Transcript The Scarlet Letter - Montgomery Township School District

The Scarlet Letter
Nathaniel Hawthorne
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Introduction
Background
Discussion Starters
The Scarlet Letter
Nathaniel Hawthorne
The Scarlet Letter: Introduction
What
happens
when a
private
sin
becomes a
public
crime?
The Scarlet Letter: Introduction
Perhaps
hidden
suffering
is even worse
than public
shame.
The Scarlet Letter: Background
Persecuted in England, the Puritans
came to North America to form their
own communities.
The Scarlet Letter: Background
Life in the Colonies was
harsh,
but it gave the
Puritans the
opportunity to
form a society
based on their
religious ideals.
The Scarlet Letter: Background
The setting of The Scarlet Letter is Boston in the
1640s.
Boston had recently
been founded by
about one thousand
English Puritans, led
by John Winthrop.
The Scarlet Letter: Background
Puritans sought the
freedom to live by
their beliefs.
However, the
Puritan leaders
did not tolerate
religious beliefs
that differed from
their own.
The Scarlet Letter: Background
As for personal
freedom…
every member
of the
community was
held to strict
standards of
behavior.
The Scarlet Letter: Background
In a Puritan community such as Hester’s,
no aspect of life was truly private.
People kept a close
watch on their
neighbors.
The Scarlet Letter: Background
Those
considered
sinners were
publicly—and
harshly—
punished, as
an example to
others.
The Scarlet Letter: Discussion Starters
Questions to Consider…
• What kinds of wrongdoing do
you think should be punished
publicly?
• What kinds should remain
private for the people
involved?
The Scarlet Letter: Discussion Starters
Questions to Consider…
• What kinds of secrets should
you keep?
• When might it be better to
reveal a friend’s secret, even
though that person will be
angry with you?