Question

read the excerpt from chapter 2 of the scarlet letter using comprehension strategies.
\goodwives,\ said a hard - featured dame of fifty, \ill tell ye a piece of my mind. it would be greatly for the public behoof, if we women, being of mature age and church - members in good repute, should have the handling of such malefactresses as this hester prynne. what think ye, gossips? if the hussy stood up for judgment before us five, that are now here in a knot together, would she come off with such a sentence as the worshipful magistrates have awarded?\
what is the meaning of this excerpt?
the speaker believes that she and her peers ought to be in charge of assigning sentences in cases like hesters
the speaker believes she and her peers ought to be acknowledged for their good standing in the community
the speaker believes that the older women of the church ought to be allowed to serve as magistrates
the speaker believes that the magistrates have been too strict in their handling of hesters case

Explanation:

The speaker says that it would be for the public good if women (like herself, mature - aged and in good church standing) had the handling of such “malefactresses” as Hester Prynne. She then asks if the “hussy” (Hester) would get the same sentence from them (the group of women) as from the magistrates. This implies that she thinks they (the group of women) should be in charge of sentencing in cases like Hester's.

Answer:

The speaker believes that she and her peers ought to be in charge of assigning sentences in cases like Hester's.