The Scarlet Letter Nathaniel Hawthorne (1804-1864) was the first American author to make extensive use of historical material. Like his predecessor, James Fenimore Cooper, he was attempting to find and utilise distinctively American material, and in going back to the past, had appeared to have done it in a more genuine way, for American history … Continue reading Nathaniel Hawthorne – The Scarlet Letter (Novel Summary) →