Sin, like virtue has always been of great human concern. Sin to one person is quite different to another. In The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne sin is a pervasive theme. One of the main characters, Hester Prynne commits a sin and has to cope with its consequences. From my perspective, sin is characterized by hurting someone directly or indirectly, without just cause. Conversely, the Puritan definition of sin is to go against their rigid moral code derived from the bible. Generally, when people sin they either repent or deny any wrongdoing. I believe repentance is to make a change for the better as a result of remorse or contrition for one's sins. The Puritans had basically the same definition I do. However, they believe that repentance involved living in misery and being scorned by the public. Thus, the meaning of sin and repentance of sin are open to interpretation and influence Hester throughout the novel. She ultimately repents but has to go through a lot before doing so.
             Hester for the most part is a moral person. However, commits the sin of adultery. Hester has much motivation for this act of sin. For instance, she was a young woman with much spirit but was forced to marry an old uninteresting scholar. Thus, she must have felt intense feelings of regret that maybe she could have married a more suitable spouse. Furthermore, her husband was presumed dead during his journey to the Puritan Colony. Therefore, a now lonely probably widowed Hester had much reason to live out her unbridled passion with the minister, Reverend Dimmesdale. Essentially, the act of adultery is wrong. Nevertheless, in this instance I believe Hester had justifiable motives for her sin.
             As a result of this sin of adultery Hester as by Puritan Law and her own sense of remorse repents. The Puritans spurn her and cast her out in a far corner of the colony. She is treated as an inferior human being and faces much ostracism and disda...