Does The Scarlet Letter Take place over 10 years?

Answer 1

The main plot of the story emcompasses approxiamtely 7 years, using Pearl's age as a reference.

At the beginning of the story when Pearl is first shown to us with Hester in Chapter II: "The Market-Place" she's 3 months old. In Chapter XXIII: "The Revelation of the Scarlet Letter," however, Pearl is seven years old.

So, with that, from Hester standing on the scaffold to Arthur Dimmesdale's death is about 7 years.

After that is a mystery, though, since Hawthorne only ever says that Hester and Pearl leave for England about a year after Dimmesdale's death.

The years spent in England up to Hester's return to Boston are even more vague, only stating that it had been "many years."

Later Hawthorne goes on and tells us that Hester lives out the rest of her days in her old cottage, so that too, is left up to speculation, but, yes, the main plot of the story takes places approximately 7 years.

Answer 2

No, "The Scarlet Letter" by Nathaniel Hawthorne does not take place over 10 years. The novel is set in 17th-century Puritan New England and primarily follows the events that unfold over a few years in the lives of the characters.