A is for Adultery and H is for Hester...
It is regarded as Nathaniel Hawthorne's greatest work. It is the epitome of what we see today as
Puritanism, and the red letter A has entered the lexicon as a euphemism for
excusing bad behavior...
Massachusetts is the cradle of American civilization. Everything we stand for and the essence of
our National Psyche springeth forth from the Bay State. Those rigid ideals of pure and pious conduct,
the dour deportment and strict adherence to religious norms, all in the name of
religion, might give fundamental Islam a run for it's money. The thing is...in reality, most people, or
Puritans, couldn't keep to the code even if they wanted to...and Hawthorne knew
it.
Sweet Hester Prynne and her little bastard daughter,
conceived from sin, must pay the price for their affront to God and society,
even though many other pious puritans probably did the same and got away with
their hidden indiscretions because of power, position, wealth or a combination
of the three. This is what Hawthorne is
trying to tell us, a lesson disguised within a romantic story...the lesson of
hypocrisy.
A first edition copy for your edification and
pleasure...truly a uniquely American bit of literature...