The Scarlet Letter: How Can a Classic Novel Make Me This Angry?
Carbon copy of a letter from Nina to her friend Lizzy (1964)
New York, March 3rd, 1964
Café Reggio, Greenwich Village
Dear Lizzy,
I finally read The Scarlet Letter, and I can’t believe I waited this long… I just had to tell you about it.
Without giving too much away, here’s the beginning of the story: In a 17th-century Puritan colony in Massachusetts, Hester Prynne, a married woman whose husband is away, becomes pregnant and gives birth to a child out of wedlock. This marks the start of her personal hell.
I’ll let you discover the rest of the plot on your own. And if you don’t already know the story, try to resist the urge to flip ahead. The magic lies in uncovering the twists and surprises as they unfold.
The magnetic bookmark in the photo is part of Nina's collection! You can find it in my shop.
Reading this book, I felt so many emotions: anger, frustration, confusion, disappointment, surprise. I wanted to scream at Hester Prynne to tell her to leave and never look back, to ignore her detractors and escape all the toxicity and pain the Puritan colony inflicted on her.
But life isn’t that simple… especially for a woman in the 17th century.
Hester Prynne’s journey sheds light on so many facets of human nature: self-sacrifice, rejection, rebellion, prejudice, revenge, hypocrisy, and cowardice... but the truth never gets lost. It always finds its way back, often from the most unexpected places.
This book made me reflect on women’s rights and how meaningful progress only began to take shape through actual laws in the late 19th century.
The lives of four characters are intertwined... sometimes knowingly, sometimes not. I could spend hours analyzing their choices and motivations from different angles.
A little tip: the first chapter, a lengthy introduction, might feel like a drag. Maybe save it for the end... unless you have the patience of a saint.
Love,