; but either she
unlocked it, or the decaying wood and iron yielded to her
hand, or she glided shadow-like through these impedi-
ments—and, at all events, went in.
On the threshold she paused—turned partly round—for,
perchance, the idea of entering, all alone, and all so changed,
the home of so intense a former life, was more dreary and
desolate than even she could bear. But her hesitation was
only for an instant, though long enough to display a scarlet
letter on her breast.
And Hester Prynne had returned, and taken up her long-
® What probably forsaken shame. But where was little Pearl? If still alive, she
has become of Pearl? must now have been in the flush and bloom of early wom-
anhood. None knew—nor ever learned, with the fullness of
perfect certainty—whether the elf-child had gone thus
untimely to a maiden grave; or whether her wild, rich nature
had been softened and subdued and made capable of a
woman’s gentle happiness. But, through the remainder of
Hester’s life, there were indications that the recluse of the
scarlet letter was the object of love and interest with some
inhabitant of another land. Letters came, with armorial seals
upon them, though of bearings unknown to English heraldry.
In the cottage there were articles of comfort and luxury, such
as Hester never cared to use, but which only wealth could
have purchased, and affection have imagined for her. There
were trifles, too, little ornaments, beautiful tokens of a con-
tinual remembrance, that must have been wrought by deli-
cate fingers, at the impulse of a fond heart. And, once, Hester
was seen embroidering a baby-garment, with such a lavish
richness of golden fancy as would have raised a public
tumult, had any infant, thus apparelled, been shown to our
somber-hued community.
In fine, the gossips of that day believed—and Mr. Surveyor
Pue, who made investigations a century later, believed—and
one of his recent successors in office, moreover, faithfully
believes—that Pearl was not only alive, but married, and
happy, and mindful of her mother; and that she would most
joyfully have entertained that sad and lonely mother at her
fireside.
But there was a more real life for Hester Prynne, here, in
New England, than in that unknown region where Pearl had
found a home. Here had been her sin; here, her sorrow; and
® What does Hester here was yet to be her penitence. She had returned, therefore,
do voluntarily? and resumed—of her own free will, for not the sternest mag-
istrate of that iron period would have imposed it—resumed
1. escutcheon. Shield
2. “On a field . . . gules.” On a black background, the letter A, in red
CONCLUSION 247
Responding to the Selection
“Among many morals that press upon us from the poor
minister’s miserable experience, we put only this into a sen-
tence—’Be true! Be true! Be true! Show freely to the world,
if not your worst, yet some trait whereby the worst may be
inferred!’” Discuss this moral. Did you learn this lesson from
the minister’s experience? Can you think of any other
lessons that might be derived from this story?
Synthesizing
9. Why is Dimmesdale unable to escape with Hester and
Pearl to the Old World? Why doesn’t Dimmesdale trust the
idea of following one’s passion? What does he lose through
his secret suffering? What does Hester, on the other hand,
gain from her public suffering?
CONCLUSION 249
Plot Analysis of The Scarlet Letter
The Parts of a Plot
A plot is a series of events related to a central conflict, or
struggle. The following diagram, known as Freytag’s
Pyramid, illustrates the main parts of a plot.
FREYTAG’S PYRAMID
Climax
(D)
) Fal
(C lin
on gA
cti cti
ingA on
(E)
Ris
Exposition (A)
Hester Prynne is charged with the sin of adultery after giv-
ing birth to an illegitimate child. As punishment, she is
forced to stand on a public scaffold for three hours. In addi-
tion, she must forever wear a red letter A on her dress as a
symbol of her sinfulness. Hester had come to the American
colonies two years earlier. Her husband was supposed to join
her, but he never arrived, and people assume that he was lost
at sea. The father of Pearl, Hester’s infant, is Hestor’s pastor,
the Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale. Hester refuses to reveal
the father’s identity.
Climax (D)
Tormented by a guilty conscience, Dimmesdale realizes
that the only way to escape his torment is to go to the scaf-
fold and to reveal his sin to the townspeople. On Election
Day, after delivering an inspired sermon, Dimmesdale
ascends the scaffold. Chillingworth shouts in protest because
he does not want Dimmesdale to be relieved of his torment.
Dimmesdale tells Hester that he is dying and then reveals to
the crowd that he is Pearl’s father.
Resolution (F)
Dimmesdale asks Pearl for a kiss. She kisses him and cries.
This kiss symbolizes the final union of the child with her
father. Dimmesdale says good-bye to Hester, asking God to
have mercy. Dimmesdale dies.
Dénouement (G)
With Dimmesdale’s death, Chillingworth loses his life’s
purpose—revenge—and dies as well. Hester and Pearl move
back to England. Pearl becomes wealthy from money
Chillingworth has left her. Pearl marries, and Hester returns
to Boston. She voluntarily wears the scarlet letter, and she
becomes known as a person of great wisdom to whom many
women turn for advice.
PROJECTS 257
Glossary
GLOSSARY 259
de • file (dē f¯l´) vt., corrupt, make impure
del • e • te • ri • ous (del´ə tir´´ē əs) adj., harmful to health or well-being
de • mean • or (di mēn´ər) n., conduct
de • prav • i • ty (dē prav´ə tē) n., corruption, wickedness
dep • re • da • tion (dep´rə dā´´shən) n., wicked act
de • ri • sive • ly (di r¯´siv lē) adv., in a ridiculing manner
de • rive (di rv̄´) vt., get or receive
de • spond • en • cy (di span´dən sē) n., dejection; loss of hope
des • pot • ic (des pat´ik) adj., autocratic, tyrannical
det • ri • ment (de´´trə mənt) n., damage, injury, harm
de • void (di void´) adj., completely without
dex • ter • i • ty (deks ter´ə tē) n., skill in using hands
di • lap • i • dat • ed (də lap´ə dāt´´id) adj., shabby, neglected, and broken down
dis • cern (di z$rn´) vt., recognize
dis • course (dis´´kôrs´) n., lecture
dis • in • clined (dis´´in kl¯nd´) adj., unwilling, reluctant
dis • pel (di spel´) vt., make vanish
#
dis • rep • u • ta • ble (dis rep´yo—o tə bəl) adj., causing a bad reputation
#
dis • so • lute (dis´´ə lo—ot´) adj., immoral
dis • tort • ing (di stôrt´iŋ) adj., shape-changing; modifying
di • verge (d¯ v$rj´) vi., go or move in different directions
dole • ful • ly (dōl´fəl lē) adv., mournfully
#
du • plic • i • ty (do—o plis´ə tē) n., deception; double-dealing
ear • nest • ly ($r´ nist lē) adv., seriously and sincerely
ec • cen • tric • i • ty (ek ´sən tris´´ə tē) n., oddity
ed • i • fice (ed´i fis) n., large, imposing building
ef • fer • ves • cence (ef´ər ves´´əns) n., lively, high-spirited state
ef • fi • ca • cy (ef´i kə sē) n., effectiveness
#
ef • flu • ence (ef´lo—o əns) n., flowing forth; emanation
#
ef • fu • sion (e fyo—o´zhən) n., emotional expression
e • ma • ci • at • ed (ē mā´ shē āt´ əd) adj., abnormally thin
e • man • ci • pate (ē man´´sə pāt´) vt., make free
em • i • nence (em´i nəns) n., high place
em • i • nent (em´ə nent) adj., famous; distinguished
#
e • mol • u • ment (ē mäl ´yo—o ment) n., payment for work
en • cum • brance (en kum´brəns) n., hindrance, burden
en • dow (en dou´) vt., provide with a quality
en • er • vat • ing (en´´ər vāt´´iŋ) adj., debilitating, weakening
en • fee • ble (en fē´bəl) vt., make weak or frail
en • gross (en rōs´) vt., express formally
GLOSSARY 261
heed • ful (hēd´ fəl) adj., careful
het • er • o • ge • ne • ous (het´ər ō´jē´´nē əs) adj., varied; made up of unlike parts
ig • no • min • i • ous • ly (i´nə min´´ē əs lē) adv., shamefully; despicably
ig • no • min • y (i´´nə min´ē) n., shame, dishonor
im • bibe (im b¯b´) vi., drink
#
im • bue (im byo—o ´) vt., fill or permeate
im • pal • pa • ble (im pal´ pə bəl) adj., lacking substance; not perceivable through touch
im • pede (im pēd´) vt., hinder
im • ped • i • ment (im ped´ə mənt) n., obstacle
im • pel (im pel´) vt., force, urge
im • per • a • tive • ly (im per´ə tiv lē) adv., commandingly; urgently
im • per • cep • ti • ble (im´pər sep´´tə bəl) adj., not easily noticed
im • pe • ri • ous (im pir’ē əs) adj., commanding
im • pi • e • ty (im p¯ə tē) n., lack of respect
im • pli • cate (im´´pli kāt´) vt., show to be connected to a crime
im • plic • it • ly (im plis´it lē) adv., absolutely, unquestionably
im • por • tu • nate • ly (im pôr´tu nit lē) adv., annoyingly urgent or persistent
#
im • pu • ni • ty (im pyo—o´ni tē) n., exemption
#
im • pute (im pyo—ot´) vt., attribute; charge with
in • aus • pi • cious (in´ô spish´´əs) adj., unfavorable, unlucky
in • cite (in st̄´) vt., urge to action
in • co • her • ent (in´kō hir ´ənt) adj., not clearly articulated; not logically connected
in • con • ceiv • a • ble (in´´kən sēv´ə bəl) adj., that cannot be thought of, understood,
or believed
#
in • con • gru • i • ty (in´kan ro—o ´i tē) n., lack of agreement or appropriateness
in • cor • po • rate (in kôr´pə rāt) vt., make part of another thing
#
in • cre • du • li • ty (in´krə do—o ´lə tē) n., unwillingness to believe; doubt
in • cum • ben • cy (in kum´bən sē) n., term of office
in • cur (in k$r´) vt., bring upon oneself
in • de • fat • i • ga • ble (in´´di fat´i ə bəl) adj., untiring; not yielding to fatigue
in • de • fea • si • ble (in´dē fē´´zə bəl) adj., not capable of being undone
in • dif • fer • ent • ly (in dif´ər ənt lē) adv., apathetically; without interest
in • do • lent (in´´də lənt) adj., lazy; idle
#
in • du • bi • ta • bly (in do—o´bi tə blē) adv., unquestionably
in • ev • i • ta • ble (in ev´i tə bəl) adj., unavoidable
in • ev • i • ta • bly (in ev´i tə blē) adv., unavoidably
in • ex • tri • ca • ble (in eks´tri kə bəl) adj., incapable of being untangled or untied
in • fa • my (in´ fə mē) n., dishonor, disgrace
in • fer • ence (in´fər əns) n., conclusion
in • fir • mi • ty (in f$r´mə tē) n., weakness
#
in • ge • nu • i • ty (in´jə no—o ´ə tē) n., cleverness
GLOSSARY 263
mis • an • thro • py (mis an´thrə pē) n., hatred or distrust of all people
mol • li • fy (mal´´ə f¯´) vt., soothe the temper of
#
mu • ta • bil • i • ty (myo—ot´ə bil´´ə tē) n., ability to change
non • en • ti • ty (nan´´en´´tə tē) n., person of little or no importance
#
nuc • le • us (no—o ´ klē əs) n., center
#
nu • ga • to • ry (no—o ´ə tôr´ē) adj., worthless
o • bei • sance (ō bā´səns) n., feelings of respect; homage
#
ob • scure • ly (əb skyo—or´lē) adv., indistinctly
ob • sti • na • cy (ab´stə nə sē) n., stubbornness
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ob • tuse • ness (ab to—os´´nəs) n., slowness of understanding
o • di • ous (ō´dē əs) adj., repugnant, detestable
om • i • nous (am´ə nəs) adj., threatening
out • land • ish (out´lan ´dish) adj., very odd, bizarre
pac • i • fy (pas´´ə f¯´) vt., make calm
per • emp • to • ry (pər emp´tə rē) adj., unable to be delayed
per • pe • trate (p$r´´pe trāt´) vt., commit; do something wrong
per • vade (pər vād´) vt., be prevalent throughout
per • verse (pər v$rś) adj., stubbornly contrary; wicked
per • vers • i • ty (pər v$r´sə tē) n., wickedness; stubborn contrariness
pes • ti • lence (pes´tə ləns) n., fatal, contagious disease
pet • u • lant (pech´ə lənt) adj., impatient or irritable
pith • y (pith´ē) adj., short and full of meaning
pla • cid • i • ty (plə sid´ə tē) n., calmness, tranquility
plain • tive (plān´ tiv) adj., mournful; sad
pon • der • ous (pan´´dər əs) adj., labored; heavy
pos • ter • i • ty (pas ter´ə tē) n., descendants
po • tent (pōt´ nt´ ) adj., powerful
po • ten • tate (pōt´´n tāt´) n., monarch, ruler
prec • i • pice (pres´i pis) n., steep cliff
pred • i • lec • tion (pred´l ek´shən) n., preference; preconceived liking
pre • coc • i • ty (pri kas´ə tē) n., premature development
pre • ter • nat • u • ral • ly (prē´tər nach´´ər əl lē) adv., abnormally, supernaturally
pre • vail (prē vāl´) vi., triumph
pris • tine (pris’tēn) adj., pure, uncorrupted
pro • bi • ty (prō´bə tē) n., good character
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pro • cure (prō kyo—or´) vt., obtain
pro • found (prō found´) adj., very deep
pro • lif • ic (prō lif´ik) adj., fertile; abounding
prom • i • nence (pram´ə nəns) n., conspicuous position or state
prop • a • gate (prap´´ə āt´) vt., reproduce
GLOSSARY 265
sus • tain (sə stān´) vt., support, buoy up
taint (tānt) n., corruption or evil; a moral defect considered as a stain or spot
te • di • ous (tē´dē əs) adj., tiresome, boring
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tem • pes • tu • ous (tem pes´ cho—o əs) adj., violent, turbulent
tem • po • ral (tem´pə rəl) adj., existing in time; worldly; not spiritual
te • na • cious • ly (tə nā´shəs lē) adv., stubbornly; persistently
te • nac • i • ty (tə nas´´ə tē) n., stubborn persistance
thwart (thwôrt) vt., hinder, obstruct
tor • pid (tôr´pid) adj., dormant, sluggish
trans • gress (trans res´) vi., break a law or commandment; commit a sin
tran • si • to • ry (tran´´sə tôr´ē) adj., temporary, fleeting
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trans • mute (trans myo—ot´) vi., transform
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trem • u • lous (trem´yo—o ləs) adj., trembling, quivering
tri • fling (trf̄liŋ) adj., trivial, of little value
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truc • u • len • cy (truk´yo—o lən cē) n., meanness, ferocity
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tu • mult (to—o´mult´´) n., commotion, confusion
ul • te • ri • or (ul tir´ē ər) adj., undisclosed; lying beyond what is evident or of
immediate interest
unc • tion (uŋk´shən) n., earnestness
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un • du • lat • ing (un´´dyo—o lāt´ iŋ) adj., wavy
un • feign • ed • ly (un fān´id le) adv., genuinely, sincerely
un • in • tel • li • gi • ble (un´in tel´´i jə bəl) adj., incomprehensible; not understandable
un • mal • le • a • ble (un mal´ē ə bəl) adj., not pliable, not adaptable
un • wont • ed (un wan´´tid) adj., unusual; rare
val • iant • ly (val´yənt lē) adv., with courage, resolutely
ve • he • ment • ly (vē´ə mənt lē) adv., passionately; violently
ven • er • a • ble (ven´´ər ə bəl) adj., impressive; worthy of respect
ven • er • a • tion (ven´ər ā´´shən) n., feeling of deep respect
ven • ture (ven´chər) vi., go or do at some risk
ves • tige (ves´tij) n., trace of something that once existed
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vi • cis • si • tude (vi sis´´ə to—od´) n., change
vie (v¯) vi., compete
vil • i • fy (vil´´ə f¯´) vt., put down; slander
vile • ness (v¯lńəs) n., evilness, offensiveness
vi • vac • i • ty (v¯ vas´ə tē) n., liveliness of spirit
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vo • lu • mi • nous (və lo—om´ə nəs) adj., having a large capacity or interior area
vogue (vō) n., popularity
writh • ing (rt̄h´ iŋ) adj., twisting, distressing
zeal • ous • ly (zel´əs lē) adv., enthusiastically, fervently