The Scarlet Letter

Nathaniel Hawthorne's "The Scarlet Letter" is a jarring historical fiction about morals, sin, and repentance. In the 17th century, Hester Prynne is forced to wear a scarlet "A" in public for having a child with an unknown father. Her husband, under the name Roger Chillingworth, vows to find Hester's partner and punish him as well.