Consequences of Sin

Consequences of Sin
The major theme of Nathaniel Hawthorne's 19th century masterpiece, The Scarlet Letter, is sin, both openly confessed and hidden, and the very real consequences for those who sin. The setting takes place during the Puritan rule of Boston, Massachusetts. There were much harsher consequences for being sinful than there are today. The Puritans thought the only way God would forgive one's sin is to openly confess it in front of all the townspeople. The Puritans were neither pure nor could ever be considered to be nice or forgiving. Through out Hawthorne's novel he shows how…