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Inherit the Wind (play)

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Inherit the Wind

Written by
Jerome Lawrence
Robert Edwin Lee
Characters
Henry Drummond, Matthew Harrison Brady, E. K. Hornbeck, Bertram Cates, Rachel Brown, Rev. Jeremiah Brown
Date premiered
1955
Place premiered
United States
Setting
Hillsboro, United States
Inherit the Wind is a play by Jerome Lawrence and Robert Edwin Lee. The play, which debuted in 1955, is a story that fictionalizes the 1925 Scopes "Monkey" Trial as a means to discuss the then-contemporary McCarthy trials.[1][2]
The debate over creationism versus evolution has contemporary resonance, as evidenced by the play's numerous revivals and screen adaptations decades after its initial theatrical run.[3]


Contents  [hide]
1 Background
2 Title
3 Cast of characters
4 Summary 4.1 Act One 4.1.1 Scene One
4.1.2 Scene Two
4.2 Act Two 4.2.1 Scene One
4.2.2 Scene Two
4.3 Act Three
5 Original production and revivals 5.1 Other revivals
6 Screen adaptations
7 References
8 Further reading
9 External links

Background[edit]

 

 Henry Drummond (Spencer Tracy, left) and Matthew Harrison Brady (Fredric March, right) in Inherit the Wind
Inherit the Wind is a fictionalized account of the 1925 Scopes "Monkey" Trial, which resulted in John T. Scopes's conviction for teaching Charles Darwin's theory of evolution to a high school science class, contrary to a Tennessee state law. The characters of Matthew Harrison Brady, Henry Drummond, Bertram Cates and E. K. Hornbeck correspond to the historical figures of William Jennings Bryan, Clarence Darrow, Scopes, and H. L. Mencken, respectively. However, the playwrights state in a note at the opening of the play that it is not meant to be a historical account,[4] and there are numerous instances where events were substantially altered or invented.[5][6] For instance, the characters of the preacher and his daughter were fictional, the townspeople were not hostile towards those who had come to Dayton for the trial, and Bryan offered to pay Scopes' fine if he was convicted. Bryan did die shortly after the trial, but it happened five days later in his sleep.[5][6] Political commentator Steve Benen said of the play's inaccuracies: "Scopes issued no plea for empathy, there was no fiancee and the real Scopes was never arrested. In fact, the popular film that was nominated for four Academy Awards and has helped shape the American understanding of the 'Scopes Monkey Trial' for decades is an inadequate reflection of history."[7] Lawrence explained in a 1996 interview that the drama's purpose was to criticize the then-current state of McCarthyism. The play was also intended to defend intellectual freedom. According to Lawrence, "we used the teaching of evolution as a parable, a metaphor for any kind of mind control [...] It's not about science versus religion. It's about the right to think."[1]
The role of Matthew Harrison Brady is intended to reflect the personality and beliefs of William Jennings Bryan, while that of Henry Drummond is intended to be similar to that of Clarence Darrow. The character of E. K. Hornbeck is modeled on that of H. L. Mencken. Bryan and Darrow, formerly close friends, opposed one another at the Scopes trial, and Mencken covered the trial for The Baltimore Sun.
Title[edit]
The play's title comes from Proverbs 11:29, which in the King James Bible reads:
He that troubleth his own house shall inherit the wind and the fool shall be servant to the wise of heart.
In Act Two, Scene One, Brady admonishes Reverend Brown with this Bible quote for alienating his daughter when he gives a fiery sermon against Cates.
Cast of characters[edit]
Matthew Harrison Brady, a three-time presidential candidate and nationally known attorney. He is a Populist and still a dynamic public speaker, even though he is in his late 60s or early 70s.
Henry Drummond, another nationally known attorney who was once Brady's closest friend and political confidante. He is about the same age as Brady.
Bertram "Bert" Cates, a Hillsboro high school teacher in his 20s who has taught the theory of evolution in violation of a state law banning its teaching in classrooms.
E. K. Hornbeck, a reporter for the fictional Baltimore Herald newspaper. He is young, sarcastic, cynical, and deeply opposed to religious belief.
Reverend Jeremiah Brown, a fundamentalist Protestant Christian preacher of indeterminate denomination who believes in Biblical literalism. He is widowed, and has a daughter.
Rachel Brown, the Rev. Brown's daughter. She is 22 and a friend/colleague of Bertram Cates. Rev. Brown doesn't really like her, and he tried to condemn her when she told him not to crucify Cates
The Judge, a local county court judge who is subtly sympathetic to Rev. Brown's views.
Howard Blair, a 13-year-old high school student who was in Bertram Cates' class.
Melinda Loomis, a 12-year-old girl who believes strongly in the Bible.
Tom Davenport, the local district attorney who prosecutes Bertram Cates.
The Mayor, the top elected official of Hillsboro who is openly supportive of the Rev. Brown but also deeply political and concerned about the economic future of his town.
There are also a number of minor speaking roles. These include Meeker, a bailiff at the Hillsboro courthouse; Mrs. Sarah Brady, Matthew Harrison Brady's wife; Mrs. Krebs, a loudly outspoken supporter of Rev. Brown and leader of the Ladies' Aid Society; Mr. Bannister, a local citizen; Elijah, an illiterate man from the nearby woods who sells Bibles to the crowd; Harry Esterbrook, a radio reporter from Chicago; Jesse Dunlap, a local farmer; George Sillers, an employee at the feed store; and the Storekeeper, Sillers' employer.
Summary[edit]
The play takes place in the small town of Hillsboro, in an unnamed state in the central part of the United States. (It is often assumed to be either Kentucky or Tennessee.) Scenes take place either in front of the county courthouse or in the courtroom. It takes place in the summertime "not too long ago".
Act One[edit]
Scene One[edit]
The play begins with local high school student Howard Blair looking for worms in front of the Hillsboro courthouse. Melinda appears, and they have a discussion about evolution which helps inform the audience about the claims of evolution. They exit when Rachel enters. Rachel convinces Meeker, the bailiff, to bring Bertram Cates out of his prison cell so that Rachel and Bert can talk. Meeker does so. Bert and Rachel's conversation tells the audience about why Bert taught evolution to his students. Rachel and Bert are in love, and hug. Meeker comes in as they are hugging, saying he needs to sweep. Rachel exits. Meeker tells Bert that Matthew Harrison Brady is coming to town to help prosecute the case. Meeker talks about a time when he was a young man, and saw Mathew Harrison Brady during one of his failed presidential campaigns. Bert's lawyer is not revealed, but Bert says his attorney is being provided by the Baltimore Herald. Bert and Meeker exit.
Reverend Jeremiah Brown enters speaks with the townpeople, Howard, and Melinda. Everyone is excited that Matthew Harrison Brady is coming to Hillsboro. When Howard sees the smoke from the arriving train, everyone exits. E. K. Hornbeck, a reporter for the Baltimore Herald, enters and in a soliloquy cruelly ridicules the people of Hillsboro. Hornbeck spots a monkey that someone has brought to town, and feigns conversation with it. The crowd enters with Matthew Harrison Brady, Mrs. Brady, Rev. Brown, and the Mayor. Brady makes a brief speech, which the crowd wildly cheers. The Mayor also makes a short speech, and makes Brady an "Honorary Colonel in the State Militia". The Mayor introduces Brady to Reverend Brown. Members of the Ladies' Aid Society set up a table and a buffet lunch on the courthouse lawn as Brady talks about how he will fight Cates' legal counsel. Hornbeck then announces that the defense attorney will be Henry Drummond, one of Brady's old friends and a well-known lawyer. The scene ends with everyone in the town escorting the Bradys to a nearby hotel and the introduction of Drummond who is regarded as the devil.
Scene Two[edit]
Scene Two occurs in the courtroom. Present are Matthew Harrison Brady, Henry Drummond, Tom Davenport, the Mayor, the Judge, and many townspeople (sitting behind the defense and prosecution and watching the proceedings). It is a day or two later, and jury selection is under way. Davenport, the local district attorney, questions Mr. Bannister to see if he is an acceptable juror to the prosecution. Bannister says he attends church on Sundays, and the prosecution accepts him. Drummond questions Bannister, and it is revealed that Bannister is illiterate. Drummond accepts Bannister for the jury. Jesse Dunlap is then called to the stand. Brady asks Dunlap if he believes in the Bible. Dunlap states "I believe in the Holy Word of God. And I believe in Matthew Harrison Brady!" Brady finds Dunlap acceptable. Drummond refuses to question Dunlap, and says Dunlap is not acceptable as a juror. Brady demands that Drummond provide a reason for refusing Dunlap, or at least ask him a question. Drummond asks Dunlap how he feels, then excuses Dunlap as unacceptable.
Drummond protests the use of the title "Colonel" by Matthew Harrison Brady and the Judge. Realizing that Brady's honorary title may have prejudiced the judicial proceedings, the Mayor confers with the Judge and they agree to make Drummond a "Temporary Honorary Colonel."
George Sillers is called as a potential juror. Brady briefly questions Sillers, then accepts him. Drummond asks Sillers some questions on religion and then evolution, then accepts Sillers as well. Alarmed, Brady tells the court that Sillers won't render impartial judgment. Drummond objects to Brady's use of the word "conform." Brady tells the Judge (although his comments are subtly directed at Henry Drummond) about the "Endicott Publishing Case," a trial in which Brady claims Drummond confused the jury so much that they delivered a wrong verdict. Drummond states that all he wants to do is stop "the clock-stoppers" from inserting religious belief into the Constitution. The Judge reminds Drummond that this is not a federal case, and that constitutional questions cannot be entertained. Drummond demands that they be included, but the Judge rules him out of order. The Judge also rules that the jury has been selected and court is finished for the day.
After recessing the court, the Judge announces that Reverend Brown will hold a prayer meeting later that night. Drummond says that such announcements from the bench are prejudicial, but the Judge says the court has recessed.
Act Two[edit]
Scene One[edit]
Scene One occurs in front of the courthouse later that evening. Two workmen discuss whether to take down the "Read Your Bible" banner which hangs over the entrance to the courthouse, and decide not to. They leave when they hear people approaching.
Brady enters with Hornbeck and some reporters from "Reuters News Agency", and discusses his past close relationship with Drummond. Brady accuses Hornbeck of biased reporting, but Hornbeck replies that he is a critic—not a reporter.
Reverend Brown and a crowd of supporters (including Drummond) enter for the prayer meeting. Brown engages in call and response with the crowd, preaching about how God created the world in six days. Brown condemns Cates, and Rachel (who has entered mid-sermon) demands that he stop. Instead, Rev. Brown condemns anyone who seeks forgiveness for Cates. Rachel becomes very distressed. Brady, increasingly uneasy with the tenor of Brown's sermon, interrupts him and quotes the Book of Proverbs: "He that troubleth his own house shall inherit the wind..." Brady dismisses the crowd by reminding them of Jesus Christ's command to forgive.
After the prayer meeting, Brady approaches Drummond (who was in the crowd) and asks him why he is defending Cates. He accuses Drummond of having "moved away" from everything both men once believed in. Drummond replies, "All motion is relative. Perhaps it is you who have moved away by standing still."
Scene Two[edit]
Scene Two occurs in the courtroom two days after the prayer meeting. It is afternoon, and very hot. The scene opens with the trial already under way. Brady examines witness Howard Blair. Afterward, Brady and Drummond exchange heated words about speech-making during the trial. Drummond attempts to cross-examine Howard, but Brady repeatedly objects to Drummond's questions (which the Judge sustains). Drummond presents a monologue in which he declares morality is meaningless but truth is valuable, then dismisses Howard from the stand.
Davenport calls Rachel as a witness. Under Brady's questioning, she reveals that Cates stopped attending Rev. Brown's church after Brown preached that a local boy who had drowned was not saved because he had not been baptized. Cates angrily shouts that Brown had really preached that the boy was burning in hell. The crowd shouts Cates down, but Cates continues until order is restored. Brady again questions Rachel, demanding to know if Cates denied the reality of God and compared marriage to the breeding of animals. Cates again interrupts her response, yelling that his statements to her were private and just questions—not statements of fact. Rachel weeps on the stand, and Drummond objects to the line of questioning. Brady ends his examination, and Drummond allows Rachel to step down without cross-examination.
Drummond attempts to call three scientists as witnesses for the defense, but the Judge denies his request. Drummond asks if the judge will permit testimony about the Bible, and the judge does. Drummond calls Brady to the stand as an expert on the Bible.
Drummond attempts to question Brady about his knowledge of the writings of Charles Darwin, but the Judge rules these questions out of order. Drummond then asks Brady about the truthfulness behind the story of Jonah and the whale and other Biblical accounts. Brady states they are all true, and Drummond accuses him of wanting to throw all modern science out of the classroom. Davenport objects to Drummond's line of questioning, but Brady declares that Drummond is only playing into his hands. Drummond submits that science has forced the human race to abandon its faith in a literal interpretation of the Bible. God gave man the ability to reason, so why can't he use that ability to question the Bible, Drummond asks. He also asks Brady if the ability to think is what distinguishes a man from a sponge. Brady responds that God determines who shall be a man and who shall be a sponge. Drummond declares that Cates only demands the same rights as a sponge: To think. The crowd in the courtroom erupts in applause.
Drummond changes his line of questioning. He asks Brady how old the earth is, and Brady replies it is about 6,000 years old. But if local rocks and fossils are millions of years old, Drummond asks, how can this be? Unnerved, Brady reasserts that the world was created in six days, as the Bible says. Drummond asks Brady if it isn't possible that, since the sun was not created until the fourth day, that the first "day" of creation wasn't in fact millions of years in length. Realizing that science and religion might be compatible after all, the crowd becomes vocally restive.
Brady responds by accusing Drummond of trying to destroy people's faith, and that God spoke directly to the authors of the Bible. Drummond asks him how Brady knows that God did not speak to Charles Darwin. Brady asserts that God told him that Darwin's works were not divinely inspired. Drummond mocks Brady as a "modern apostle" and concludes that no law can be just if its interpretation relies on the divine inspiration given to just one man, Matthew Harrison Brady. Brady is further unnerved, and declares that all men have free will. Drummond seizes on his statement, and demands to know why the law refuses to allow Bertram Cates to exercise his free will. Brady begins quoting the Bible at length, and Drummond continues to mock him. The crowd laughs at Brady. Drummond dismisses him from the witness stand, and Brady slumps in the witness chair while his wife rushes to his side and comforts him.
Act Three[edit]
The time is the day after the Brady/Drummond confrontation. It is early morning, and still very hot. Act Three consists of a single scene, and all the major characters are present. The courtroom is jammed with people, including several radio reporters and their bulky equipment. Cates asks Drummond if he will be found guilty. Drummond responds that when he was seven years old, he received a rocking horse named Golden Dancer as a gift. But it broke when he rode it the first time. Drummond advises him that appearances can be deceiving, and a clear-cut guilty verdict may conceal many things. He also implicitly criticizes Brady as all show and no substance. Their discussion ends. Before the trial begins, the Mayor speaks privately with the Judge in front of the bench. The mass media have been making the town look bad, and the Mayor asks the Judge to go easy on Cates should there be a guilty verdict.
The Judge opens the trial, and the jury enters. Cates is given permission to speak before sentencing occurs, and says the law is unjust. But his assertion is not a strong one, and he sits down without completing his statement. The Judge takes the verdict from the jury, and declares Cates guilty. He sentences Cates to a $100 fine. The crowd is angry at the verdict, but many in the crowd are also pleased. Brady denounces the sentence as too lenient. Drummond says Cates will pay no fine and will appeal. Outraged, Brady asks permission to speak to the crowd. But the Judge declares the proceedings over and the court adjourned. The Judge exits.
In the chaos that ensues after the adjournment, Brady begins to deliver his speech and struggles to be heard. The crowd begins to leave, and the radio people turn off the microphones. Brady shouts even louder, trying to get the crowd's attention. Suddenly he collapses, and is carried out of the courtroom in a delirium. Hornbeck sneers at Brady and calls him a political loser. Cates asks Drummond if he won or lost, and Drummond says he won by bringing national attention to a bad law. Hornbeck says his newspaper will pay Cates' bail to keep him out of jail.
Rachel enters, and tells Cates that she moved out of her father's house. She tells Cates that she tried to read some of Darwin's book, which she shows to him, but didn't understand it. She apologizes to Drummond and says she was afraid of thinking because thinking could lead to bad thoughts.
The Judge enters and announces that Matthew Harrison Brady has just died. Drummond is deeply saddened. Hornbeck sarcastically criticizes Brady at length, sarcastically saying that he died of "a busted belly," but Drummond says Hornbeck is being unfairly critical of religious belief. They argue about Brady's achievements. Hornbeck accuses Drummond of being overly sentimental, and leaves.
Cates and Rachel depart to catch a train; they are leaving town to be married elsewhere. Rachel leaves behind Cates's copy of Darwin's The Descent of Man. Drummond picks up both the Darwin book and a Bible, and leaves the courtroom with both books in his briefcase.
Original production and revivals[edit]
Inherit the Wind opened with actors Paul Muni, Ed Begley, and Tony Randall produced and directed by Herman Shumlin on January 10, 1955. It debuted at Broadway's National Theatre on April 21, 1955.[8][9] It played on Broadway until June 22, 1957, where it closed after 806 performances. It was revived on Broadway twice: April 4, 1996 - May 12, 1996 and April 12, 2007 - July 8, 2007.[10] The 1996 revival starred George C. Scott (who played Brady in the later 1998 film version) as Drummond and Charles Durning as Brady. In April, Scott had to leave the show mid-performance due to ill health and was replaced by the show's producer, Tony Randall for that day. Randall played the Wednesday matinees for Scott from that point on.[11] His illness finally led to the revival's closure.[12] Christopher Plummer and Brian Dennehy starred in the 2007 revival.[13]
Other revivals[edit]
In the 1990s Jason Miller and Malachy McCourt starred in the Philadelphia production that broke that city's long run records.[citation needed]
In 2006 several scenes were translated in Italian for the first time by Luca Giberti for a series of Darwin-themed readings.[14]
Kevin Spacey (Henry Drummond) and David Troughton (Matthew Harrison Brady) starred in a 2009 revival at The Old Vic in London.[15]
Screen adaptations[edit]
Inherit the Wind (1960 film), directed by Stanley Kramer; starring Spencer Tracy, Fredric March, and Gene Kelly
Inherit the Wind (1965 film), a television film starring Melvyn Douglas and Ed Begley
Inherit the Wind (1988 film), a television film starring Jason Robards, Kirk Douglas, and Darren McGavin
Inherit the Wind (1999 film), a television film starring Jack Lemmon, George C. Scott, and Beau Bridges
References[edit]
1.^ Jump up to: a b BILL BLANKENSHIPThe Capital-Journal (2001-03-02). "Inherit the controversy". Cjonline.com. Retrieved 2014-05-15.
2.Jump up ^ "The Scopes Trial vs. 'Inherit the Wind' by Gregg Easterbrook". Beliefnet.com. 2011-02-17. Retrieved 2014-05-15.
3.Jump up ^ McCabe, Lyndsey. "Editor's Preface". Inherit the Wind. American Studies Program The University of Virginia April 1996. Retrieved 3 February 2013.
4.Jump up ^ Inherit the Wind: The Playwrights' Note
5.^ Jump up to: a b "Inherit the Wind, Drama for Students". Gale Group. 1 January 1998. Retrieved 31 August 2012.  – via HighBeam Research (subscription required)
6.^ Jump up to: a b Riley, Karen L.; Brown, Jennifer A.; Braswell, Ray (1 January 2007). "Historical Truth and Film: Inherit the Wind as an Appraisal of the American Teacher". American Educational History Journal. Retrieved 31 August 2012.  – via HighBeam Research (subscription required)
7.Jump up ^ Benen, Steve (1 July 2000). "Inherit the Myth?". Church and State. Retrieved 31 August 2012.  – via HighBeam Research (subscription required)
8.Jump up ^ Inherit the Wind Makes a Broadway Entrance - 1955
9.Jump up ^ "PLAYBILL ARCHIVES: Inherit the Wind — 1955". Playbill.com. 2007-04-12. Retrieved 2014-05-15.
10.Jump up ^ The Broadway League. "Inherit the Wind on Broadway". Ibdb.com. Retrieved 2014-05-15.
11.Jump up ^ "Scott Leaves Stage During 'Inherit'; Randall Steps In". Nytimes.com. 1996-04-17. Retrieved 2014-05-15.
12.Jump up ^ 'WIND' MAY INHERIT CURTAIN SCOTT SCOOTS & SHOW COULD GO[dead link]
13.Jump up ^ Lawson, Mark (2007-04-12). "Showdown in Tennessee". The Guardian (London). Retrieved 2007-12-02.
14.Jump up ^ "Il caso Scopes: processo alle scimmie". From the Extramuseum website. Retrieved 11 November 2013.
15.Jump up ^ Billington, Michael (2 October 2009). "Inherit the Wind; Old Vic, London". The Guardian. Retrieved 5 December 2009.
Further reading[edit]
Larson, Edward. Summer for the Gods: The Scopes Trial and America's Continuing Debate over Science and Religion. 2d ed. New York: Basic Books, 2006.
External links[edit]
 Wikiversity has learning materials about Collaborative play writing
Inherit the Wind at Internet Broadway Database


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Jerome Lawrence and Robert Edwin Lee

 









 







  


Categories: Scopes Trial
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Inherit the Wind (play)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Jump to: navigation, search


Inherit the Wind

Written by
Jerome Lawrence
Robert Edwin Lee
Characters
Henry Drummond, Matthew Harrison Brady, E. K. Hornbeck, Bertram Cates, Rachel Brown, Rev. Jeremiah Brown
Date premiered
1955
Place premiered
United States
Setting
Hillsboro, United States
Inherit the Wind is a play by Jerome Lawrence and Robert Edwin Lee. The play, which debuted in 1955, is a story that fictionalizes the 1925 Scopes "Monkey" Trial as a means to discuss the then-contemporary McCarthy trials.[1][2]
The debate over creationism versus evolution has contemporary resonance, as evidenced by the play's numerous revivals and screen adaptations decades after its initial theatrical run.[3]


Contents  [hide]
1 Background
2 Title
3 Cast of characters
4 Summary 4.1 Act One 4.1.1 Scene One
4.1.2 Scene Two
4.2 Act Two 4.2.1 Scene One
4.2.2 Scene Two
4.3 Act Three
5 Original production and revivals 5.1 Other revivals
6 Screen adaptations
7 References
8 Further reading
9 External links

Background[edit]

 

 Henry Drummond (Spencer Tracy, left) and Matthew Harrison Brady (Fredric March, right) in Inherit the Wind
Inherit the Wind is a fictionalized account of the 1925 Scopes "Monkey" Trial, which resulted in John T. Scopes's conviction for teaching Charles Darwin's theory of evolution to a high school science class, contrary to a Tennessee state law. The characters of Matthew Harrison Brady, Henry Drummond, Bertram Cates and E. K. Hornbeck correspond to the historical figures of William Jennings Bryan, Clarence Darrow, Scopes, and H. L. Mencken, respectively. However, the playwrights state in a note at the opening of the play that it is not meant to be a historical account,[4] and there are numerous instances where events were substantially altered or invented.[5][6] For instance, the characters of the preacher and his daughter were fictional, the townspeople were not hostile towards those who had come to Dayton for the trial, and Bryan offered to pay Scopes' fine if he was convicted. Bryan did die shortly after the trial, but it happened five days later in his sleep.[5][6] Political commentator Steve Benen said of the play's inaccuracies: "Scopes issued no plea for empathy, there was no fiancee and the real Scopes was never arrested. In fact, the popular film that was nominated for four Academy Awards and has helped shape the American understanding of the 'Scopes Monkey Trial' for decades is an inadequate reflection of history."[7] Lawrence explained in a 1996 interview that the drama's purpose was to criticize the then-current state of McCarthyism. The play was also intended to defend intellectual freedom. According to Lawrence, "we used the teaching of evolution as a parable, a metaphor for any kind of mind control [...] It's not about science versus religion. It's about the right to think."[1]
The role of Matthew Harrison Brady is intended to reflect the personality and beliefs of William Jennings Bryan, while that of Henry Drummond is intended to be similar to that of Clarence Darrow. The character of E. K. Hornbeck is modeled on that of H. L. Mencken. Bryan and Darrow, formerly close friends, opposed one another at the Scopes trial, and Mencken covered the trial for The Baltimore Sun.
Title[edit]
The play's title comes from Proverbs 11:29, which in the King James Bible reads:
He that troubleth his own house shall inherit the wind and the fool shall be servant to the wise of heart.
In Act Two, Scene One, Brady admonishes Reverend Brown with this Bible quote for alienating his daughter when he gives a fiery sermon against Cates.
Cast of characters[edit]
Matthew Harrison Brady, a three-time presidential candidate and nationally known attorney. He is a Populist and still a dynamic public speaker, even though he is in his late 60s or early 70s.
Henry Drummond, another nationally known attorney who was once Brady's closest friend and political confidante. He is about the same age as Brady.
Bertram "Bert" Cates, a Hillsboro high school teacher in his 20s who has taught the theory of evolution in violation of a state law banning its teaching in classrooms.
E. K. Hornbeck, a reporter for the fictional Baltimore Herald newspaper. He is young, sarcastic, cynical, and deeply opposed to religious belief.
Reverend Jeremiah Brown, a fundamentalist Protestant Christian preacher of indeterminate denomination who believes in Biblical literalism. He is widowed, and has a daughter.
Rachel Brown, the Rev. Brown's daughter. She is 22 and a friend/colleague of Bertram Cates. Rev. Brown doesn't really like her, and he tried to condemn her when she told him not to crucify Cates
The Judge, a local county court judge who is subtly sympathetic to Rev. Brown's views.
Howard Blair, a 13-year-old high school student who was in Bertram Cates' class.
Melinda Loomis, a 12-year-old girl who believes strongly in the Bible.
Tom Davenport, the local district attorney who prosecutes Bertram Cates.
The Mayor, the top elected official of Hillsboro who is openly supportive of the Rev. Brown but also deeply political and concerned about the economic future of his town.
There are also a number of minor speaking roles. These include Meeker, a bailiff at the Hillsboro courthouse; Mrs. Sarah Brady, Matthew Harrison Brady's wife; Mrs. Krebs, a loudly outspoken supporter of Rev. Brown and leader of the Ladies' Aid Society; Mr. Bannister, a local citizen; Elijah, an illiterate man from the nearby woods who sells Bibles to the crowd; Harry Esterbrook, a radio reporter from Chicago; Jesse Dunlap, a local farmer; George Sillers, an employee at the feed store; and the Storekeeper, Sillers' employer.
Summary[edit]
The play takes place in the small town of Hillsboro, in an unnamed state in the central part of the United States. (It is often assumed to be either Kentucky or Tennessee.) Scenes take place either in front of the county courthouse or in the courtroom. It takes place in the summertime "not too long ago".
Act One[edit]
Scene One[edit]
The play begins with local high school student Howard Blair looking for worms in front of the Hillsboro courthouse. Melinda appears, and they have a discussion about evolution which helps inform the audience about the claims of evolution. They exit when Rachel enters. Rachel convinces Meeker, the bailiff, to bring Bertram Cates out of his prison cell so that Rachel and Bert can talk. Meeker does so. Bert and Rachel's conversation tells the audience about why Bert taught evolution to his students. Rachel and Bert are in love, and hug. Meeker comes in as they are hugging, saying he needs to sweep. Rachel exits. Meeker tells Bert that Matthew Harrison Brady is coming to town to help prosecute the case. Meeker talks about a time when he was a young man, and saw Mathew Harrison Brady during one of his failed presidential campaigns. Bert's lawyer is not revealed, but Bert says his attorney is being provided by the Baltimore Herald. Bert and Meeker exit.
Reverend Jeremiah Brown enters speaks with the townpeople, Howard, and Melinda. Everyone is excited that Matthew Harrison Brady is coming to Hillsboro. When Howard sees the smoke from the arriving train, everyone exits. E. K. Hornbeck, a reporter for the Baltimore Herald, enters and in a soliloquy cruelly ridicules the people of Hillsboro. Hornbeck spots a monkey that someone has brought to town, and feigns conversation with it. The crowd enters with Matthew Harrison Brady, Mrs. Brady, Rev. Brown, and the Mayor. Brady makes a brief speech, which the crowd wildly cheers. The Mayor also makes a short speech, and makes Brady an "Honorary Colonel in the State Militia". The Mayor introduces Brady to Reverend Brown. Members of the Ladies' Aid Society set up a table and a buffet lunch on the courthouse lawn as Brady talks about how he will fight Cates' legal counsel. Hornbeck then announces that the defense attorney will be Henry Drummond, one of Brady's old friends and a well-known lawyer. The scene ends with everyone in the town escorting the Bradys to a nearby hotel and the introduction of Drummond who is regarded as the devil.
Scene Two[edit]
Scene Two occurs in the courtroom. Present are Matthew Harrison Brady, Henry Drummond, Tom Davenport, the Mayor, the Judge, and many townspeople (sitting behind the defense and prosecution and watching the proceedings). It is a day or two later, and jury selection is under way. Davenport, the local district attorney, questions Mr. Bannister to see if he is an acceptable juror to the prosecution. Bannister says he attends church on Sundays, and the prosecution accepts him. Drummond questions Bannister, and it is revealed that Bannister is illiterate. Drummond accepts Bannister for the jury. Jesse Dunlap is then called to the stand. Brady asks Dunlap if he believes in the Bible. Dunlap states "I believe in the Holy Word of God. And I believe in Matthew Harrison Brady!" Brady finds Dunlap acceptable. Drummond refuses to question Dunlap, and says Dunlap is not acceptable as a juror. Brady demands that Drummond provide a reason for refusing Dunlap, or at least ask him a question. Drummond asks Dunlap how he feels, then excuses Dunlap as unacceptable.
Drummond protests the use of the title "Colonel" by Matthew Harrison Brady and the Judge. Realizing that Brady's honorary title may have prejudiced the judicial proceedings, the Mayor confers with the Judge and they agree to make Drummond a "Temporary Honorary Colonel."
George Sillers is called as a potential juror. Brady briefly questions Sillers, then accepts him. Drummond asks Sillers some questions on religion and then evolution, then accepts Sillers as well. Alarmed, Brady tells the court that Sillers won't render impartial judgment. Drummond objects to Brady's use of the word "conform." Brady tells the Judge (although his comments are subtly directed at Henry Drummond) about the "Endicott Publishing Case," a trial in which Brady claims Drummond confused the jury so much that they delivered a wrong verdict. Drummond states that all he wants to do is stop "the clock-stoppers" from inserting religious belief into the Constitution. The Judge reminds Drummond that this is not a federal case, and that constitutional questions cannot be entertained. Drummond demands that they be included, but the Judge rules him out of order. The Judge also rules that the jury has been selected and court is finished for the day.
After recessing the court, the Judge announces that Reverend Brown will hold a prayer meeting later that night. Drummond says that such announcements from the bench are prejudicial, but the Judge says the court has recessed.
Act Two[edit]
Scene One[edit]
Scene One occurs in front of the courthouse later that evening. Two workmen discuss whether to take down the "Read Your Bible" banner which hangs over the entrance to the courthouse, and decide not to. They leave when they hear people approaching.
Brady enters with Hornbeck and some reporters from "Reuters News Agency", and discusses his past close relationship with Drummond. Brady accuses Hornbeck of biased reporting, but Hornbeck replies that he is a critic—not a reporter.
Reverend Brown and a crowd of supporters (including Drummond) enter for the prayer meeting. Brown engages in call and response with the crowd, preaching about how God created the world in six days. Brown condemns Cates, and Rachel (who has entered mid-sermon) demands that he stop. Instead, Rev. Brown condemns anyone who seeks forgiveness for Cates. Rachel becomes very distressed. Brady, increasingly uneasy with the tenor of Brown's sermon, interrupts him and quotes the Book of Proverbs: "He that troubleth his own house shall inherit the wind..." Brady dismisses the crowd by reminding them of Jesus Christ's command to forgive.
After the prayer meeting, Brady approaches Drummond (who was in the crowd) and asks him why he is defending Cates. He accuses Drummond of having "moved away" from everything both men once believed in. Drummond replies, "All motion is relative. Perhaps it is you who have moved away by standing still."
Scene Two[edit]
Scene Two occurs in the courtroom two days after the prayer meeting. It is afternoon, and very hot. The scene opens with the trial already under way. Brady examines witness Howard Blair. Afterward, Brady and Drummond exchange heated words about speech-making during the trial. Drummond attempts to cross-examine Howard, but Brady repeatedly objects to Drummond's questions (which the Judge sustains). Drummond presents a monologue in which he declares morality is meaningless but truth is valuable, then dismisses Howard from the stand.
Davenport calls Rachel as a witness. Under Brady's questioning, she reveals that Cates stopped attending Rev. Brown's church after Brown preached that a local boy who had drowned was not saved because he had not been baptized. Cates angrily shouts that Brown had really preached that the boy was burning in hell. The crowd shouts Cates down, but Cates continues until order is restored. Brady again questions Rachel, demanding to know if Cates denied the reality of God and compared marriage to the breeding of animals. Cates again interrupts her response, yelling that his statements to her were private and just questions—not statements of fact. Rachel weeps on the stand, and Drummond objects to the line of questioning. Brady ends his examination, and Drummond allows Rachel to step down without cross-examination.
Drummond attempts to call three scientists as witnesses for the defense, but the Judge denies his request. Drummond asks if the judge will permit testimony about the Bible, and the judge does. Drummond calls Brady to the stand as an expert on the Bible.
Drummond attempts to question Brady about his knowledge of the writings of Charles Darwin, but the Judge rules these questions out of order. Drummond then asks Brady about the truthfulness behind the story of Jonah and the whale and other Biblical accounts. Brady states they are all true, and Drummond accuses him of wanting to throw all modern science out of the classroom. Davenport objects to Drummond's line of questioning, but Brady declares that Drummond is only playing into his hands. Drummond submits that science has forced the human race to abandon its faith in a literal interpretation of the Bible. God gave man the ability to reason, so why can't he use that ability to question the Bible, Drummond asks. He also asks Brady if the ability to think is what distinguishes a man from a sponge. Brady responds that God determines who shall be a man and who shall be a sponge. Drummond declares that Cates only demands the same rights as a sponge: To think. The crowd in the courtroom erupts in applause.
Drummond changes his line of questioning. He asks Brady how old the earth is, and Brady replies it is about 6,000 years old. But if local rocks and fossils are millions of years old, Drummond asks, how can this be? Unnerved, Brady reasserts that the world was created in six days, as the Bible says. Drummond asks Brady if it isn't possible that, since the sun was not created until the fourth day, that the first "day" of creation wasn't in fact millions of years in length. Realizing that science and religion might be compatible after all, the crowd becomes vocally restive.
Brady responds by accusing Drummond of trying to destroy people's faith, and that God spoke directly to the authors of the Bible. Drummond asks him how Brady knows that God did not speak to Charles Darwin. Brady asserts that God told him that Darwin's works were not divinely inspired. Drummond mocks Brady as a "modern apostle" and concludes that no law can be just if its interpretation relies on the divine inspiration given to just one man, Matthew Harrison Brady. Brady is further unnerved, and declares that all men have free will. Drummond seizes on his statement, and demands to know why the law refuses to allow Bertram Cates to exercise his free will. Brady begins quoting the Bible at length, and Drummond continues to mock him. The crowd laughs at Brady. Drummond dismisses him from the witness stand, and Brady slumps in the witness chair while his wife rushes to his side and comforts him.
Act Three[edit]
The time is the day after the Brady/Drummond confrontation. It is early morning, and still very hot. Act Three consists of a single scene, and all the major characters are present. The courtroom is jammed with people, including several radio reporters and their bulky equipment. Cates asks Drummond if he will be found guilty. Drummond responds that when he was seven years old, he received a rocking horse named Golden Dancer as a gift. But it broke when he rode it the first time. Drummond advises him that appearances can be deceiving, and a clear-cut guilty verdict may conceal many things. He also implicitly criticizes Brady as all show and no substance. Their discussion ends. Before the trial begins, the Mayor speaks privately with the Judge in front of the bench. The mass media have been making the town look bad, and the Mayor asks the Judge to go easy on Cates should there be a guilty verdict.
The Judge opens the trial, and the jury enters. Cates is given permission to speak before sentencing occurs, and says the law is unjust. But his assertion is not a strong one, and he sits down without completing his statement. The Judge takes the verdict from the jury, and declares Cates guilty. He sentences Cates to a $100 fine. The crowd is angry at the verdict, but many in the crowd are also pleased. Brady denounces the sentence as too lenient. Drummond says Cates will pay no fine and will appeal. Outraged, Brady asks permission to speak to the crowd. But the Judge declares the proceedings over and the court adjourned. The Judge exits.
In the chaos that ensues after the adjournment, Brady begins to deliver his speech and struggles to be heard. The crowd begins to leave, and the radio people turn off the microphones. Brady shouts even louder, trying to get the crowd's attention. Suddenly he collapses, and is carried out of the courtroom in a delirium. Hornbeck sneers at Brady and calls him a political loser. Cates asks Drummond if he won or lost, and Drummond says he won by bringing national attention to a bad law. Hornbeck says his newspaper will pay Cates' bail to keep him out of jail.
Rachel enters, and tells Cates that she moved out of her father's house. She tells Cates that she tried to read some of Darwin's book, which she shows to him, but didn't understand it. She apologizes to Drummond and says she was afraid of thinking because thinking could lead to bad thoughts.
The Judge enters and announces that Matthew Harrison Brady has just died. Drummond is deeply saddened. Hornbeck sarcastically criticizes Brady at length, sarcastically saying that he died of "a busted belly," but Drummond says Hornbeck is being unfairly critical of religious belief. They argue about Brady's achievements. Hornbeck accuses Drummond of being overly sentimental, and leaves.
Cates and Rachel depart to catch a train; they are leaving town to be married elsewhere. Rachel leaves behind Cates's copy of Darwin's The Descent of Man. Drummond picks up both the Darwin book and a Bible, and leaves the courtroom with both books in his briefcase.
Original production and revivals[edit]
Inherit the Wind opened with actors Paul Muni, Ed Begley, and Tony Randall produced and directed by Herman Shumlin on January 10, 1955. It debuted at Broadway's National Theatre on April 21, 1955.[8][9] It played on Broadway until June 22, 1957, where it closed after 806 performances. It was revived on Broadway twice: April 4, 1996 - May 12, 1996 and April 12, 2007 - July 8, 2007.[10] The 1996 revival starred George C. Scott (who played Brady in the later 1998 film version) as Drummond and Charles Durning as Brady. In April, Scott had to leave the show mid-performance due to ill health and was replaced by the show's producer, Tony Randall for that day. Randall played the Wednesday matinees for Scott from that point on.[11] His illness finally led to the revival's closure.[12] Christopher Plummer and Brian Dennehy starred in the 2007 revival.[13]
Other revivals[edit]
In the 1990s Jason Miller and Malachy McCourt starred in the Philadelphia production that broke that city's long run records.[citation needed]
In 2006 several scenes were translated in Italian for the first time by Luca Giberti for a series of Darwin-themed readings.[14]
Kevin Spacey (Henry Drummond) and David Troughton (Matthew Harrison Brady) starred in a 2009 revival at The Old Vic in London.[15]
Screen adaptations[edit]
Inherit the Wind (1960 film), directed by Stanley Kramer; starring Spencer Tracy, Fredric March, and Gene Kelly
Inherit the Wind (1965 film), a television film starring Melvyn Douglas and Ed Begley
Inherit the Wind (1988 film), a television film starring Jason Robards, Kirk Douglas, and Darren McGavin
Inherit the Wind (1999 film), a television film starring Jack Lemmon, George C. Scott, and Beau Bridges
References[edit]
1.^ Jump up to: a b BILL BLANKENSHIPThe Capital-Journal (2001-03-02). "Inherit the controversy". Cjonline.com. Retrieved 2014-05-15.
2.Jump up ^ "The Scopes Trial vs. 'Inherit the Wind' by Gregg Easterbrook". Beliefnet.com. 2011-02-17. Retrieved 2014-05-15.
3.Jump up ^ McCabe, Lyndsey. "Editor's Preface". Inherit the Wind. American Studies Program The University of Virginia April 1996. Retrieved 3 February 2013.
4.Jump up ^ Inherit the Wind: The Playwrights' Note
5.^ Jump up to: a b "Inherit the Wind, Drama for Students". Gale Group. 1 January 1998. Retrieved 31 August 2012.  – via HighBeam Research (subscription required)
6.^ Jump up to: a b Riley, Karen L.; Brown, Jennifer A.; Braswell, Ray (1 January 2007). "Historical Truth and Film: Inherit the Wind as an Appraisal of the American Teacher". American Educational History Journal. Retrieved 31 August 2012.  – via HighBeam Research (subscription required)
7.Jump up ^ Benen, Steve (1 July 2000). "Inherit the Myth?". Church and State. Retrieved 31 August 2012.  – via HighBeam Research (subscription required)
8.Jump up ^ Inherit the Wind Makes a Broadway Entrance - 1955
9.Jump up ^ "PLAYBILL ARCHIVES: Inherit the Wind — 1955". Playbill.com. 2007-04-12. Retrieved 2014-05-15.
10.Jump up ^ The Broadway League. "Inherit the Wind on Broadway". Ibdb.com. Retrieved 2014-05-15.
11.Jump up ^ "Scott Leaves Stage During 'Inherit'; Randall Steps In". Nytimes.com. 1996-04-17. Retrieved 2014-05-15.
12.Jump up ^ 'WIND' MAY INHERIT CURTAIN SCOTT SCOOTS & SHOW COULD GO[dead link]
13.Jump up ^ Lawson, Mark (2007-04-12). "Showdown in Tennessee". The Guardian (London). Retrieved 2007-12-02.
14.Jump up ^ "Il caso Scopes: processo alle scimmie". From the Extramuseum website. Retrieved 11 November 2013.
15.Jump up ^ Billington, Michael (2 October 2009). "Inherit the Wind; Old Vic, London". The Guardian. Retrieved 5 December 2009.
Further reading[edit]
Larson, Edward. Summer for the Gods: The Scopes Trial and America's Continuing Debate over Science and Religion. 2d ed. New York: Basic Books, 2006.
External links[edit]
 Wikiversity has learning materials about Collaborative play writing
Inherit the Wind at Internet Broadway Database


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Inherit the Wind (1960 film)

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Inherit the Wind
Inherit-the-Wind-poster.jpg
Directed by
Stanley Kramer
Produced by
Stanley Kramer
Written by
Jerome Lawrence (play)
Robert E. Lee (play)
Nedrick Young
Harold Jacob Smith
Starring
Spencer Tracy
Fredric March
Gene Kelly
Dick York
Donna Anderson
Harry Morgan
Music by
Ernest Gold
Cinematography
Ernest Laszlo, ASC
Edited by
Frederic Knudtson
Distributed by
United Artists

Release dates

July 7, 1960
(World Premiere, London)

Running time
 128 minutes
Country
United States
Language
English
Budget
$2 million[1][2]
Box office
$2,000,000 (worldwide)[2]
Inherit the Wind is a 1960 Hollywood film adaptation of the play of the same name, written by Jerome Lawrence and Robert Edwin Lee, directed by Stanley Kramer.
It stars Spencer Tracy as lawyer Henry Drummond and Fredric March as his friend and rival Matthew Harrison Brady, also featuring Gene Kelly, Dick York, Harry Morgan, Donna Anderson, Claude Akins, Noah Beery, Jr., Florence Eldridge, and Jimmy Boyd.
The script was adapted by Nedrick Young (originally as Nathan E. Douglas) and Harold Jacob Smith.[3] Stanley Kramer was commended for bringing in writer Nedrick Young, as the latter was blacklisted. Inherit the Wind is a parable that fictionalizes the 1925 Scopes "Monkey" Trial as a means to discuss McCarthyism.[4] Written in response to the chilling effect of the McCarthy era investigations on intellectual discourse, the play (and film) are critical of creationism.
The film had its World Premiere at the Astoria Theatre in London's West End on July 7, 1960.[5]
A television remake of the film appeared in 1965. Another television remake starring Jason Robards and Kirk Douglas aired in 1988. It was once again remade for TV in 1999, co-starring Jack Lemmon as Drummond and George C. Scott as Brady.


Contents  [hide]
1 Background
2 Plot
3 Cast
4 Adaptation changes
5 Historical Inaccuracies
6 Reception
7 Critical reception 7.1 Reviews
7.2 Awards
8 See also
9 References
10 External links and references

Background[edit]
Inherit the Wind is a fictionalized account of the 1925 Scopes "Monkey" Trial, which resulted in John T. Scopes's conviction for teaching Charles Darwin's theory of evolution to a high school science class, contrary to a Tennessee state law. The characters of Matthew Harrison Brady, Henry Drummond, Bertram Cates and E. K. Hornbeck correspond to the historical figures of William Jennings Bryan, Clarence Darrow, Scopes, and H. L. Mencken, respectively. However, Lee and Lawrence state in a note at the opening of the play on which the film is based that it is not meant to be a historical account,[6] and many events were substantially altered or invented.[7][8][9] For instance, the characters of the preacher and his daughter were fictional, the townspeople weren't hostile towards those who had come to Dayton for the trial, and Bryan offered to pay Scopes' fine if he was convicted. Bryan did die shortly after the trial's conclusion, but his death occurred five days later in his sleep.[8][9] Political commentator Steve Benen said of the drama's inaccuracies: "Scopes issued no plea for empathy, there was no fiancee and the real Scopes was never arrested. Lawrence explained in a 1996 interview that the play's purpose was to criticize McCarthyism and defend intellectual freedom. According to Lawrence, "we used the teaching of evolution as a parable, a metaphor for any kind of mind control [...] It's not about science versus religion. It's about the right to think."[4]
Plot[edit]
In a small Southern town, a school teacher, Bertram Cates, is about to stand trial. His offense: violating a state law by introducing to his students the concept that man descended from the apes, a theory of the naturalist Charles Darwin. Cates is vigorously denounced by town leaders such as the Rev. Jeremiah Brown.
The town is excited because appearing on behalf of the prosecution will be the famous Matthew Harrison Brady, a noted statesman and 3-time presidential candidate. A staunch foe of Darwinism and a Biblical scholar, Brady will sit beside the prosecuting attorney, Tom Davenport, in the courtroom of Judge Coffey to teach the naive teacher Cates the error of his ways.
A surprise is in store for Brady, however. The teacher's defense is to be handled by the equally well-known Henry Drummond, one of America's most controversial legal minds and a long-standing acquaintance and adversary of Brady. An influential newspaperman, E.K. Hornbeck of the Baltimore Herald, has personally seen to it that Drummond will come to town to represent the teacher in this case, and that his newspaper and a radio network will provide nationwide coverage of what began as a minor legal matter.
Rev. Brown rails against the defendant publicly, rallying the townspeople against Cates and his godless attorney. The preacher's daughter Rachel is conflicted because Cates is the love of her life and they are engaged to be married.
The judge clearly admires Brady, even addressing him as "Colonel" in court. Drummond objects to this, so, as a compromise, the mayor reluctantly makes him a "temporary" colonel just for these proceedings. But each time Drummond attempts to call a scientist or authority figure to discuss Darwin's theories, the judge sustains the prosecution's objections and forbids such opinions to be heard. Drummond becomes frustrated and feels the case has already been decided. When he states his mind to the court and asked to withdraw from the case, the judge (played by Harry Morgan) tells Drummond to show cause the next morning why he should not be held in contempt of the court. The judge sets bail at $2000, to which Drummond remarks, "Why not make it $4000?", to which the judge agrees. At the end of the scene, one person in the courtroom offers his farm as collateral toward the bail. The person is John Stebbins, whose young son was a friend and protege of Cates and ended up drowning after developing a cramp while swimming. Rachel's father, the Reverend Brown, had said the child was damned to hell because he had not been baptized. This, in turn, caused Cates' abandonment of the church as he felt it wasn't fair that a child couldn't enter Heaven due to an action that was beyond his control and that wasn't his own.
Later that night at the hotel, mocking crowds singing "We'll hang Bert Cates" or "We'll hang Henry Drummond" to the tune of "The Battle Hymn of the Republic" go by the jailroom and then to the hotel where Drummond is staying. Drummond is still trying to decide how to accomplish his defense with all his witnesses denied by the court and states what he needs is a miracle. Hornbeck throws him a Bible from Brady stating there are plenty in that. As Hornbeck pours some drinks and turns to Drummond lying on the bed, he stops and is surprised by Drummond holding the Bible on his chest and smiling.
His hands tied in every other way, Drummond calls Brady himself to the witness stand. Brady's confidence in his Biblical knowledge is so great that he welcomes this challenge, but he becomes flustered under Drummond's cross-examination, unable to explain certain apparent contradictions, until he is forced to confess that at least some Biblical passages cannot be interpreted literally. With that, Drummond hammers home his point – that Cates, like any other man, demands the right to think for himself and those citing divine support as a rationale to silence him are wrong.
Cates is ultimately found guilty, to the gallery's relief, but because Drummond has made his case so convincingly with the trial becoming a political embarrassment, the judge sees fit to do no more than make him pay a small fine of $100. Brady is furious at this and tries to enter a lengthy speech into the record, but Drummond persuades the Judge to disallow it since the trial has concluded. As the court is adjourned, Brady tries to give his speech but most ignore him outside of his wife and his court opponents who are concerned seeing him become hysterical. During this, he suffers a massive heart attack or stroke, collapses and dies in the court room.
Later, after the crowd has cleared out, Hornbeck is talking with Drummond and wants to use the Bible quotation from a religious rally held by Rev Brown and in which Brady had quoted the "inherit the wind" verse because Brown was about to damn his own daughter, but cannot remember it. Drummond, without looking up, quotes the verse verbatim, which shocks Hornbeck, who states "Well, we're growing an odd crop of agnostics this year!". He and Drummond argue over Brady's legacy, Drummond accuses Hornbeck of being a heartless cynic, and Hornbeck walks out, leaving Drummond alone in the courtroom to pack. Drummond picks up the Bible and Darwin's book, balancing them in his hands as if he was a scale. Then he puts the two together with a hard thud and walks out with them side by side in his right hand.
The final scene shows Drummond walking out of the court room alone with the song "Battle Hymn Of The Republic" being sung in the background.
Cast[edit]
Spencer Tracy as Henry Drummond (patterned after Clarence Darrow)
Fredric March as Matthew Harrison Brady (patterned after William Jennings Bryan)
Gene Kelly as E. K. Hornbeck of the Baltimore Herald (patterned after Henry L. Mencken)
Florence Eldridge as Sara Brady
Dick York as Bertram T. Cates (patterned after John Scopes)
Donna Anderson as Rachel Brown
Harry Morgan as Judge Mel Coffey
Claude Akins as Rev. Jeremiah Brown
Elliott Reid as Prosecutor Tom Davenport
Paul Hartman as Deputy Horace Meeker - Bailiff
Philip Coolidge as Mayor Jason Carter
Jimmy Boyd as Howard
Noah Beery Jr. as John Stebbins
Norman Fell as WGN Radio Technician
Hope Summers as Mrs. Krebs - Townswoman
Ray Teal as Jessie H. Dunlap
Renee Godfrey as Mrs. Stebbins
Uncredited roles include Richard Deacon, George Dunn, Snub Pollard, Addison Richards, Harry Tenbrook, Will Wright[10]
Actress and singer Leslie Uggams sings both the opening and closing songs by herself a cappella.
Kramer offered the role of Henry Drummond to Spencer Tracy, who turned it down. Kramer then enlisted March, Eldridge, and Kelly as co-stars, and Tracy eventually signed. However, none of the co-stars had been signed at the time; Tracy was the first. Once Tracy signed to do the part, the others signed, also.[11]
Adaptation changes[edit]
The film includes events from the actual Scopes trial, such as when Darrow was cited for contempt of court when he denounced his perception of prejudice by the court and his subsequent act of contrition the next day to have the charge dropped. The film also expands on the relationship of Drummond and Brady, particularly when the two opponents have a respectful private conversation in rocking chairs, in which they explain their positions in the trial. Furthermore, the film has a sequence occurring on the night after the court recessed and Cates and Drummond are harassed by a mob even as the lawyer is inspired how to argue his case the next day.
Historical Inaccuracies[edit]
The film engages in literary license with the facts and should not be relied upon as a historical document. For example, Scopes (Bertram Cates) is shown being arrested in class, thrown in jail, burned in effigy, and taunted by a fire-snorting preacher. William Jennings Bryan (Matthew Harrison Brady) is portrayed as an almost comical fanatic who dramatically dies of a heart attack while attempting to deliver his summation in a chaotic courtroom. The townspeople are shown as frenzied, mean-spirited, and ignorant. None of that actually happened in Dayton, Tennessee during the actual trial.[12]
Reception[edit]
The film grossed $2 million worldwide and recorded a loss of $1.7 million.[2]
Critical reception[edit]

 

Harry Morgan as the judge, Spencer Tracy as Drummond and Fredric March as Brady
 

Gene Kelly as Hornbeck
 

Stanley Kramer receives an Award at the 1960 Berlin Film Festival for Inherit the Wind
Reviews[edit]
The film opened to a storm of praise with Kramer and company applauded for capturing the essence of the Scopes trial. Rotten Tomatoes has given the film a 90% rating with 19 fresh and 2 rotten reviews.[13] Roger Ebert refers to it as "a film that rebukes the past when it might also have feared the future."[14] Variety described the film as "a rousing and fascinating motion picture [...] roles of Tracy and March equal Clarence Darrow and William Jennings Bryan who collided on evolution [...] a good measure of the film's surface bite is contributed by Gene Kelly as a cynical Baltimore reporter (patterned after Henry L. Mencken) whose paper comes to the aid of the younger teacher played by Dick York. Kelly demonstrates again that even without dancing shoes he knows his way on the screen."[15] The movie was lauded by The New York Times.[16]
Awards[edit]
Academy Awards Inherit the Wind was nominated for four Academy Awards.

Award
Result
Nominee
Best Actor Nominated Spencer Tracy
Winner was Burt Lancaster - Elmer Gantry
Best Writing, Screenplay Based on Material from Another Medium Nominated Nedrick Young and Harold Jacob Smith
Winner was Richard Brooks - Elmer Gantry
Best Cinematography (Black-and-White) Nominated Ernest Laszlo
Winner was Freddie Francis - Sons and Lovers
Best Film Editing Nominated Frederic Knudtson
Winner was Daniel Mandell - The Apartment
BAFTA
Nominated: Best Film
Nominated: Best Foreign Actor (March and Tracy)
Berlin International Film Festival
Won: Silver Bear for Best Actor (March)[17]
Won: Best Feature Film Suitable for Young People (Kramer)
Nominated: Golden Bear award (Kramer)
Golden Globes
Nominated: Best Film
Nominated: Best Actor (Tracy)[18]
See also[edit]
Trial movies
References[edit]
1.Jump up ^ James Curtis, Spencer Tracy: A Biography, Alfred Knopf, 2011 p769
2.^ Jump up to: a b c Tino Balio, United Artists: The Company That Changed the Film Industry, University of Wisconsin Press, 1987 p. 26
3.Jump up ^ Inherit the Wind Comes to Hollywood - 1960
4.^ Jump up to: a b BILL BLANKENSHIPThe Capital-Journal (2001-03-02). "Inherit the controversy". Cjonline.com. Retrieved 2014-05-15.
5.Jump up ^ The Times online archive 7 July 1960, page 2
6.Jump up ^ Inherit the Wind: The Playwrights' Note
7.Jump up ^ http://www.beliefnet.com/News/1999/12/The-Scopes-Trial-Vs-Inherit-The-Wind.aspx?p=2
8.^ Jump up to: a b "Inherit the Wind, Drama for Students". Gale Group. 1 January 1998. Retrieved 31 August 2012.  – via HighBeam Research (subscription required)
9.^ Jump up to: a b Riley, Karen L.; Brown, Jennifer A.; Braswell, Ray (1 January 2007). "Historical Truth and Film: Inherit the Wind as an Appraisal of the American Teacher". American Educational History Journal. Retrieved 31 August 2012.  – via HighBeam Research (subscription required)
10.Jump up ^ Full cast and credits at Internet Movie Database
11.Jump up ^ Robert Osborn, TCM Network, broadcast February 3, 2010
12.Jump up ^ http://law2.umkc.edu/faculty/projects/ftrials/scopes/SCO_INHE.HTM
13.Jump up ^ "Inherit the Wind". Rotten Tomatoes. IGN Entertainment, Inc. Retrieved 3 May 2009.
14.Jump up ^ Ebert, Roger (2006-01-28). "Roger Ebert Review". Rogerebert.suntimes.com. Retrieved 2014-05-15.
15.Jump up ^ "Variety review". Variety.com. 1959-12-31. Retrieved 2014-05-15.
16.Jump up ^ Crowther, Bosley (1960-10-13). "Movie Review - Inherit the Wind - INHERIT THE WIND - NYTimes.com". Movies.nytimes.com. Retrieved 2014-05-15.
17.Jump up ^ "Berlinale: Prize Winners". berlinale.de. Retrieved 2010-01-17.
18.Jump up ^ IMDB list of awards
External links and references[edit]
 Wikimedia Commons has media related to Inherit the Wind (1960 film).
Inherit the Wind at the Internet Movie Database
Inherit the Wind at the TCM Movie Database


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Inherit the Wind (1960 film)

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Inherit the Wind
Inherit-the-Wind-poster.jpg
Directed by
Stanley Kramer
Produced by
Stanley Kramer
Written by
Jerome Lawrence (play)
Robert E. Lee (play)
Nedrick Young
Harold Jacob Smith
Starring
Spencer Tracy
Fredric March
Gene Kelly
Dick York
Donna Anderson
Harry Morgan
Music by
Ernest Gold
Cinematography
Ernest Laszlo, ASC
Edited by
Frederic Knudtson
Distributed by
United Artists

Release dates

July 7, 1960
(World Premiere, London)

Running time
 128 minutes
Country
United States
Language
English
Budget
$2 million[1][2]
Box office
$2,000,000 (worldwide)[2]
Inherit the Wind is a 1960 Hollywood film adaptation of the play of the same name, written by Jerome Lawrence and Robert Edwin Lee, directed by Stanley Kramer.
It stars Spencer Tracy as lawyer Henry Drummond and Fredric March as his friend and rival Matthew Harrison Brady, also featuring Gene Kelly, Dick York, Harry Morgan, Donna Anderson, Claude Akins, Noah Beery, Jr., Florence Eldridge, and Jimmy Boyd.
The script was adapted by Nedrick Young (originally as Nathan E. Douglas) and Harold Jacob Smith.[3] Stanley Kramer was commended for bringing in writer Nedrick Young, as the latter was blacklisted. Inherit the Wind is a parable that fictionalizes the 1925 Scopes "Monkey" Trial as a means to discuss McCarthyism.[4] Written in response to the chilling effect of the McCarthy era investigations on intellectual discourse, the play (and film) are critical of creationism.
The film had its World Premiere at the Astoria Theatre in London's West End on July 7, 1960.[5]
A television remake of the film appeared in 1965. Another television remake starring Jason Robards and Kirk Douglas aired in 1988. It was once again remade for TV in 1999, co-starring Jack Lemmon as Drummond and George C. Scott as Brady.


Contents  [hide]
1 Background
2 Plot
3 Cast
4 Adaptation changes
5 Historical Inaccuracies
6 Reception
7 Critical reception 7.1 Reviews
7.2 Awards
8 See also
9 References
10 External links and references

Background[edit]
Inherit the Wind is a fictionalized account of the 1925 Scopes "Monkey" Trial, which resulted in John T. Scopes's conviction for teaching Charles Darwin's theory of evolution to a high school science class, contrary to a Tennessee state law. The characters of Matthew Harrison Brady, Henry Drummond, Bertram Cates and E. K. Hornbeck correspond to the historical figures of William Jennings Bryan, Clarence Darrow, Scopes, and H. L. Mencken, respectively. However, Lee and Lawrence state in a note at the opening of the play on which the film is based that it is not meant to be a historical account,[6] and many events were substantially altered or invented.[7][8][9] For instance, the characters of the preacher and his daughter were fictional, the townspeople weren't hostile towards those who had come to Dayton for the trial, and Bryan offered to pay Scopes' fine if he was convicted. Bryan did die shortly after the trial's conclusion, but his death occurred five days later in his sleep.[8][9] Political commentator Steve Benen said of the drama's inaccuracies: "Scopes issued no plea for empathy, there was no fiancee and the real Scopes was never arrested. Lawrence explained in a 1996 interview that the play's purpose was to criticize McCarthyism and defend intellectual freedom. According to Lawrence, "we used the teaching of evolution as a parable, a metaphor for any kind of mind control [...] It's not about science versus religion. It's about the right to think."[4]
Plot[edit]
In a small Southern town, a school teacher, Bertram Cates, is about to stand trial. His offense: violating a state law by introducing to his students the concept that man descended from the apes, a theory of the naturalist Charles Darwin. Cates is vigorously denounced by town leaders such as the Rev. Jeremiah Brown.
The town is excited because appearing on behalf of the prosecution will be the famous Matthew Harrison Brady, a noted statesman and 3-time presidential candidate. A staunch foe of Darwinism and a Biblical scholar, Brady will sit beside the prosecuting attorney, Tom Davenport, in the courtroom of Judge Coffey to teach the naive teacher Cates the error of his ways.
A surprise is in store for Brady, however. The teacher's defense is to be handled by the equally well-known Henry Drummond, one of America's most controversial legal minds and a long-standing acquaintance and adversary of Brady. An influential newspaperman, E.K. Hornbeck of the Baltimore Herald, has personally seen to it that Drummond will come to town to represent the teacher in this case, and that his newspaper and a radio network will provide nationwide coverage of what began as a minor legal matter.
Rev. Brown rails against the defendant publicly, rallying the townspeople against Cates and his godless attorney. The preacher's daughter Rachel is conflicted because Cates is the love of her life and they are engaged to be married.
The judge clearly admires Brady, even addressing him as "Colonel" in court. Drummond objects to this, so, as a compromise, the mayor reluctantly makes him a "temporary" colonel just for these proceedings. But each time Drummond attempts to call a scientist or authority figure to discuss Darwin's theories, the judge sustains the prosecution's objections and forbids such opinions to be heard. Drummond becomes frustrated and feels the case has already been decided. When he states his mind to the court and asked to withdraw from the case, the judge (played by Harry Morgan) tells Drummond to show cause the next morning why he should not be held in contempt of the court. The judge sets bail at $2000, to which Drummond remarks, "Why not make it $4000?", to which the judge agrees. At the end of the scene, one person in the courtroom offers his farm as collateral toward the bail. The person is John Stebbins, whose young son was a friend and protege of Cates and ended up drowning after developing a cramp while swimming. Rachel's father, the Reverend Brown, had said the child was damned to hell because he had not been baptized. This, in turn, caused Cates' abandonment of the church as he felt it wasn't fair that a child couldn't enter Heaven due to an action that was beyond his control and that wasn't his own.
Later that night at the hotel, mocking crowds singing "We'll hang Bert Cates" or "We'll hang Henry Drummond" to the tune of "The Battle Hymn of the Republic" go by the jailroom and then to the hotel where Drummond is staying. Drummond is still trying to decide how to accomplish his defense with all his witnesses denied by the court and states what he needs is a miracle. Hornbeck throws him a Bible from Brady stating there are plenty in that. As Hornbeck pours some drinks and turns to Drummond lying on the bed, he stops and is surprised by Drummond holding the Bible on his chest and smiling.
His hands tied in every other way, Drummond calls Brady himself to the witness stand. Brady's confidence in his Biblical knowledge is so great that he welcomes this challenge, but he becomes flustered under Drummond's cross-examination, unable to explain certain apparent contradictions, until he is forced to confess that at least some Biblical passages cannot be interpreted literally. With that, Drummond hammers home his point – that Cates, like any other man, demands the right to think for himself and those citing divine support as a rationale to silence him are wrong.
Cates is ultimately found guilty, to the gallery's relief, but because Drummond has made his case so convincingly with the trial becoming a political embarrassment, the judge sees fit to do no more than make him pay a small fine of $100. Brady is furious at this and tries to enter a lengthy speech into the record, but Drummond persuades the Judge to disallow it since the trial has concluded. As the court is adjourned, Brady tries to give his speech but most ignore him outside of his wife and his court opponents who are concerned seeing him become hysterical. During this, he suffers a massive heart attack or stroke, collapses and dies in the court room.
Later, after the crowd has cleared out, Hornbeck is talking with Drummond and wants to use the Bible quotation from a religious rally held by Rev Brown and in which Brady had quoted the "inherit the wind" verse because Brown was about to damn his own daughter, but cannot remember it. Drummond, without looking up, quotes the verse verbatim, which shocks Hornbeck, who states "Well, we're growing an odd crop of agnostics this year!". He and Drummond argue over Brady's legacy, Drummond accuses Hornbeck of being a heartless cynic, and Hornbeck walks out, leaving Drummond alone in the courtroom to pack. Drummond picks up the Bible and Darwin's book, balancing them in his hands as if he was a scale. Then he puts the two together with a hard thud and walks out with them side by side in his right hand.
The final scene shows Drummond walking out of the court room alone with the song "Battle Hymn Of The Republic" being sung in the background.
Cast[edit]
Spencer Tracy as Henry Drummond (patterned after Clarence Darrow)
Fredric March as Matthew Harrison Brady (patterned after William Jennings Bryan)
Gene Kelly as E. K. Hornbeck of the Baltimore Herald (patterned after Henry L. Mencken)
Florence Eldridge as Sara Brady
Dick York as Bertram T. Cates (patterned after John Scopes)
Donna Anderson as Rachel Brown
Harry Morgan as Judge Mel Coffey
Claude Akins as Rev. Jeremiah Brown
Elliott Reid as Prosecutor Tom Davenport
Paul Hartman as Deputy Horace Meeker - Bailiff
Philip Coolidge as Mayor Jason Carter
Jimmy Boyd as Howard
Noah Beery Jr. as John Stebbins
Norman Fell as WGN Radio Technician
Hope Summers as Mrs. Krebs - Townswoman
Ray Teal as Jessie H. Dunlap
Renee Godfrey as Mrs. Stebbins
Uncredited roles include Richard Deacon, George Dunn, Snub Pollard, Addison Richards, Harry Tenbrook, Will Wright[10]
Actress and singer Leslie Uggams sings both the opening and closing songs by herself a cappella.
Kramer offered the role of Henry Drummond to Spencer Tracy, who turned it down. Kramer then enlisted March, Eldridge, and Kelly as co-stars, and Tracy eventually signed. However, none of the co-stars had been signed at the time; Tracy was the first. Once Tracy signed to do the part, the others signed, also.[11]
Adaptation changes[edit]
The film includes events from the actual Scopes trial, such as when Darrow was cited for contempt of court when he denounced his perception of prejudice by the court and his subsequent act of contrition the next day to have the charge dropped. The film also expands on the relationship of Drummond and Brady, particularly when the two opponents have a respectful private conversation in rocking chairs, in which they explain their positions in the trial. Furthermore, the film has a sequence occurring on the night after the court recessed and Cates and Drummond are harassed by a mob even as the lawyer is inspired how to argue his case the next day.
Historical Inaccuracies[edit]
The film engages in literary license with the facts and should not be relied upon as a historical document. For example, Scopes (Bertram Cates) is shown being arrested in class, thrown in jail, burned in effigy, and taunted by a fire-snorting preacher. William Jennings Bryan (Matthew Harrison Brady) is portrayed as an almost comical fanatic who dramatically dies of a heart attack while attempting to deliver his summation in a chaotic courtroom. The townspeople are shown as frenzied, mean-spirited, and ignorant. None of that actually happened in Dayton, Tennessee during the actual trial.[12]
Reception[edit]
The film grossed $2 million worldwide and recorded a loss of $1.7 million.[2]
Critical reception[edit]

 

Harry Morgan as the judge, Spencer Tracy as Drummond and Fredric March as Brady
 

Gene Kelly as Hornbeck
 

Stanley Kramer receives an Award at the 1960 Berlin Film Festival for Inherit the Wind
Reviews[edit]
The film opened to a storm of praise with Kramer and company applauded for capturing the essence of the Scopes trial. Rotten Tomatoes has given the film a 90% rating with 19 fresh and 2 rotten reviews.[13] Roger Ebert refers to it as "a film that rebukes the past when it might also have feared the future."[14] Variety described the film as "a rousing and fascinating motion picture [...] roles of Tracy and March equal Clarence Darrow and William Jennings Bryan who collided on evolution [...] a good measure of the film's surface bite is contributed by Gene Kelly as a cynical Baltimore reporter (patterned after Henry L. Mencken) whose paper comes to the aid of the younger teacher played by Dick York. Kelly demonstrates again that even without dancing shoes he knows his way on the screen."[15] The movie was lauded by The New York Times.[16]
Awards[edit]
Academy Awards Inherit the Wind was nominated for four Academy Awards.

Award
Result
Nominee
Best Actor Nominated Spencer Tracy
Winner was Burt Lancaster - Elmer Gantry
Best Writing, Screenplay Based on Material from Another Medium Nominated Nedrick Young and Harold Jacob Smith
Winner was Richard Brooks - Elmer Gantry
Best Cinematography (Black-and-White) Nominated Ernest Laszlo
Winner was Freddie Francis - Sons and Lovers
Best Film Editing Nominated Frederic Knudtson
Winner was Daniel Mandell - The Apartment
BAFTA
Nominated: Best Film
Nominated: Best Foreign Actor (March and Tracy)
Berlin International Film Festival
Won: Silver Bear for Best Actor (March)[17]
Won: Best Feature Film Suitable for Young People (Kramer)
Nominated: Golden Bear award (Kramer)
Golden Globes
Nominated: Best Film
Nominated: Best Actor (Tracy)[18]
See also[edit]
Trial movies
References[edit]
1.Jump up ^ James Curtis, Spencer Tracy: A Biography, Alfred Knopf, 2011 p769
2.^ Jump up to: a b c Tino Balio, United Artists: The Company That Changed the Film Industry, University of Wisconsin Press, 1987 p. 26
3.Jump up ^ Inherit the Wind Comes to Hollywood - 1960
4.^ Jump up to: a b BILL BLANKENSHIPThe Capital-Journal (2001-03-02). "Inherit the controversy". Cjonline.com. Retrieved 2014-05-15.
5.Jump up ^ The Times online archive 7 July 1960, page 2
6.Jump up ^ Inherit the Wind: The Playwrights' Note
7.Jump up ^ http://www.beliefnet.com/News/1999/12/The-Scopes-Trial-Vs-Inherit-The-Wind.aspx?p=2
8.^ Jump up to: a b "Inherit the Wind, Drama for Students". Gale Group. 1 January 1998. Retrieved 31 August 2012.  – via HighBeam Research (subscription required)
9.^ Jump up to: a b Riley, Karen L.; Brown, Jennifer A.; Braswell, Ray (1 January 2007). "Historical Truth and Film: Inherit the Wind as an Appraisal of the American Teacher". American Educational History Journal. Retrieved 31 August 2012.  – via HighBeam Research (subscription required)
10.Jump up ^ Full cast and credits at Internet Movie Database
11.Jump up ^ Robert Osborn, TCM Network, broadcast February 3, 2010
12.Jump up ^ http://law2.umkc.edu/faculty/projects/ftrials/scopes/SCO_INHE.HTM
13.Jump up ^ "Inherit the Wind". Rotten Tomatoes. IGN Entertainment, Inc. Retrieved 3 May 2009.
14.Jump up ^ Ebert, Roger (2006-01-28). "Roger Ebert Review". Rogerebert.suntimes.com. Retrieved 2014-05-15.
15.Jump up ^ "Variety review". Variety.com. 1959-12-31. Retrieved 2014-05-15.
16.Jump up ^ Crowther, Bosley (1960-10-13). "Movie Review - Inherit the Wind - INHERIT THE WIND - NYTimes.com". Movies.nytimes.com. Retrieved 2014-05-15.
17.Jump up ^ "Berlinale: Prize Winners". berlinale.de. Retrieved 2010-01-17.
18.Jump up ^ IMDB list of awards
External links and references[edit]
 Wikimedia Commons has media related to Inherit the Wind (1960 film).
Inherit the Wind at the Internet Movie Database
Inherit the Wind at the TCM Movie Database


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Black-and-white films
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The Scarlet Letter

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Jump to: navigation, search

For the 1953 Ellery Queen novel, see The Scarlet Letters.
For other uses, see Scarlet Letter (disambiguation).


 This article's plot summary may be too long or excessively detailed. Please help improve it by removing unnecessary details and making it more concise. (September 2014)


 This article's lead section may not adequately summarize key points of its contents. Please consider expanding the lead to provide an accessible overview of all important aspects of the article. (April 2015)
The Scarlet Letter
Title page for The Scarlet Letter.jpg
Title page, first edition, 1850
 
Author
Nathaniel Hawthorne
Country
United States
Language
English
Genre
Romantic, Historical
Publisher
Ticknor, Reed & Fields

Publication date
 1850
Pages
180
The Scarlet Letter is an 1850 romantic work of fiction in a historical setting, written by Nathaniel Hawthorne, and is considered to be his magnum opus.[1] Set in 17th-century Puritan Boston, Massachusetts, during the years 1642 to 1649, it tells the story of Hester Prynne, who conceives a daughter through an affair and struggles to create a new life of repentance and dignity. Throughout the book, Hawthorne explores themes of legalism, sin, and guilt.


Contents  [hide]
1 Plot
2 Major themes 2.1 Sin
2.2 Puritan legalism
3 Publication history
4 Critical response
5 Allusions
6 In popular culture
7 See also
8 References 8.1 Notes
8.2 Bibliography
9 External links

Plot[edit]

 

 In this painting, The Scarlet Letter by Hugues Merle, Hester Prynne and Pearl are in the foreground and Arthur Dimmesdale and Roger Chillingworth are in the background.
In June 1642, in the Puritan town of Boston, a crowd gathers to witness the punishment of Hester Prynne, a young woman found guilty of adultery. She is required to wear a scarlet "A" ("A" standing for adulterer) on her dress to shame her. She must stand on the scaffold for three hours, to be exposed to public humiliation. As Hester approaches the scaffold, many of the women in the crowd are angered by her beauty and quiet dignity. When demanded and cajoled to name the father of her child, Hester refuses.
As Hester looks out over the crowd, she notices a small, misshapen man and recognizes him as her long-lost husband, who has been presumed lost at sea. When the husband sees Hester's shame, he asks a man in the crowd about her and is told the story of his wife's adultery. He angrily exclaims that the child's father, the partner in the adulterous act, should also be punished and vows to find the man. He chooses a new name – Roger Chillingworth – to aid him in his plan.
Reverend John Wilson and the minister of Hester's church, Arthur Dimmesdale, question the woman, but she refuses to name her lover. After she returns to her prison cell, the jailer brings in Roger Chillingworth, a physician, to calm Hester and her child with his roots and herbs. He and Hester have an open conversation regarding their marriage and the fact that they were both in the wrong. Her lover, however, is another matter and he demands to know who it is; Hester refuses to divulge such information. He accepts this, stating that he will find out anyway, and forces her to hide that he is her husband. If she ever reveals him, he warns her, he will destroy the child's father. Hester agrees to Chillingworth's terms although she suspects she will regret it.
Following her release from prison, Hester settles in a cottage at the edge of town and earns a meager living with her needlework. She lives a quiet, somber life with her daughter, Pearl. She is troubled by her daughter's unusual fascination by Hester's scarlet "A". As she grows older, Pearl becomes capricious and unruly. Her conduct starts rumors, and, not surprisingly, the church members suggest Pearl be taken away from Hester.
Hester, hearing rumors that she may lose Pearl, goes to speak to Governor Bellingham. With him are Reverends Wilson and Dimmesdale. Hester appeals to Reverend Dimmesdale in desperation, and the minister persuades the governor to let Pearl remain in Hester's care.
Because Dimmesdale's health has begun to fail, the townspeople are happy to have Chillingworth, a newly arrived physician, take up lodgings with their beloved minister. Being in such close contact with Dimmesdale, Chillingworth begins to suspect that the minister's illness is the result of some unconfessed guilt. He applies psychological pressure to the minister because he suspects Dimmesdale to be Pearl's father. One evening, pulling the sleeping Dimmesdale's vestment aside, Chillingworth sees a symbol that represents his shame on the minister's pale chest.
Tormented by his guilty conscience, Dimmesdale goes to the square where Hester was punished years earlier. Climbing the scaffold, he admits his guilt to them but cannot find the courage to do so publicly. Hester, shocked by Dimmesdale's deterioration, decides to obtain a release from her vow of silence to her husband.
Several days later, Hester meets Dimmesdale in the forest and tells him of her husband and his desire for revenge. She convinces Dimmesdale to leave Boston in secret on a ship to Europe where they can start life anew. Renewed by this plan, the minister seems to gain new energy. On Election Day, Dimmesdale gives what is declared to be one of his most inspired sermons. But as the procession leaves the church, Dimmesdale climbs upon the scaffold and confesses his sin, dying in Hester's arms. Later, most witnesses swear that they saw a stigma in the form of a scarlet "A" upon his chest, although some deny this statement. Chillingworth, losing his will for revenge, dies shortly thereafter and leaves Pearl a substantial inheritance.
Several years later, Hester returns to her cottage and resumes wearing the scarlet letter. When she dies, she is buried near the grave of Dimmesdale, and they share a simple slate tombstone engraved with an escutcheon described as: "On a field, sable. The letter A, gules".
Major themes[edit]
Sin[edit]
The experience of Hester and Dimmesdale recalls the story of Adam and Eve because, in both cases, sin results in expulsion and suffering. But it also results in knowledge – specifically, in knowledge of what it means to be immoral. For Hester, the Scarlet Letter is a physical manifestation of her sin and reminder of her painful solitude. She contemplates casting it off to obtain her freedom from an oppressive society and a checkered past as well as the absence of God. Because the society excludes her, she considers the possibility that many of the traditions held up by the Puritan culture are untrue and are not designed to bring her happiness.
As for Dimmesdale, the "cheating minister", his sin gives him "sympathies so intimate with the sinful brotherhood of mankind, so that his chest vibrate[s] in unison with theirs." His eloquent and powerful sermons derive from this sense of empathy.[2] The narrative of the Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale is quite in keeping with the oldest and most fully authorized principles in Christian thought. His "Fall" is a descent from apparent grace to his own damnation; he appears to begin in purity but he ends in corruption. The subtlety is that the minister's belief is his own cheating, convincing himself at every stage of his spiritual pilgrimage that he is saved.[3]
The rose bush's beauty forms a striking contrast to all that surrounds it – as later the beautifully embroidered scarlet "A" will be held out in part as an invitation to find "some sweet moral blossom" in the ensuing, tragic tale and in part as an image that "the deep heart of nature" (perhaps God) may look more kind on the errant Hester and her child than her Puritan neighbors do. Throughout the work, the nature images contrast with the stark darkness of the Puritans and their systems.[4]
Chillingworth's misshapen body reflects (or symbolizes) the anger in his soul, which builds as the novel progresses, similar to the way Dimmesdale's illness reveals his inner turmoil. The outward man reflects the condition of the heart; an observation thought to be inspired by the deterioration of Edgar Allan Poe, whom Hawthorne "much admired".[4]
Puritan legalism[edit]
Another theme is the extreme legalism of the Puritans and how Hester chooses not to conform to their rules and beliefs. Hester was rejected by the villagers even though she spent her life doing what she could to help the sick and the poor. Because they rejected her, she spent her life mostly in solitude, and wouldn't go to church.
As a result, she retreats into her own mind and her own thinking. Her thoughts begin to stretch and go beyond what would be considered by the Puritans as safe or even Christian. She still sees her sin, but begins to look on it differently than the villagers ever have. She begins to believe that a person's earthly sins don't necessarily condemn them. She even goes so far as to tell Dimmesdale that their sin has been paid for by their daily penance and that their sin won't keep them from getting to heaven, however, the Puritans believed that such a sin surely condemns.
But Hester had been alienated from the Puritan society, both in her physical life and spiritual life. When Dimmesdale dies, she knows she has to move on because she can no longer conform to the Puritans' strictness. Her thinking is free from religious bounds and she has established her own different moral standards and beliefs.[2]
Publication history[edit]

 

 Hester Prynne at the stocks, an engraved illustration from an 1878 edition
It was long thought that Hawthorne originally planned The Scarlet Letter to be a shorter novelette which was part of a collection to be named Old Time Legends and that his publisher, James Thomas Fields, convinced him to expand the work to a full-length novel.[5] This is not true: Fields persuaded Hawthorne to publish The Scarlet Letter alone (along with the earlier-completed "Custom House" essay) but he had nothing to do with the length of the story.[6] Hawthorne's wife Sophia later challenged Fields' claims a little inexactly: "he has made the absurd boast that he was the sole cause of the Scarlet Letter being published!" She noted that her husband's friend Edwin Percy Whipple, a critic, approached Fields to consider its publication.[7] The manuscript was written at the Peter Edgerley House in Salem, Massachusetts, still standing as a private residence at 14 Mall Street. It was the last Salem home where the Hawthorne family lived.[8]
The Scarlet Letter was first published as a novel in the spring of 1850 by Ticknor & Fields, beginning Hawthorne's most lucrative period.[9] When he delivered the final pages to Fields in February 1850, Hawthorne said that "some portions of the book are powerfully written" but doubted it would be popular.[10] In fact, the book was an instant best-seller[11] though, over fourteen years, it brought its author only $1,500.[9] Its initial publication brought wide protest from natives of Salem, who did not approve of how Hawthorne had depicted them in his introduction "The Custom-House". A 2,500-copy second edition of The Scarlet Letter included a preface by Hawthorne dated March 30, 1850, that stated he had decided to reprint his introduction "without the change of a word... The only remarkable features of the sketch are its frank and genuine good-humor... As to enmity, or ill-feeling of any kind, personal or political, he utterly disclaims such motives".[12]
The Scarlet Letter was also one of the first mass-produced books in America. In the mid-nineteenth century, bookbinders of home-grown literature typically hand-made their books and sold them in small quantities. The first mechanized printing of The Scarlet Letter, 2,500 volumes, sold out within ten days,[9] and was widely read and discussed to an extent not much experienced in the young country up until that time. Copies of the first edition are often sought by collectors as rare books, and may fetch up to around $18,000 USD.
Critical response[edit]
On its publication, critic Evert Augustus Duyckinck, a friend of Hawthorne's, said he preferred the author's Washington Irving-like tales. Another friend, critic Edwin Percy Whipple, objected to the novel's "morbid intensity" with dense psychological details, writing that the book "is therefore apt to become, like Hawthorne, too painfully anatomical in his exhibition of them".[13] Most literary critics praised the book but religious leaders took issue with the novel's subject matter.[14] Orestes Brownson complained that Hawthorne did not understand Christianity, confession, and remorse.[15] A review in The Church Review and Ecclesiastical Register concluded the author "perpetrates bad morals."[16]
On the other hand, 20th-century writer D. H. Lawrence said that there could not be a more perfect work of the American imagination than The Scarlet Letter.[17] Henry James once said of the novel, "It is beautiful, admirable, extraordinary; it has in the highest degree that merit which I have spoken of as the mark of Hawthorne's best things—an indefinable purity and lightness of conception...One can often return to it; it supports familiarity and has the inexhaustible charm and mystery of great works of art."[17][18]
The book's immediate and lasting success are due to the way it addresses spiritual and moral issues from a uniquely American standpoint.[citation needed] In 1850, adultery was an extremely risqué subject, but because Hawthorne had the support of the New England literary establishment, it passed easily into the realm of appropriate reading. It has been said[who?] that this work represents the height of Hawthorne's literary genius, dense with terse descriptions. It remains relevant for its philosophical and psychological depth, and continues to be read as a classic tale on a universal theme.[19]
Allusions[edit]
The following are historical and Biblical references that appear in The Scarlet Letter.
Anne Hutchinson, mentioned in Chapter 1, The Prison Door, was a religious dissenter (1591–1643). In the 1630s she was excommunicated by the Puritans and exiled from Boston and moved to Rhode Island.[4]
Ann Hibbins, who historically was executed for witchcraft in Boston in 1656, is depicted in The Scarlet Letter as a witch who tries to tempt Prynne to the practice of witchcraft.[20][21]
Richard Bellingham, who historically was the governor of Massachusetts and deputy governor at the time of Hibbins's execution, was depicted in The Scarlet Letter as the brother of Ann Hibbins.
Martin Luther (1483–1545) was a leader of the Protestant Reformation in Germany.
Sir Thomas Overbury and Dr. Forman were the subjects of an adultery scandal in 1615 in England. Dr. Forman was charged with trying to poison his adulterous wife and her lover. Overbury was a friend of the lover and was perhaps poisoned.
John Winthrop (1588–1649), second governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony.
King's Chapel Burying Ground, mentioned in the final paragraph, exists; the Elizabeth Pain gravestone is traditionally considered an inspiration for the protagonists' grave.
The story of King David and Bathsheba is depicted in the tapestry in Mr. Dimmesdale's room (chapter 9). (See II Samuel 11-12 for the Biblical story.)
John Eliot, (c. 1604–1690) was a Puritan missionary to the American Indians whom some called “the apostle to the Indians." He is referred to as "the Apostle Eliot" at the beginning of Chapter 16, A Forest Walk, whom Dimmesdale has gone to visit.
In popular culture[edit]
See also: Film adaptations of The Scarlet Letter and The Scarlet Letter in popular culture
The Scarlet Letter has been adapted to numerous films, plays and operas and remains frequently referenced in modern popular culture.
See also[edit]

Portal icon Novels portal
Boston in fiction
Colonial history of the United States
Illegitimacy in fiction
References[edit]
Notes[edit]
1.Jump up ^ "Sinner, Victim, Object, Winner | ANCHORS: JACKI LYDEN". National Public Radio (NPR). March 2, 2008, Sunday. SHOW: Weekend All Things Considered. Check date values in: |date= (help) (quote in article refers to it as his "masterwork", listen to the audio to hear it the original reference to it being his "magnum opus")
2.^ Jump up to: a b "The Scarlet Letter". Sparknotes. Retrieved 2012-08-07.
3.Jump up ^ Davidson, E.H. 1963. Dimmesdale's Fall. The New England Quarterly 36: 358–370
4.^ Jump up to: a b c The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne - CliffNotes from Yahoo!Education[dead link]
5.Jump up ^ Charvat, William. Literary Publishing in America: 1790–1850. Amherst, MA: The University of Massachusetts Press, 1993 (first published 1959): 56. ISBN 0-87023-801-9
6.Jump up ^ Parker, Hershel. "The Germ Theory of THE SCARLET LETTER," Hawthorne Society Newsletter 11 (Spring 1985) 11-13.
7.Jump up ^ Wineapple, Brenda. Hawthorne: A Life. Random House: New York, 2003: 209–210. ISBN 0-8129-7291-0.
8.Jump up ^ Wright, John Hardy. Hawthorne's Haunts in New England. Charleston, SC: The History Press, 2008: 47. ISBN 978-1-59629-425-7.
9.^ Jump up to: a b c McFarland, Philip. Hawthorne in Concord. New York: Grove Press, 2004: 136. ISBN 0-8021-1776-7
10.Jump up ^ Miller, Edwin Haviland. Salem is my Dwelling Place: A Life of Nathaniel Hawthorne. Iowa City: University of Iowa Press, 1991: 299. ISBN 0-87745-332-2
11.Jump up ^ Cheevers, Susan (2006). American Bloomsbury: Louisa May Alcott, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Margaret Fuller, Nathaniel Hawthorne, and Henry David Thoreau; Their Lives, Their Loves, Their Work. Detroit: Thorndike Press. Large print edition. p. 181. ISBN 0-7862-9521-X
12.Jump up ^ Miller, Edwin Haviland. Salem is my Dwelling Place: A Life of Nathaniel Hawthorne. Iowa City: University of Iowa Press, 1991: 301. ISBN 0-87745-332-2
13.Jump up ^ Miller, Edwin Haviland. Salem is my Dwelling Place: A Life of Nathaniel Hawthorne. Iowa City: University of Iowa Press, 1991: 301–302. ISBN 0-87745-332-2
14.Jump up ^ Schreiner, Samuel A., Jr. The Concord Quartet: Alcott, Emerson, Hawthorne, Thoreau, and the Friendship That Freed the American Mind. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 2006: 158. ISBN 978-0-471-64663-1
15.Jump up ^ Crowley, J. Donald, and Orestes Brownson. Chapter 50: [Orestes Brownson], From A Review In Brownson's Quarterly Review." Nathaniel Hawthorne (0-415-15930-X) (1997): 175–179. Literary Reference Center Plus. Web. 11 Oct. 2013.
16.Jump up ^ Wineapple, Brenda. Hawthorne: A Life. Random House: New York, 2003: 217. ISBN 0-8129-7291-0.
17.^ Jump up to: a b Miller, Edwin Haviland. Salem is my Dwelling Place: A Life of Nathaniel Hawthorne. Iowa City: University of Iowa Press, 1991: 284. ISBN 0-87745-332-2
18.Jump up ^ James, Henry (1901). Hawthorne. Harper. pp. 108, 116.
19.Jump up ^ "The Classic Text: Traditions and Interpretations". Uwm.edu. 2001-10-09. Retrieved 2012-08-07.
20.Jump up ^ Schwab, Gabriele. The mirror and the killer-queen: otherness in literary language. Indiana University Press. 1996. Pg. 120.
21.Jump up ^ Hunter, Dianne, Seduction and theory: readings of gender, representation, and rhetoric. University of Illinois Press. 1989. Pgs. 186-187
Bibliography[edit]
Brodhead, Richard H. Hawthorne, Melville, and the Novel. Chicago and London: The University of Chicago Press, 1973.
Brown, Gillian. "'Hawthorne, Inheritance, and Women's Property", Studies in the Novel 23.1 (Spring 1991): 107-18.
Cañadas, Ivan. "A New Source for the Title and Some Themes in The Scarlet Letter". Nathaniel Hawthorne Review 32.1 (Spring 2006): 43–51.
Korobkin, Laura Haft. "The Scarlet Letter of the Law: Hawthorne and Criminal Justice". Novel: a Forum on Fiction 30.2 (Winter 1997): 193–217.
Gartner, Matthew. "The Scarlet Letter and the Book of Esther: Scriptural Letter and Narrative Life". Studies in American Fiction 23.2 (Fall 1995): 131-51.
Newberry, Frederick. Tradition and Disinheritance in The Scarlet Letter". ESQ: A Journal of the American Renaissance 23 (1977), 1–26; repr. in: The Scarlet Letter. W. W. Norton, 1988: pp. 231-48.
Reid, Alfred S. Sir Thomas Overbury's Vision (1616) and Other English Sources of Nathaniel Hawthorne's 'The Scarlet Letter. Gainesville, FL: Scholar's Facsimiles and Reprints, 1957.
Reid, Bethany. "Narrative of the Captivity and Redemption of Roger Prynne: Rereading The Scarlet Letter". Studies in the Novel 33.3 (Fall 2001): 247-67.
Ryskamp, Charles. "The New England Sources of The Scarlet Letter". American Literature 31 (1959): 257–72; repr. in: "The Scarlet Letter", 3rd edn. Norton, 1988: 191–204.
Savoy, Eric. "'Filial Duty': Reading the Patriarchal Body in 'The Custom House'". Studies in the Novel 25.4 (Winter 1993): 397–427.
Sohn, Jeonghee. Rereading Hawthorne's Romance: The Problematics of Happy Endings. American Studies Monograph Series, 26. Seoul: American Studies Institute, Seoul National University, 2001; 2002.
Stewart, Randall (Ed.) The American Notebooks of Nathaniel Hawthorne: Based upon the original Manuscripts in the Piermont Morgan Library. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1932.
Waggoner, Hyatt H. Hawthorne: A Critical Study, 3rd edn. Cambridge, MA: Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 1971.
External links[edit]
 Wikisource has original text related to this article:
The Scarlet Letter
 
 Wikimedia Commons has media related to The Scarlet Letter.
Hawthorne in Salem Website Page on Hester and Pearl in The Scarlet Letter
The Scarlet Letter at Project Gutenberg
D. H. Lawrence - Studies in Classic American Literature - Nathaniel Hawthorne and The Scarlet Letter
Speaker Icon.svg The Scarlet Letter public domain audiobook at LibriVox
The Scarlet Letter Review


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The Scarlet Letter

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For the 1953 Ellery Queen novel, see The Scarlet Letters.
For other uses, see Scarlet Letter (disambiguation).


 This article's plot summary may be too long or excessively detailed. Please help improve it by removing unnecessary details and making it more concise. (September 2014)


 This article's lead section may not adequately summarize key points of its contents. Please consider expanding the lead to provide an accessible overview of all important aspects of the article. (April 2015)
The Scarlet Letter
Title page for The Scarlet Letter.jpg
Title page, first edition, 1850
 
Author
Nathaniel Hawthorne
Country
United States
Language
English
Genre
Romantic, Historical
Publisher
Ticknor, Reed & Fields

Publication date
 1850
Pages
180
The Scarlet Letter is an 1850 romantic work of fiction in a historical setting, written by Nathaniel Hawthorne, and is considered to be his magnum opus.[1] Set in 17th-century Puritan Boston, Massachusetts, during the years 1642 to 1649, it tells the story of Hester Prynne, who conceives a daughter through an affair and struggles to create a new life of repentance and dignity. Throughout the book, Hawthorne explores themes of legalism, sin, and guilt.


Contents  [hide]
1 Plot
2 Major themes 2.1 Sin
2.2 Puritan legalism
3 Publication history
4 Critical response
5 Allusions
6 In popular culture
7 See also
8 References 8.1 Notes
8.2 Bibliography
9 External links

Plot[edit]

 

 In this painting, The Scarlet Letter by Hugues Merle, Hester Prynne and Pearl are in the foreground and Arthur Dimmesdale and Roger Chillingworth are in the background.
In June 1642, in the Puritan town of Boston, a crowd gathers to witness the punishment of Hester Prynne, a young woman found guilty of adultery. She is required to wear a scarlet "A" ("A" standing for adulterer) on her dress to shame her. She must stand on the scaffold for three hours, to be exposed to public humiliation. As Hester approaches the scaffold, many of the women in the crowd are angered by her beauty and quiet dignity. When demanded and cajoled to name the father of her child, Hester refuses.
As Hester looks out over the crowd, she notices a small, misshapen man and recognizes him as her long-lost husband, who has been presumed lost at sea. When the husband sees Hester's shame, he asks a man in the crowd about her and is told the story of his wife's adultery. He angrily exclaims that the child's father, the partner in the adulterous act, should also be punished and vows to find the man. He chooses a new name – Roger Chillingworth – to aid him in his plan.
Reverend John Wilson and the minister of Hester's church, Arthur Dimmesdale, question the woman, but she refuses to name her lover. After she returns to her prison cell, the jailer brings in Roger Chillingworth, a physician, to calm Hester and her child with his roots and herbs. He and Hester have an open conversation regarding their marriage and the fact that they were both in the wrong. Her lover, however, is another matter and he demands to know who it is; Hester refuses to divulge such information. He accepts this, stating that he will find out anyway, and forces her to hide that he is her husband. If she ever reveals him, he warns her, he will destroy the child's father. Hester agrees to Chillingworth's terms although she suspects she will regret it.
Following her release from prison, Hester settles in a cottage at the edge of town and earns a meager living with her needlework. She lives a quiet, somber life with her daughter, Pearl. She is troubled by her daughter's unusual fascination by Hester's scarlet "A". As she grows older, Pearl becomes capricious and unruly. Her conduct starts rumors, and, not surprisingly, the church members suggest Pearl be taken away from Hester.
Hester, hearing rumors that she may lose Pearl, goes to speak to Governor Bellingham. With him are Reverends Wilson and Dimmesdale. Hester appeals to Reverend Dimmesdale in desperation, and the minister persuades the governor to let Pearl remain in Hester's care.
Because Dimmesdale's health has begun to fail, the townspeople are happy to have Chillingworth, a newly arrived physician, take up lodgings with their beloved minister. Being in such close contact with Dimmesdale, Chillingworth begins to suspect that the minister's illness is the result of some unconfessed guilt. He applies psychological pressure to the minister because he suspects Dimmesdale to be Pearl's father. One evening, pulling the sleeping Dimmesdale's vestment aside, Chillingworth sees a symbol that represents his shame on the minister's pale chest.
Tormented by his guilty conscience, Dimmesdale goes to the square where Hester was punished years earlier. Climbing the scaffold, he admits his guilt to them but cannot find the courage to do so publicly. Hester, shocked by Dimmesdale's deterioration, decides to obtain a release from her vow of silence to her husband.
Several days later, Hester meets Dimmesdale in the forest and tells him of her husband and his desire for revenge. She convinces Dimmesdale to leave Boston in secret on a ship to Europe where they can start life anew. Renewed by this plan, the minister seems to gain new energy. On Election Day, Dimmesdale gives what is declared to be one of his most inspired sermons. But as the procession leaves the church, Dimmesdale climbs upon the scaffold and confesses his sin, dying in Hester's arms. Later, most witnesses swear that they saw a stigma in the form of a scarlet "A" upon his chest, although some deny this statement. Chillingworth, losing his will for revenge, dies shortly thereafter and leaves Pearl a substantial inheritance.
Several years later, Hester returns to her cottage and resumes wearing the scarlet letter. When she dies, she is buried near the grave of Dimmesdale, and they share a simple slate tombstone engraved with an escutcheon described as: "On a field, sable. The letter A, gules".
Major themes[edit]
Sin[edit]
The experience of Hester and Dimmesdale recalls the story of Adam and Eve because, in both cases, sin results in expulsion and suffering. But it also results in knowledge – specifically, in knowledge of what it means to be immoral. For Hester, the Scarlet Letter is a physical manifestation of her sin and reminder of her painful solitude. She contemplates casting it off to obtain her freedom from an oppressive society and a checkered past as well as the absence of God. Because the society excludes her, she considers the possibility that many of the traditions held up by the Puritan culture are untrue and are not designed to bring her happiness.
As for Dimmesdale, the "cheating minister", his sin gives him "sympathies so intimate with the sinful brotherhood of mankind, so that his chest vibrate[s] in unison with theirs." His eloquent and powerful sermons derive from this sense of empathy.[2] The narrative of the Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale is quite in keeping with the oldest and most fully authorized principles in Christian thought. His "Fall" is a descent from apparent grace to his own damnation; he appears to begin in purity but he ends in corruption. The subtlety is that the minister's belief is his own cheating, convincing himself at every stage of his spiritual pilgrimage that he is saved.[3]
The rose bush's beauty forms a striking contrast to all that surrounds it – as later the beautifully embroidered scarlet "A" will be held out in part as an invitation to find "some sweet moral blossom" in the ensuing, tragic tale and in part as an image that "the deep heart of nature" (perhaps God) may look more kind on the errant Hester and her child than her Puritan neighbors do. Throughout the work, the nature images contrast with the stark darkness of the Puritans and their systems.[4]
Chillingworth's misshapen body reflects (or symbolizes) the anger in his soul, which builds as the novel progresses, similar to the way Dimmesdale's illness reveals his inner turmoil. The outward man reflects the condition of the heart; an observation thought to be inspired by the deterioration of Edgar Allan Poe, whom Hawthorne "much admired".[4]
Puritan legalism[edit]
Another theme is the extreme legalism of the Puritans and how Hester chooses not to conform to their rules and beliefs. Hester was rejected by the villagers even though she spent her life doing what she could to help the sick and the poor. Because they rejected her, she spent her life mostly in solitude, and wouldn't go to church.
As a result, she retreats into her own mind and her own thinking. Her thoughts begin to stretch and go beyond what would be considered by the Puritans as safe or even Christian. She still sees her sin, but begins to look on it differently than the villagers ever have. She begins to believe that a person's earthly sins don't necessarily condemn them. She even goes so far as to tell Dimmesdale that their sin has been paid for by their daily penance and that their sin won't keep them from getting to heaven, however, the Puritans believed that such a sin surely condemns.
But Hester had been alienated from the Puritan society, both in her physical life and spiritual life. When Dimmesdale dies, she knows she has to move on because she can no longer conform to the Puritans' strictness. Her thinking is free from religious bounds and she has established her own different moral standards and beliefs.[2]
Publication history[edit]

 

 Hester Prynne at the stocks, an engraved illustration from an 1878 edition
It was long thought that Hawthorne originally planned The Scarlet Letter to be a shorter novelette which was part of a collection to be named Old Time Legends and that his publisher, James Thomas Fields, convinced him to expand the work to a full-length novel.[5] This is not true: Fields persuaded Hawthorne to publish The Scarlet Letter alone (along with the earlier-completed "Custom House" essay) but he had nothing to do with the length of the story.[6] Hawthorne's wife Sophia later challenged Fields' claims a little inexactly: "he has made the absurd boast that he was the sole cause of the Scarlet Letter being published!" She noted that her husband's friend Edwin Percy Whipple, a critic, approached Fields to consider its publication.[7] The manuscript was written at the Peter Edgerley House in Salem, Massachusetts, still standing as a private residence at 14 Mall Street. It was the last Salem home where the Hawthorne family lived.[8]
The Scarlet Letter was first published as a novel in the spring of 1850 by Ticknor & Fields, beginning Hawthorne's most lucrative period.[9] When he delivered the final pages to Fields in February 1850, Hawthorne said that "some portions of the book are powerfully written" but doubted it would be popular.[10] In fact, the book was an instant best-seller[11] though, over fourteen years, it brought its author only $1,500.[9] Its initial publication brought wide protest from natives of Salem, who did not approve of how Hawthorne had depicted them in his introduction "The Custom-House". A 2,500-copy second edition of The Scarlet Letter included a preface by Hawthorne dated March 30, 1850, that stated he had decided to reprint his introduction "without the change of a word... The only remarkable features of the sketch are its frank and genuine good-humor... As to enmity, or ill-feeling of any kind, personal or political, he utterly disclaims such motives".[12]
The Scarlet Letter was also one of the first mass-produced books in America. In the mid-nineteenth century, bookbinders of home-grown literature typically hand-made their books and sold them in small quantities. The first mechanized printing of The Scarlet Letter, 2,500 volumes, sold out within ten days,[9] and was widely read and discussed to an extent not much experienced in the young country up until that time. Copies of the first edition are often sought by collectors as rare books, and may fetch up to around $18,000 USD.
Critical response[edit]
On its publication, critic Evert Augustus Duyckinck, a friend of Hawthorne's, said he preferred the author's Washington Irving-like tales. Another friend, critic Edwin Percy Whipple, objected to the novel's "morbid intensity" with dense psychological details, writing that the book "is therefore apt to become, like Hawthorne, too painfully anatomical in his exhibition of them".[13] Most literary critics praised the book but religious leaders took issue with the novel's subject matter.[14] Orestes Brownson complained that Hawthorne did not understand Christianity, confession, and remorse.[15] A review in The Church Review and Ecclesiastical Register concluded the author "perpetrates bad morals."[16]
On the other hand, 20th-century writer D. H. Lawrence said that there could not be a more perfect work of the American imagination than The Scarlet Letter.[17] Henry James once said of the novel, "It is beautiful, admirable, extraordinary; it has in the highest degree that merit which I have spoken of as the mark of Hawthorne's best things—an indefinable purity and lightness of conception...One can often return to it; it supports familiarity and has the inexhaustible charm and mystery of great works of art."[17][18]
The book's immediate and lasting success are due to the way it addresses spiritual and moral issues from a uniquely American standpoint.[citation needed] In 1850, adultery was an extremely risqué subject, but because Hawthorne had the support of the New England literary establishment, it passed easily into the realm of appropriate reading. It has been said[who?] that this work represents the height of Hawthorne's literary genius, dense with terse descriptions. It remains relevant for its philosophical and psychological depth, and continues to be read as a classic tale on a universal theme.[19]
Allusions[edit]
The following are historical and Biblical references that appear in The Scarlet Letter.
Anne Hutchinson, mentioned in Chapter 1, The Prison Door, was a religious dissenter (1591–1643). In the 1630s she was excommunicated by the Puritans and exiled from Boston and moved to Rhode Island.[4]
Ann Hibbins, who historically was executed for witchcraft in Boston in 1656, is depicted in The Scarlet Letter as a witch who tries to tempt Prynne to the practice of witchcraft.[20][21]
Richard Bellingham, who historically was the governor of Massachusetts and deputy governor at the time of Hibbins's execution, was depicted in The Scarlet Letter as the brother of Ann Hibbins.
Martin Luther (1483–1545) was a leader of the Protestant Reformation in Germany.
Sir Thomas Overbury and Dr. Forman were the subjects of an adultery scandal in 1615 in England. Dr. Forman was charged with trying to poison his adulterous wife and her lover. Overbury was a friend of the lover and was perhaps poisoned.
John Winthrop (1588–1649), second governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony.
King's Chapel Burying Ground, mentioned in the final paragraph, exists; the Elizabeth Pain gravestone is traditionally considered an inspiration for the protagonists' grave.
The story of King David and Bathsheba is depicted in the tapestry in Mr. Dimmesdale's room (chapter 9). (See II Samuel 11-12 for the Biblical story.)
John Eliot, (c. 1604–1690) was a Puritan missionary to the American Indians whom some called “the apostle to the Indians." He is referred to as "the Apostle Eliot" at the beginning of Chapter 16, A Forest Walk, whom Dimmesdale has gone to visit.
In popular culture[edit]
See also: Film adaptations of The Scarlet Letter and The Scarlet Letter in popular culture
The Scarlet Letter has been adapted to numerous films, plays and operas and remains frequently referenced in modern popular culture.
See also[edit]

Portal icon Novels portal
Boston in fiction
Colonial history of the United States
Illegitimacy in fiction
References[edit]
Notes[edit]
1.Jump up ^ "Sinner, Victim, Object, Winner | ANCHORS: JACKI LYDEN". National Public Radio (NPR). March 2, 2008, Sunday. SHOW: Weekend All Things Considered. Check date values in: |date= (help) (quote in article refers to it as his "masterwork", listen to the audio to hear it the original reference to it being his "magnum opus")
2.^ Jump up to: a b "The Scarlet Letter". Sparknotes. Retrieved 2012-08-07.
3.Jump up ^ Davidson, E.H. 1963. Dimmesdale's Fall. The New England Quarterly 36: 358–370
4.^ Jump up to: a b c The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne - CliffNotes from Yahoo!Education[dead link]
5.Jump up ^ Charvat, William. Literary Publishing in America: 1790–1850. Amherst, MA: The University of Massachusetts Press, 1993 (first published 1959): 56. ISBN 0-87023-801-9
6.Jump up ^ Parker, Hershel. "The Germ Theory of THE SCARLET LETTER," Hawthorne Society Newsletter 11 (Spring 1985) 11-13.
7.Jump up ^ Wineapple, Brenda. Hawthorne: A Life. Random House: New York, 2003: 209–210. ISBN 0-8129-7291-0.
8.Jump up ^ Wright, John Hardy. Hawthorne's Haunts in New England. Charleston, SC: The History Press, 2008: 47. ISBN 978-1-59629-425-7.
9.^ Jump up to: a b c McFarland, Philip. Hawthorne in Concord. New York: Grove Press, 2004: 136. ISBN 0-8021-1776-7
10.Jump up ^ Miller, Edwin Haviland. Salem is my Dwelling Place: A Life of Nathaniel Hawthorne. Iowa City: University of Iowa Press, 1991: 299. ISBN 0-87745-332-2
11.Jump up ^ Cheevers, Susan (2006). American Bloomsbury: Louisa May Alcott, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Margaret Fuller, Nathaniel Hawthorne, and Henry David Thoreau; Their Lives, Their Loves, Their Work. Detroit: Thorndike Press. Large print edition. p. 181. ISBN 0-7862-9521-X
12.Jump up ^ Miller, Edwin Haviland. Salem is my Dwelling Place: A Life of Nathaniel Hawthorne. Iowa City: University of Iowa Press, 1991: 301. ISBN 0-87745-332-2
13.Jump up ^ Miller, Edwin Haviland. Salem is my Dwelling Place: A Life of Nathaniel Hawthorne. Iowa City: University of Iowa Press, 1991: 301–302. ISBN 0-87745-332-2
14.Jump up ^ Schreiner, Samuel A., Jr. The Concord Quartet: Alcott, Emerson, Hawthorne, Thoreau, and the Friendship That Freed the American Mind. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 2006: 158. ISBN 978-0-471-64663-1
15.Jump up ^ Crowley, J. Donald, and Orestes Brownson. Chapter 50: [Orestes Brownson], From A Review In Brownson's Quarterly Review." Nathaniel Hawthorne (0-415-15930-X) (1997): 175–179. Literary Reference Center Plus. Web. 11 Oct. 2013.
16.Jump up ^ Wineapple, Brenda. Hawthorne: A Life. Random House: New York, 2003: 217. ISBN 0-8129-7291-0.
17.^ Jump up to: a b Miller, Edwin Haviland. Salem is my Dwelling Place: A Life of Nathaniel Hawthorne. Iowa City: University of Iowa Press, 1991: 284. ISBN 0-87745-332-2
18.Jump up ^ James, Henry (1901). Hawthorne. Harper. pp. 108, 116.
19.Jump up ^ "The Classic Text: Traditions and Interpretations". Uwm.edu. 2001-10-09. Retrieved 2012-08-07.
20.Jump up ^ Schwab, Gabriele. The mirror and the killer-queen: otherness in literary language. Indiana University Press. 1996. Pg. 120.
21.Jump up ^ Hunter, Dianne, Seduction and theory: readings of gender, representation, and rhetoric. University of Illinois Press. 1989. Pgs. 186-187
Bibliography[edit]
Brodhead, Richard H. Hawthorne, Melville, and the Novel. Chicago and London: The University of Chicago Press, 1973.
Brown, Gillian. "'Hawthorne, Inheritance, and Women's Property", Studies in the Novel 23.1 (Spring 1991): 107-18.
Cañadas, Ivan. "A New Source for the Title and Some Themes in The Scarlet Letter". Nathaniel Hawthorne Review 32.1 (Spring 2006): 43–51.
Korobkin, Laura Haft. "The Scarlet Letter of the Law: Hawthorne and Criminal Justice". Novel: a Forum on Fiction 30.2 (Winter 1997): 193–217.
Gartner, Matthew. "The Scarlet Letter and the Book of Esther: Scriptural Letter and Narrative Life". Studies in American Fiction 23.2 (Fall 1995): 131-51.
Newberry, Frederick. Tradition and Disinheritance in The Scarlet Letter". ESQ: A Journal of the American Renaissance 23 (1977), 1–26; repr. in: The Scarlet Letter. W. W. Norton, 1988: pp. 231-48.
Reid, Alfred S. Sir Thomas Overbury's Vision (1616) and Other English Sources of Nathaniel Hawthorne's 'The Scarlet Letter. Gainesville, FL: Scholar's Facsimiles and Reprints, 1957.
Reid, Bethany. "Narrative of the Captivity and Redemption of Roger Prynne: Rereading The Scarlet Letter". Studies in the Novel 33.3 (Fall 2001): 247-67.
Ryskamp, Charles. "The New England Sources of The Scarlet Letter". American Literature 31 (1959): 257–72; repr. in: "The Scarlet Letter", 3rd edn. Norton, 1988: 191–204.
Savoy, Eric. "'Filial Duty': Reading the Patriarchal Body in 'The Custom House'". Studies in the Novel 25.4 (Winter 1993): 397–427.
Sohn, Jeonghee. Rereading Hawthorne's Romance: The Problematics of Happy Endings. American Studies Monograph Series, 26. Seoul: American Studies Institute, Seoul National University, 2001; 2002.
Stewart, Randall (Ed.) The American Notebooks of Nathaniel Hawthorne: Based upon the original Manuscripts in the Piermont Morgan Library. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1932.
Waggoner, Hyatt H. Hawthorne: A Critical Study, 3rd edn. Cambridge, MA: Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 1971.
External links[edit]
 Wikisource has original text related to this article:
The Scarlet Letter
 
 Wikimedia Commons has media related to The Scarlet Letter.
Hawthorne in Salem Website Page on Hester and Pearl in The Scarlet Letter
The Scarlet Letter at Project Gutenberg
D. H. Lawrence - Studies in Classic American Literature - Nathaniel Hawthorne and The Scarlet Letter
Speaker Icon.svg The Scarlet Letter public domain audiobook at LibriVox
The Scarlet Letter Review


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The Scarlet Letter (1995 film)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Jump to: navigation, search


The Scarlet Letter
Scarletlettermovieposter.jpg
Theatrical release poster
 
Directed by
Roland Joffé
Produced by
Andrew G. Vajna
Screenplay by
Douglas Day Stewart
Based on
The Scarlet Letter by
Nathaniel Hawthorne
Starring
Demi Moore
Gary Oldman
Robert Duvall
Edward Hardwicke
Music by
John Barry
Cinematography
Alex Thomson
Edited by
Thom Noble

Production
 company

Hollywood Pictures
Cinergi Pictures
 
Distributed by
Buena Vista Pictures

Release dates

October 13, 1995
 

Running time
 135 minutes
Country
United States
Language
English
Budget
$46 million[1]
Box office
$10,382,407[1]
The Scarlet Letter is a 1995 American film adaptation of the Nathaniel Hawthorne novel of the same name. It was directed by Roland Joffé and stars Demi Moore, Gary Oldman, and Robert Duvall. This version was "freely adapted" from Hawthorne[2] and deviated from the original story. It was nominated for seven Golden Raspberry Awards at the 1995 ceremony, winning "Worst Remake or Sequel."


Contents  [hide]
1 Plot
2 Cast
3 Production
4 Score
5 Reception
6 See also
7 References
8 External links

Plot[edit]
It is 1667 in the Massachusetts Bay Colony, and an uneasy truce exists between local Puritans and their neighbours, the Algonquian. Chief Metacomet (Eric Schweig) succeeds his father Massasoit as head of the latter just as a new colonist, Hester Prynne (Demi Moore) arrives overseas from England. As Hester waits for her husband - who is due to follow shortly after - she falls for a young minister, Arthur Dimmesdale (Gary Oldman). When it emerges that Roger Prynne has likely been killed by Native Americans, they become inseparable lovers.
Finding herself pregnant with Dimmesdale's child, Hester is imprisoned for her indiscretion. The minister intends to declare his sin and face execution, but Hester convinces him otherwise. Sentenced to wear a scarlet "A" for adultery, Prynne is ostracized by the public, and a drummer boy charged to follow her whenever she comes to town. Meanwhile, Hester's husband (Robert Duvall) resurfaces, having spent his absence in captivity as a prisoner of war. Learning of the scandal, he adopts the fictitious guise of "Dr. Roger Chillingworth" and begins seeking out her paramour.
The physician eventually murders a male settler leaving Hester's home and scalps him in an effort to implicate Algonquian warriors. Infuriated by this atrocity, the colonists declare war on the Indians and Roger, distraught by the severe consequences of his action, promptly commits suicide. Hester is nearly hanged with other undesirables in the ensuing outrage, but Dimmesdale saves her neck by confessing that he is the father of her child. As he takes her place on the gallows, the Algonquian attack Massachusetts Bay; both sides sustain heavy casualties. The Puritans are more concerned with concealing the conflict from England than harassing Hester any further; she finally abandons her scarlet letter and departs with Dimmesdale for Carolina.
Cast[edit]
Demi Moore as Hester Prynne
Gary Oldman as Rev. Arthur Dimmesdale
Robert Duvall as Roger Chillingworth
Edward Hardwicke as John Bellingham
Robert Prosky as Horace Stonehall
Roy Dotrice as Rev. Thomas Cheever
Joan Plowright as Harriet Hibbons
Larissa Laskin as Goody Mortimer
Amy Wright as Goody Gotwick
George Aguilar as Johnny Sassamon
Tim Woodward as Brewster Stonehall
Dana Ivey as Meredith Stonehall
Sheldon Peters Wolfchild as Moskeegee
Eric Schweig as Metacomet
Kristin Fairlie as Faith Stonehall
Sarah Campbell as Prudence Stonehall
Kennetch Charlette as Tarratine Chief
Jodhi May as Voice of Pearl Tallulah Belle Willis as Pearl (infant)
Scout LaRue Willis as Toddler Pearl

Production[edit]


 This section does not cite any references or sources. Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (September 2010)

 

Shelburne, Nova Scotia waterfront showing grey paint finishes applied for the 1995 film.
The film was shot in British Columbia on Vancouver Island, in and around Campbell River (Beaverlodge Lands—now Rockland Road and North Island College/Timberline Secondary, Lupin Falls and Myra Falls in Strathcona Provincial Park, Little Oyster River, and White River), and in the Nova Scotia towns of Yarmouth and Shelburne in 1994. In Shelburne, the waterfront area was substantially altered to resemble a Puritan New England town in the mid-17th century. Some of the buildings on Dock Street retain the grey-tone paint finishes used for the film.
Score[edit]
Three original scores were written for this film. The first score was composed by Ennio Morricone and was quickly rejected. A second score was composed by Elmer Bernstein, but his music was set aside in lieu of the final score, composed by John Barry. Reportedly, star Demi Moore wanted a score by Barry from the start, so Morricone's and Bernstein's music were not going to be accepted, regardless of quality.
Barry's score was released on CD by Sony Records upon the film's release in 1995. A CD of Bernstein's rejected score was released by Varèse Sarabande in 2008. No recordings of Morricone's score have been released to the public.
Reception[edit]
Review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes gave the film a 14% approval rating, based on 35 reviews.[3] It won the Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Remake or Sequel and was nominated for Worst Actress (Moore), Worst Director, Worst Picture, Worst Screen Couple (Moore and either Duvall or Oldman), Worst Screenplay and Worst Supporting Actor (Duvall).[4] It grossed $10.3 million against a production budget of $50 million.[5]
In response to the negative criticism, and to the new ending, Demi Moore said that the story the filmmakers were trying to tell differed out of necessity with that of the book, which she said was "very dense and not cinematic". She noted the original story might be better suited to a miniseries on television, and that the story presented in this film needed a different ending, one that did not lose "the ultimate message of Hester Prynne" that its makers were trying to convey.[6]
See also[edit]
The Scarlet Letter – the original novel by Nathaniel Hawthorne
Easy A
References[edit]
1.^ Jump up to: a b "The Scarlet Letter (1995)". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved August 15, 2011.
2.Jump up ^ According to the opening credits
3.Jump up ^ The Scarlet Letter Movie Reviews, Pictures – Rotten Tomatoes
4.Jump up ^ The Scarlet Letter (1995) – Awards
5.Jump up ^ The Scarlet Letter – Box Office Data, Movie News, Cast Information – The Numbers
6.Jump up ^ Jeffreys, Daniel (October 7, 1995). "You don't get to be Hollywood's best-paid actress by acting coy. Just ask Demi Moore". The Independent. Retrieved February 2, 2015.
External links[edit]
The Scarlet Letter at the Internet Movie Database
The Scarlet Letter at Box Office Mojo
San Francisco Chronicle review
Reading Hawthorne in a gender-biased academy (refers to this film version)


[show]
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The works of Roland Joffé

 














 


[show]
v ·
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Categories: 1995 films
English-language films
1990s romantic drama films
American romantic drama films
American films
Films directed by Roland Joffé
Films based on The Scarlet Letter
Films shot in Nova Scotia
Films shot in Vancouver
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Hollywood Pictures films
Film scores by John Barry (composer)







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This page was last modified on 20 June 2015, at 22:08.
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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Scarlet_Letter_(1995_film)






 



The Scarlet Letter (1995 film)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Jump to: navigation, search


The Scarlet Letter
Scarletlettermovieposter.jpg
Theatrical release poster
 
Directed by
Roland Joffé
Produced by
Andrew G. Vajna
Screenplay by
Douglas Day Stewart
Based on
The Scarlet Letter by
Nathaniel Hawthorne
Starring
Demi Moore
Gary Oldman
Robert Duvall
Edward Hardwicke
Music by
John Barry
Cinematography
Alex Thomson
Edited by
Thom Noble

Production
 company

Hollywood Pictures
Cinergi Pictures
 
Distributed by
Buena Vista Pictures

Release dates

October 13, 1995
 

Running time
 135 minutes
Country
United States
Language
English
Budget
$46 million[1]
Box office
$10,382,407[1]
The Scarlet Letter is a 1995 American film adaptation of the Nathaniel Hawthorne novel of the same name. It was directed by Roland Joffé and stars Demi Moore, Gary Oldman, and Robert Duvall. This version was "freely adapted" from Hawthorne[2] and deviated from the original story. It was nominated for seven Golden Raspberry Awards at the 1995 ceremony, winning "Worst Remake or Sequel."


Contents  [hide]
1 Plot
2 Cast
3 Production
4 Score
5 Reception
6 See also
7 References
8 External links

Plot[edit]
It is 1667 in the Massachusetts Bay Colony, and an uneasy truce exists between local Puritans and their neighbours, the Algonquian. Chief Metacomet (Eric Schweig) succeeds his father Massasoit as head of the latter just as a new colonist, Hester Prynne (Demi Moore) arrives overseas from England. As Hester waits for her husband - who is due to follow shortly after - she falls for a young minister, Arthur Dimmesdale (Gary Oldman). When it emerges that Roger Prynne has likely been killed by Native Americans, they become inseparable lovers.
Finding herself pregnant with Dimmesdale's child, Hester is imprisoned for her indiscretion. The minister intends to declare his sin and face execution, but Hester convinces him otherwise. Sentenced to wear a scarlet "A" for adultery, Prynne is ostracized by the public, and a drummer boy charged to follow her whenever she comes to town. Meanwhile, Hester's husband (Robert Duvall) resurfaces, having spent his absence in captivity as a prisoner of war. Learning of the scandal, he adopts the fictitious guise of "Dr. Roger Chillingworth" and begins seeking out her paramour.
The physician eventually murders a male settler leaving Hester's home and scalps him in an effort to implicate Algonquian warriors. Infuriated by this atrocity, the colonists declare war on the Indians and Roger, distraught by the severe consequences of his action, promptly commits suicide. Hester is nearly hanged with other undesirables in the ensuing outrage, but Dimmesdale saves her neck by confessing that he is the father of her child. As he takes her place on the gallows, the Algonquian attack Massachusetts Bay; both sides sustain heavy casualties. The Puritans are more concerned with concealing the conflict from England than harassing Hester any further; she finally abandons her scarlet letter and departs with Dimmesdale for Carolina.
Cast[edit]
Demi Moore as Hester Prynne
Gary Oldman as Rev. Arthur Dimmesdale
Robert Duvall as Roger Chillingworth
Edward Hardwicke as John Bellingham
Robert Prosky as Horace Stonehall
Roy Dotrice as Rev. Thomas Cheever
Joan Plowright as Harriet Hibbons
Larissa Laskin as Goody Mortimer
Amy Wright as Goody Gotwick
George Aguilar as Johnny Sassamon
Tim Woodward as Brewster Stonehall
Dana Ivey as Meredith Stonehall
Sheldon Peters Wolfchild as Moskeegee
Eric Schweig as Metacomet
Kristin Fairlie as Faith Stonehall
Sarah Campbell as Prudence Stonehall
Kennetch Charlette as Tarratine Chief
Jodhi May as Voice of Pearl Tallulah Belle Willis as Pearl (infant)
Scout LaRue Willis as Toddler Pearl

Production[edit]


 This section does not cite any references or sources. Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (September 2010)

 

Shelburne, Nova Scotia waterfront showing grey paint finishes applied for the 1995 film.
The film was shot in British Columbia on Vancouver Island, in and around Campbell River (Beaverlodge Lands—now Rockland Road and North Island College/Timberline Secondary, Lupin Falls and Myra Falls in Strathcona Provincial Park, Little Oyster River, and White River), and in the Nova Scotia towns of Yarmouth and Shelburne in 1994. In Shelburne, the waterfront area was substantially altered to resemble a Puritan New England town in the mid-17th century. Some of the buildings on Dock Street retain the grey-tone paint finishes used for the film.
Score[edit]
Three original scores were written for this film. The first score was composed by Ennio Morricone and was quickly rejected. A second score was composed by Elmer Bernstein, but his music was set aside in lieu of the final score, composed by John Barry. Reportedly, star Demi Moore wanted a score by Barry from the start, so Morricone's and Bernstein's music were not going to be accepted, regardless of quality.
Barry's score was released on CD by Sony Records upon the film's release in 1995. A CD of Bernstein's rejected score was released by Varèse Sarabande in 2008. No recordings of Morricone's score have been released to the public.
Reception[edit]
Review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes gave the film a 14% approval rating, based on 35 reviews.[3] It won the Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Remake or Sequel and was nominated for Worst Actress (Moore), Worst Director, Worst Picture, Worst Screen Couple (Moore and either Duvall or Oldman), Worst Screenplay and Worst Supporting Actor (Duvall).[4] It grossed $10.3 million against a production budget of $50 million.[5]
In response to the negative criticism, and to the new ending, Demi Moore said that the story the filmmakers were trying to tell differed out of necessity with that of the book, which she said was "very dense and not cinematic". She noted the original story might be better suited to a miniseries on television, and that the story presented in this film needed a different ending, one that did not lose "the ultimate message of Hester Prynne" that its makers were trying to convey.[6]
See also[edit]
The Scarlet Letter – the original novel by Nathaniel Hawthorne
Easy A
References[edit]
1.^ Jump up to: a b "The Scarlet Letter (1995)". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved August 15, 2011.
2.Jump up ^ According to the opening credits
3.Jump up ^ The Scarlet Letter Movie Reviews, Pictures – Rotten Tomatoes
4.Jump up ^ The Scarlet Letter (1995) – Awards
5.Jump up ^ The Scarlet Letter – Box Office Data, Movie News, Cast Information – The Numbers
6.Jump up ^ Jeffreys, Daniel (October 7, 1995). "You don't get to be Hollywood's best-paid actress by acting coy. Just ask Demi Moore". The Independent. Retrieved February 2, 2015.
External links[edit]
The Scarlet Letter at the Internet Movie Database
The Scarlet Letter at Box Office Mojo
San Francisco Chronicle review
Reading Hawthorne in a gender-biased academy (refers to this film version)


[show]
v ·
 t ·
 e
 
The works of Roland Joffé

 














 


[show]
v ·
 t ·
 e
 
Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter

 






 










 





 







 









  


Categories: 1995 films
English-language films
1990s romantic drama films
American romantic drama films
American films
Films directed by Roland Joffé
Films based on The Scarlet Letter
Films shot in Nova Scotia
Films shot in Vancouver
Cinergi Pictures films
Hollywood Pictures films
Film scores by John Barry (composer)







Navigation menu



Create account
Log in



Article

Talk





 



Read

Edit

View history










 






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Edit links
This page was last modified on 20 June 2015, at 22:08.
Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License; additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization.
Privacy policy
About Wikipedia
Disclaimers
Contact Wikipedia
Developers
Mobile view
Wikimedia Foundation
Powered by MediaWiki 
    
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Scarlet_Letter_(1995_film)