Because the transandentalists were humanists and believed that they could live life in a communist "type" community with themselves as God. The Puritans on the other hand lived there life for God and in a system where each house hold was dependent upon working in a capitalist type system. The Bible says,"If you don't work you don't eat." This was part of their philosophy as well. In The Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne was not looking particularly favorably on the Puritan way of life in some respects, making it look cold and harsh. Hawthorne had been part of this transcendentalist's"communist" type society for only about a year. He quickly found out that even though he paid his part to be part of the society, not EVERYBODY there had the same intentions he had "to work hard for the good of the society."
At least, I'm quite sure about this.
Hester is a Puritan in The Scarlet Letter. The novel is set in the Puritan society of 17th-century Massachusetts, and Hester's actions and beliefs are influenced by the strict religious beliefs of the Puritans.
The book itself takes place in New England, which is where Puritans migrated to. Therefore, the people are highly religious Christians, and heavy punishment is given to anyone that breaks the beliefs of the Bible.
Arthur Miller The Scarlet Letter
Nathaniel HawthorneParticularly in The Scarlet Letter
Upon arriving at the new colony in "The Scarlet Letter," the Puritans built a jail and a cemetery. These structures reflected the strict and unforgiving nature of the Puritan society portrayed in the novel.
Religion affects the law directly.
They never did. Everything I have read about them points to their following the dictates of their religion to the letter.
An example could be when the puritan townspeople judge Hester and outcast her for the sin that she committed.
Throughout the novel, the Scarlet Letter, Hawthorne criticized the Puritans' moral upstanding. He criticized their moral upstanding because it was kind of messed up. They were expected to be 'perfect' and not sin; in reality, nobody can go without sinning their whole life-everybody sins at least once in their life. However, Puritans were expected not to. If the Puritans were to sin, they would either get in trouble or live with the guilt of their sin eating them from the inside, out. The mess up part about their religion is that it lacked confession. So, if they were to have a big secret or sin, they would have to keep it to themselves. ~Tajza Hodges
The narrator's most well-known ancestors in The Scarlet Letter are the Puritans who settled in Massachusetts in the 17th century. They played a significant role in shaping the strict moral and religious environment depicted in the novel.
The letter A was the letter for the scarlet letter.
The letter on the chest of Hester Prynne's dress is a scarlet letter A. A for adultery.