Scarlet Letter

Rating:
Summary: Incredibly confusing; have a dictionary on hand!
Review: This is probably the most confusing and worst book I have ever read! The author uses incredibly large words and you constantly have to use a dictionary or else you most likely won't know hat you are reading. From my point of view as a high school (with mostly A's and good at English) student I would not recommend this book to any other high school age students. The author needs to get to the point and not drag on for pages about things that are not important at all. Long setences also makes the book drag on. If I didn't have to read this book for a book report I would have put it down after the first page or two and usually I finish every book that I start. This book had me in tears because it was so difficult. I had to ask my English teacher to explain this to me. Read this book at your own risk, but i do not reccommend it to anyone.

Rating:
Summary: BEAUTIFUL!
Review: I tried reading this once before and thought it would be depressing. I then tried to read it again and succeeded. It is definitely worth reading if you love books. I didn't expect it to be a love story, but it really was. What Hester and Mr. Dimmesdale did was wrong, but they were repentant. Hester should not have suffered like she did. The writing was so beautiful and turned the story from something generic into something truly beautiful.

Rating:
Summary: The Scarlet Letter as an appropriate Testement to All Ages
Review: The Scarlet Letter by Nathanial Hawthorne was a book assigned to me to read and I was prepared to hate it. Upon reading it, however, I found it to be a wonderful novel which still makes valid points today, almost 200 years after it's publication. Hawthorne was deeply insightful in this novel about the intricacies of human nature. The entire novel is a perfect view of all of the flaws in the human race including the vices of jealousy, passion and cowardice. Through the actions of the Reverand Dimmesdale, Hester Prynne and Roger Chillingworth, Hawthorne was able to portray all aspects of emotion. Chillingworth's actions can all be justified by his love for Hester and the intense jealousy he felt for Dimmesdale. Hester's strengths and weakenesses were shown through the great courage she had in staying where she was hated and also in never making her accomplice own up to his actions. I loved this book and even though it was tough to read, it was well worth it.

Rating:
Summary: confusing, but good
Review: Being in high school, it took a little bit to understand it, but after a while, I was able to get the basic point of the story. If you know you'll have to read this for school in the future, read it ahead of time. That way, you won't be reading on a deadline, which makes it worse. Read it at your own pace and you will understand it more. Also, the second time through, when you have to read it, you will see many things that you missed, and the story will be much more meaningful to you. (You'll do better on tests and quizzes, too.) Even if you're not required to read it, check it out-it's not called a classic for nothing!

Rating:
Summary: SAD
Review: this book represents a time in the past of our country in which we should be ashamed. not only was this a time of "witchcraft" and witchunts, but the society was willing to ostracize a human being for adultery. as if it weren't punishment enough for hester to have to wear the "a" on her chest, everyone stared at her peculiarly and did not accept her into normal society. i think this is overly harsh, yet this whole book reflects the time in which it took place very well. i would recommend it.

Rating:
Summary: The virtues of a despised classic
Review: Although it suffers from the expected trappings of Romantic literature ( authorial intrusion, verbosity, etc) and the blatant didactic tone of the author, this book is an essential for anyone wishing to have a full appreciation for American literature. Hawthorne creates a masterpiece of social commentary, cross-applied symbolism and overall beauty. The chief virtue of this book is the question posed by the line "what we did had a consecration all its own." It is this line which continues to spark discussions among English teachers everywhere. The implications of these words also seem to elude students across the country. The issue is this: did Hawthorne imply, in paroxysms over the sanctity of nature, that the adultery committed by Hester and Dimmesdale was holy because it was wild like the forest beyond the austere village of the Puritans? The symbolism associated with the product of their sin, Pearl, seems to support this conclusion. The book is worth the read merely to contemplate that question, let alone the fact that The Scarlet Letter is a near-perfect example of American Romanticism. I do have to admit that it would be a bit more enjoyable if Hawthorne had used a synonym for "ignominy" once or twice....

Rating:
Summary: Wonderfully written
Review: We have just finished reading this book in school and I for one loved it. Hawthorne is showing how one sin, adultery, changed the lives of Hester, Dimmesdale, Chillingworth and Pearl. There is so much more to this book than what appears on the surface. On the surface, Hester had an affair, was found and had Pearl. But what is hidden below is Hawthorne feeling about the novel. Hawthorne defines sin as "the falsification of human relationships". While adultery jumps out at us, there is more hidden underneath. Dimmesdale is one who falsifies being a father, lover and friend. He denied Pearl the joy of having a father, could not come forward to admit his part with Hester and lied to Chillingworth who was supposed to be his good friend. On Chillingworth's part, he committed the biggest sin. Once he found out who Dimmesdale really was, he tried to do everything in his power to take over the minister's soul. He hurt both Dimmesdale and Hester, which in Hawthorne's eyes was the biggest sin of them all. Hester never married Chillingworth because she loved him; she did it because she had to. Once she found love with Dimmesdale, she realized that it was real and she made a huge mistake by marrying the leech. It is a great book, which is hard to read, but once you get below what is obvious, it turns into a story that is still real even after all these years.

Rating:
Summary: A Colossal Classic!
Review: "The Scarlet Letter" is a superior book that explodes in emotion, passion, love, hatred, and crime. Hawthorne's choice of vocabulary is absolutely perfect to suit this novel. However, like all great classics, the reader must be patient. The story is very powerful, like an iron fist, telling of sins of adultery, and the great Dimmsedale, a character in this book, "who keeps is hand over thy heart." Full of fierce yet excellent story telling, this book is a must for all lovers of classics and American Literature

Rating:
Summary: Grow Up
Review: If you can read and readily understand old-english, you *may* be able to enjoy this novel.

I found it painfully long and didn't even care to finish it, which is unheard of for me!

Rating:
Summary: HORRIBLE.
Review: This is probably the most painfully boring novel I've ever had to suffer through. The characters are annoying, the plot is uninteresting and it is overdeveloped.

Basically, Dimmesdale becomes suicidal and physically ill due to the guilt he has for not admitting his sin, as he allowed Hester to take all of the blame. Admit your sins as Hester did, live a happy life. The end. You don't need to suffer through the whole book.