Question

Read this excerpt from chapter 2 of The Scarlet Letter.

Meagre, indeed, and cold, was the sympathy that a transgressor might look for, from such bystanders at the scaffold. On the other hand, a penalty which, in our days, would infer a degree of mocking infamy and ridicule, might then be invested with almost as stern a dignity as the punishment of death itself.

Which best describes the purpose of the words “meagre,” “scaffold,” “stern,” and “punishment of death”?
They impart a judgmental, reproachful mood.
They impart a gloomy and woeful mood.
They establish the municipal setting of the town square.
They establish the boisterous setting at the scaffold.

Answer 1

They impart a gloomy and woeful mood.

Explanation: words like "meagre," "cold," "scaffold," "stern," and "punishment of death" create a bleak, severe atmosphere emphasizing lack of sympathy and harshness of the penalty.