Preface to the Second Edition
Customs - Preface to "The Scarlet Letter"

Chapter 1 Prison Gate
Chapter 2 Market
Chapter 3: Getting to Know Each Other
Chapter 4 Prison Visits
Chapter 5: Hester the Seamstress
Chapter 6 Pearl
Chapter 7: The Hall of the Governor's Mansion
Chapter 8: The Little Fairy and the Priest
Chapter 9 Doctors
Chapter 10 The Doctor and His Patient
Chapter 11: Inside a Mind
Chapter 12: The Pastor's All-Night Prayer
Chapter 13: Another Side of Hester
Chapter 14 Hester and the Doctor
Chapter 15: Hester and Pearl
Chapter 16: A Walk in the Forest
Chapter 17 The Pastor and His Believers
Chapter 18: Pouring Sunlight
Chapter 19: The Child by the Brook
Chapter 20: The Pastor in the Labyrinth
Chapter 21: Celebrations in New England
Chapter 22: Matrix
Chapter 23: The Exposure of the Scarlet Letter
Chapter 24 Conclusion

Commentary | Lee Jong-in
Nathaniel Hawthorne Chronology

#The uniqueness of the modern intellectual classic "The Scarlet Letter"

1.
A Complete Translation of the Preface to "Customs," the Key to the Work

- A crucial clue to understanding the work, but omitted or neglected in most existing translations
- A text so important that Hawthorne insisted on reprinting it “without changing a single word.”
- Key background for understanding the characters in the work, Puritan society, and political landscape

2.
A vivid visual experience, featuring 44 color illustrations and historical materials.

- Includes 31 delicate color illustrations by Britain's leading illustrator, Hugh Thompson.
- Added historical image material depicting the actual state of 17th century Puritan society.
- Visual aids that allow intuitive understanding of unfamiliar times and backgrounds

3.
49 pages of commentary and detailed footnotes for in-depth reading

- Professional commentary covering the author's life and various interpretations.
- Friendly footnotes that provide context for an unfamiliar culture and history from 400 years ago.
- An interpretation guide that allows for a multi-layered understanding of the work's symbols and meaning.

A masterpiece that dissected human psychology half a century before Freud.
Transcending 400 years, it illuminates our inner selves today.

A scarlet letter 'A' tattooed on a woman's chest changed the fate of American literature.
Breaking away from the imitation of European literature and establishing a unique American literary identity, this work went beyond a simple moral fable and became the first American psychological novel to explore the complex psychology of the human mind.


In 17th-century Puritan society, Hester Prynne, who was forced to wear a scarlet letter as proof of her adultery, lived proudly, sublimating the stigma into a splendid embroidery while suffering public humiliation.
But the true tragedy of this story lies not with Hester, but with the Reverend Dimmesdale, who suffers from a secret pain, and with Dr. Chillingworth, who plans revenge in the shadows.
The conflict between truth and hypocrisy, faith and sex, oppression and freedom hidden within the community leads to a catastrophic ending for three souls.


Nathaniel Hawthorne was a direct descendant of the first English Puritans to arrive in the New World and of a judge who participated in the witch hunts.
The deep sense of guilt stemming from the tragic history of his family constantly gnawed at Hawthorne's inner self, and was ultimately sublimated into the immortal masterpiece, The Scarlet Letter.
He combined Puritan moralism with Romantic imagination to capture the truth of darkness and light, sin and atonement, hidden deep within the human soul.
The reason "The Scarlet Letter" is recognized as a timeless classic is because it confronts, rather than ignores, the root causes of recurring problems in modern times, such as social stigma, identity politics, and moral hypocrisy, and forces readers to look into their own inner selves.

A complete translation of the preface and three-dimensional commentary that adds depth to the work,
Includes color illustrations that vividly portray an unfamiliar era.

The modern intellectual classic 『The Scarlet Letter』 has made special efforts to promote a deeper understanding of the work.
The most notable point is the complete translation and detailed commentary of the preface, “Customs,” which was overlooked in previous translations.
The preface to The Scarlet Letter, which was written based on Hawthorne's experience as a customs inspector at the Salem Custom House, caused a great deal of controversy upon its publication.
However, this text is packed with clues that are crucial to understanding the work, as Hawthorne revealed that he “decided to reprint it without changing a single word.”
The preface, which includes a group of characters who can be likened to the characters in "The Scarlet Letter," a society heavily influenced by Puritans, the political landscape represented by the Democratic and Republican parties, and even the motivation and determination that led to the decision to write the work, guides readers through a deeper dive into the work.


Featuring 31 delicate color illustrations by Hugh Thompson, a leading 19th-century British illustrator, along with historical images of early Puritan society, the book vividly conveys the atmosphere of an unfamiliar era.
The 49-page commentary reexamines the author's life and the background of the work, as well as "The Scarlet Letter" from various critical perspectives.
Detailed footnotes help us understand the customs and historical context of Puritan society 400 years ago.


Translator Lee Jong-in maintained the delicate nuances of the original text and the long, complex rhythms of the 19th-century style, while translating Hawthorne's signature nested sentence structure, rich metaphors, and symbolic language into a natural Korean flow that modern readers can easily understand.
The Korean editors did their best to modernize the sentence structure and vocabulary to ensure that the 170-year-old, challenging English translation reads smoothly.
In particular, we paid close attention to finding a balance that respected Hawthorne's long paragraphs and complex sentence structures as much as possible, while preserving the rhythm of the original text and making it accessible to Korean readers without burden.


From the stigma of sin to a symbol of hope,
The meaning of the endlessly changing scarlet letter today

"The Scarlet Letter" is not just a simple story of adultery, but a psychological novel that explores the depths of the human soul and a declaration of independence for American literature.
The work has also been interpreted as a critique of a hypocritical society, a story of profound love that transcends gender and class barriers, a story of a proactive and self-directed woman, and a fierce struggle against inner demons.

The 'A' carved into Hester's chest was not a simple brand.
It was an identity she redefined as she lived.
The process by which the meaning of the scarlet letter changes from 'Adulteress' to 'Able' and 'Angel' proves that the meaning of human life and existence is not fixed.
Hawthorne's sharp perspective on complex characters and society, where good and evil are intertwined, is still relevant today.


Additionally, Hawthorne demonstrated an original technique of crossing over between fantasy and reality in The Scarlet Letter.
This 'fantastic realism' was an innovative attempt to break away from the traditions of European literature and pioneer an independent American literary path.
Hawthorne's challenge opened the curtain on the American Renaissance, the golden age of American literature, and with Melville's Moby Dick, Thoreau's Walden, and Whitman's Leaves of Grass following suit, American literature broke free from the shadow of Europe and established its own identity.

Fifty years before Freud mapped the human unconscious, Hawthorne had already artistically captured the complex landscape of the human mind.
Hawthorne's timeless insights into the human spirit remain with us as timeless truths.