The Effects of Sin

According to Webster’s NewWorld Dictionary, sin is defined as an action that is or is felt to be highly reprehensible. In layman’s terms, it is saying that the average person would agree that it is only human nature to sin. Except often times the more important part of sin is the effect rather than the sin itself. Although Hester’s sin was bad it was nothing compared to the evil doings of Roger Chillingworth. This also applies to Arthur Dimmesdale because he committed the sin with Hester and didn’t take any punishment but by not telling the truth it slowly killed him. Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter revolves around the single theme of the effects of unforgivable, adulterous sin, which affects Hester Prynne, Arthur Dimmesdale, and Roger Chillingworth to their very cores.
Hester’s sin forces her to become a social outcast and forces her to live on the outskirts of Boston. The guilt of the sin affects Hester’s everyday life by changing the way she lives, ...