The scarlet letter

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First edition The Scarlet Letter (1850)
The Scarlet Letter , oil painting by TH Matteson (1860)

The scarlet letter , originally The Scarlet Letter , is a novel by Nathaniel Hawthorne , published in 1850 . It is considered one of the most important works in American literature .

content

The action of the novel takes place in a devout settlement in New England at the time of American Puritanism , that is towards the end of the 17th century. Hawthorne tells the story of the adulteress Hester Prynne who, despite public denunciation, refuses to name the father of her illegitimate child (her husband is initially believed to be missing at sea). As a punishment, she has to wear a scarlet “A” (for adultery) on her chest at all times. The reader soon learns that the child's father, a daughter named Pearl, is Arthur Dimmesdale, the pastor of the village.

The central conflict of the novel takes place between Dimmesdale and Hester's husband, the village doctor Roger Chillingworth, who drives the pastor insane with subtle psychological torture . In addition to a mysterious weak heart, the village pastor suffers from thoughts of sin , which he tries to counter with self-mortification . Hester, on the other hand, succeeds in time to regain the respect of her fellow men through flawless behavior; but she never gives up the "A" again. In the end, Dimmesdale publicly confesses to his relationship with Hester by baring his chest in front of his fellow citizens, on which there is also a time similar to Hester's "A", only to die in peace. Chillingworth, deprived of his power over him and Hester, also dies within a year.

reception

Its strong anchoring in American culture and the way books are treated in school lessons, which is still common today, made it the object of some allusions in popular culture. In Zwielicht (1996), the defendant Aaron Stampfer marks a place in the book that is supposed to justify the crime. The film Easy To Have (2010) refers to the work both in the plot and in the original English title Easy A ; the protagonist Olive Penderghast identifies with Hester Prynne. In the German spelling of the film title, the A in haben is capitalized and highlighted in red. In Crazy, Stupid, Love (2011), Robbie Weaver is punished for his interpretation of the book in class with reference to his own situation. In the Simpsons episode Dangers on a Train, Maggie Simpson smears ketchup on her mother's supposed lover, Marge, so that a red A can be seen on his chest. In the 13th episode of the 5th season of the series The Walking Dead, Rick Grimes desires the married Jessie. At a party, her son stamps a red "A" on his hand in the presence of his parents. Both parents also have the "A".

The question of what the letter "A" stands for is perhaps the most famous conundrum in American literature. Adulteress (adulteress) would be obvious , but this word does not appear in the novel. Therefore, the speculative suggestions of "Adultery" (adultery, probably), rich Adam's fall (fall) on Art (Art) and "Angel" (Angel) to America .

Secondary literature

  • Charles Feidelson Jr .: Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter . In: Gerhard Hoffmann (eds.): American literature of the 19th century - interpretations band X . Fischer Taschenbuch Verlag, Frankfurt a. M. 1971, ISBN 3-436-01456-7 , pp. 94-125.
  • Arvin R. Wells: Hawthorne, Nathaniel: The Scarlet Letter . In: John V. Hagopian, Martin Dolch (Eds.): Insight I Analyzes of American Literature , Hirschgraben Verlag Frankfurt a. M. 1971, pp. 82-91.

Edits

Film adaptations

The novel has been filmed thirteen times so far, including:

Settings

  • 1965/2010 The Scarlet Letter  - Opera in four acts by Fredric Kroll , World Premiere 2013

expenditure

The authoritative modern edition is also the first volume of the Hawthorne Complete Edition of the Ohio State University Press:

  • Nathaniel Hawthorne: The Scarlet Letter . Ohio State University Press, Columbus OH 1962. (= William Charvat, Roy Harvey Pearce, Claude M. Simpson et al .: The Centenary Edition of the Works of Nathaniel Hawthorne , Volume I).

Translations

There are several translations into German:

  • The scarlet letter . German by Jürgen Brôcan . Hanser, Munich, 2014, ISBN 978-3-446-24490-0 .
  • The Scarlet Letter & The Blithedale Masquerade . German by Franz Blei (reviewed and supplemented by Ruth and Hans-Joachim Lang ). Winkler, Munich 1975, ISBN 3-538-05254-9
  • The scarlet letter . German by Richard Mummendey . Manesse, Zurich 1957, ISBN 3-7175-1176-9
  • The scarlet letter . German by Barbara Cramer-Nauhaus . Dieterich, Leipzig, 1952, ISBN 3-7961-2526-3 (Dieterich collection, volume 140)
  • The scarlet letter . German by Paula Saatmann. Alber, 1948
  • The scarlet letter . German by Lily Dolezal-Zweck. Atlas, 1956
  • The scarlet letter . German by Gretl Pfandler. Forum, 1954
  • The scarlet letter . German by Adele Elkan. circa 1930
  • The scarlet letter . German by Wilhelm Eduard Drugulin. Christian Ernst Kollmann, 1851
  • The scarlet letter . German by L. du Bois. Velhagen and Klasing, 1851

E-texts

Wikisource: The Scarlet Letter  - Sources and full texts (English)

Audio books

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ s. about this the conversation with Jürgen Brôcan in the show "52 best books" on the Swiss radio .