AP: Scarlet Letter Group Projects
Project #1
Investigate the modern issue of “Slut Shaming” and draw a strong conclusion about the
new concept and Hester Prynne’s experience in The Scarlet Letter.
Use the following article titled “Slut Shaming: A New Social Media Phenomenon” in
order to familiarize yourself with the topic and as a starting point.
In the course of the presentation (Prezi), you must do the following:




Quote from the text (The Scarlet Letter) at least twice and include the Chapter
and page number.
Utilize at least two additional articles found on selected databases in order to
strengthen, clarify, or qualify your point. (The New York Times, The Washington
Post, or Inspire Database (MCHS Media Center).
Each article should be summarized, explained to the class and then used to
support main points.
A reference page (slide) must be included with each presentation.
Possible other source: “Sexual Cyberbullying: The Modern Day Letter A”
Project #2
Investigate the issue of shame in modern punishment and draw a strong conclusion
about the contemporary concept and the concept in The Scarlet Letter.
Use the following article as a starting point: “The Nation; Justice as a Morality Play that
Ends with Shame.”
In the course of the presentation (Prezi), you must do the following:




Quote from the text (The Scarlet Letter) at least twice and include the Chapter
and page number.
Utilize at least two additional articles found on selected databases in order to
strengthen, clarify, or qualify your point. (The New York Times, The Washington
Post, or Inspire Database (MCHS Media Center).
Each article should be summarized, explained to the class and then used to
support main points.
A reference page (slide) must be included with each presentation.
Project #3:
Investigate the modern “double standard” between men and women in regards to
sexual desire and trespass and draw a strong conclusion about Hester’s experience in
The Scarlet Letter.
Use the following article as a starting point: “Sexism and the Single Murderess” by Frank
Bruni.
In the course of the presentation (Prezi), you must do the following:




Quote from the text (The Scarlet Letter) at least twice and include the Chapter
and page number.
Utilize at least two additional articles found on selected databases in order to
strengthen, clarify, or qualify your point. (The New York Times, The Washington
Post, or Inspire Database (MCHS Media Center).
Each article should be summarized, explained to the class and then used to
support main points.
A reference page (slide) must be included with each presentation.
Project #4:
Pearl is a handful to say the least. Hawthorne creates her as a very complex character.
It is safe to say that her status as the single child in a dysfunctional family has had a large
impact on her personality. It is quite likely that, had Hawthorne continued her story,
that she would have had some terribly rebellious teenage years.
Investigate problematic modern teenagers and make a strong connection between the
“wrong way” kids of today and the deeply problematic child that Pearl is in The Scarlet
Letter.
In the course of the presentation (Prezi), you must do the following:




Quote from the text (The Scarlet Letter) at least twice and include the Chapter
and page number.
Utilize at least two additional articles found on selected databases in order to
strengthen, clarify, or qualify your point. (The New York Times, The Washington
Post, or Inspire Database (MCHS Media Center).
Each article should be summarized, explained to the class and then used to
support main points.
A reference page (slide) must be included with each presentation.
Project #5:
In many ways, The Scarlet Letter is about Guilt. Hester feels guilty with her shame in the
open. Dimmesdale feels guilty but tries to keep it inside. Investigate “guilt” and draw a
strong conclusion about modern conceptions of guilt and the way that guilt is treated in
The Scarlet Letter.
As a starting point, use the following article: “Guilt: Or Why It’s Good to Feel Bad.”
In the course of the presentation (Prezi), you must do the following:




Quote from the text (The Scarlet Letter) at least twice and include the Chapter
and page number.
Utilize at least two additional articles found on selected databases in order to
strengthen, clarify, or qualify your point. (The New York Times, The Washington
Post, or Inspire Database (MCHS Media Center).
Each article should be summarized, explained to the class and then used to
support main points.
A reference page (slide) must be included with each presentation.
Project #6:
In Ch. 12 of The Scarlet Letter, as Dimmesdale endures his midnight “vigil” on the
scaffold, Governor Winthrop dies. John Winthrop is a real life historical person of
importance to the Puritan community and one of his lasting legacies is his vision of the
Puritan community in North America as a “City on a Hill.” Give a brief biography of John
Winthrop, then explain the context for his use of the “City on a Hill” image/metaphor.
What did that statement mean when he said it (and where does the idea originally come
from?) and how has the “City on a Hill” idea been used in American history?
Draw a strong conclusion, based on your research, about the “City on a Hill”
image/metaphor and connect it to the ideas and themes presented in The Scarlet Letter.
You may want to use the following: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vm3jEfxRRc4
In the course of the presentation (Prezi), you must do the following:




Quote from the text (The Scarlet Letter) at least twice and include the Chapter
and page number.
Utilize at least two additional articles found on selected databases in order to
strengthen, clarify, or qualify your point. (The New York Times, The Washington
Post, or Inspire Database (MCHS Media Center).
Each article should be summarized, explained to the class and then used to
support main points.
A reference page (slide) must be included with each presentation.
Project #7:
Nathaniel Hawthorne uses many symbols in The Scarlet Letter. Chief among them is the
Scarlet Letter itself. Explain how the letter operates as a symbol in the book. Trace this
symbol through the story and comment on how the meaning of the symbol changes and
bends as the story progresses in relation to what is happening in the novel.
Secondly, investigate another modern symbol which has transformed greatly over time
or due to certain social forces. Draw a strong conclusion about the transformation that
Hawthorne displays for the perception of The Scarlet Letter in the novel and the symbol
that you have chosen to investigate.
In the course of the presentation (Prezi), you must do the following:




Quote from the text (The Scarlet Letter) at least twice and include the Chapter
and page number.
Utilize at least two additional articles found on selected databases in order to
strengthen, clarify, or qualify your point. (The New York Times, The Washington
Post, or Inspire Database (MCHS Media Center).
Each article should be summarized, explained to the class and then used to
support main points.
A reference page (slide) must be included with each presentation.
Project #8:
Nathaniel Hawthorne uses many symbols in The Scarlet Letter. Among them is the rose
bush which grows outside the prison door. Explain how it operates as a symbol in the
book. What does Hawthorne say about it? What connections are there to the rose
bush and to the rest of the story?
Secondly, investigate a modern symbol which is similar to the rosebush in The Scarlet
Letter. How is the chosen symbol similar and what does it stand for? With help from
your articles, explain how the modern symbol is complex and nuanced. Draw a strong
conclusion about the relationship between the rose from the novel and your chosen
symbol.
In the course of the presentation (Prezi), you must do the following:




Quote from the text (The Scarlet Letter) at least twice and include the Chapter
and page number.
Utilize at least two additional articles found on selected databases in order to
strengthen, clarify, or qualify your point. (The New York Times, The Washington
Post, or Inspire Database (MCHS Media Center).
Each article should be summarized, explained to the class and then used to
support main points.
A reference page (slide) must be included with each presentation.
Project #9:
Explore issues related to feminism and The Scarlet Letter. Why can Hester be
considered a feminist heroine?
Secondly, draw a strong conclusion about Hester’s life and experience and the
relationship(s) or connections to some aspect(s) of modern feminism. The definition of
feminism can be quite broad or flexible to suit your needs, but give your working
definition of feminism to the class.
In the course of the presentation (Prezi), you must do the following:




Quote from the text (The Scarlet Letter) at least twice and include the Chapter
and page number.
Utilize at least two additional articles found on selected databases in order to
strengthen, clarify, or qualify your point. (The New York Times, The Washington
Post, or Inspire Database (MCHS Media Center).
Each article should be summarized, explained to the class and then used to
support main points.
A reference page (slide) must be included with each presentation.
Project #11:
Analyze the “Puritan Valentine’s Day Cards” at the College Humor Blog.
Select four cards and analyze what makes them funny. What is the deeper meaning or
message behind the cards—which, of course, were made in modern times. What are
they saying about the Puritan era?
Connect the main idea behind these cards to the heart of the story in The Scarlet Letter.
What are the connections?
Construct your own “Puritan Valentine Card” which uses the plot and characters In The
Scarlet Letter.
Utilizing the insights you have gained about the Puritan worldview, pull out one aspect
of that worldview and inspect it in the light of modern times. Draw a strong conclusion
relating the modern information to the novel and the Puritan worldview.
Project #10:
In Chapter 12 (The Minister’s Vigil), Hawthorne presents a powerfully striking image of a
fractured American family. This is the scene in which Dimmesdale, Hester and Pearl are
on the scaffold together at night. Hawthorne’s language which describes the “electric”
connection between Hester, Pearl and Dimmesdale contrasts with the sad
circumstances surrounding this first joining of them in public as a family.
Analyze what makes this scene especially powerful. What are the symbols, language
and ideas which drive its impact? What makes Hester, Dimmesdale and Pearl the
prototypical dysfunctional American family?
Secondly, investigate the modern American family. Draw a strong conclusion about the
dysfunctional family of modern America and Hawthorne’s powerfully drawn first family
of “fail.”
In the course of the presentation (Prezi), you must do the following:




Quote from the text (The Scarlet Letter) at least twice and include the Chapter
and page number.
Utilize at least two additional articles found on selected databases in order to
strengthen, clarify, or qualify your point. (The New York Times, The Washington
Post, or Inspire Database (MCHS Media Center).
Each article should be summarized, explained to the class and then used to
support main points.
A reference page (slide) must be included with each presentation.