Does Religion Determine The Way That Laws Are Made In Society Today And In The Past?

Throughout The Scarlet Letter the lack of separation of church and state, and the problems it created, really bugged me. Because the Government and church are essentially the synonymous, there is no unbiased, third party looking at the situation to assess weather there was a crime or a sin is committed, and there is a difference between the two. A crime is an action that breaks the law of the state. A sin is an act considered to be violation of divine law. A sin a crime against God, not against the people of the colony, which is a crime. It is not a crime to want the iPhone 6s, but it is sin. It becomes a crime when I try and steal my friends iPhone 6s. The problem with no separation of church and state is a sin and a crime become the same thing, with the same punishments. When the founders combine Church they think they are creating a “Utopia” (41), but they are really creating an oppressed population. The citizens of the colony are forced to wear “Sad-colored garments and grey steeple-crowned hats,” (41) and abide by the “Puritanic Code of law, which…. Administer[s] in its final and closet application to the offender” (45). The fact that civil and religious law were one and the same is the reason Hester is shamed, outcast, and deprived of love, but it also contributes to the lack of progress in the colony.

Nathaniel Hawthorne was a man who was both plagued and absorbed by the legacy of the Puritans in New England. He was related to John Hathorne, a Puritan judge during the infamous Salem Witch trials of 1692. In The Scarlet Letter, his fictional account of mid-17th century Boston presents an opportunity to examine different themes commonly associated with Puritans. Particularly the nature of sin, personal identity and the repression of natural urges are themes that appear repeatedly through the novel. While his account of this time period may not be completely historically accurate, it is indicative of the persistent thematic influence of Puritan culture on American and New England society.

English Protestants created a large group of people in the 16th and 17th centuries called the Puritans. These people advocated strict religious discipline along with a strong beliefs and worshipping. The Scarlet Letter reflected on Puritan Society in several ways, from religion to discipline and punishment. Religion seemed to control everyone, the reverend was the person that everyone looked up to, and the community, as a whole, believed in fate and destiny. Puritan relationships were very restricted, therefore making adultery a terrible sin in the eyes of the community. In the 17th century, Boston was extremely strict and the laws were strongly enforced, making Hester’s sin a great

In The Crucible and The Scarlet Letter, they are both known to be a part of the Puritan religion. The puritans are known to be very strict. Often people are put to cruel punishments for mistakes or sins they had committed. The actions they take to “punish” a person are extreme. The Puritans act and seem so committed to their religion. The people seem “Holy” but you never really know what happens behind closed doors. The Puritan religion is so strict is causes members to become corrupt.

It focused on the fact that a person shall not commit adultery, and if they do, they will be punished and shamed by society. Unlike humanistic ethics, where we base our life on morals, the colonies based their life on God. If one would break one of the ten commandments, there would be a punishment. Theological ethics is strongly represented in The Scarlet Letter as Hester Prynne,the main character, was sent to prison based on failure to meet society’s religious expectations. An unmarried women having a child was unacceptable in the eyes of God and had to result in

During the 17th century, a Puritan commonwealth presided over Boston and was known for its strict adherence to religious, moral and social codes. In The Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne utilizes rhetorical strategies in order to denounce the Puritan system of beliefs and bring to light the hypocrisy of the Puritan community as he tells the agonizing story of a young woman who was condemned by society.

Hawthorne’s work takes America’s Puritan past as its subject, but The Scarlet Letter uses the material to the greatest effect. The Puritans were

In the Scarlet Letter, written by Nathaniel Hawthorne, he explored the distress of going against law and order in Puritan society. Hawthorne showed how the actions one does affects the rest of their life. This could be seen through one of the characters in this novel, Arthur Dimmesdale, a preacher, eaten away by his sin. Hawthorne shows how Dimmesdale is the one to go against Puritan ideals through the symbols in this novel, style and literary techniques.

In the Puritan society the outlandish mindset of the leaders caused more harm than good with the witch trials in Salem to the events mentioned in The Scarlet Letter. Sin and evil the new world cloud the vision of the citizens, yet they are two separate actions and have different definitions. Hawthorne explains the difference between the two in the novel and also shows off his famous skill of questioning a society’s rules, regulations, and social structure. In The Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne uses his writing style of ambiguity, and ornate word choice to relay his opinion of the puritan society. Characters, quotes, and symbols give us a snapshot of the time and thoughts on events and ideas during the era. Hawthorne’s characters are a

For centuries, humans have sought to understand and control the chaotic nature of our incomprehensible planet. We seek to create structures that dictate chaos, and feel in command of our fleeting lives. Cities, governments, and constitutions are erected to provide the comforting idea that anything is within human control. Human nature, must be contained, so that morally undignified acts are avoided. But who is to decide what is morally "right" and what is "wrong?" The Scarlet Letter, by Nathaniel Hawthorne explores the restricting laws and hypocritical systems humans employ in an effort to contain and manipulate chaos, by using a Puritanical religion as a representation of a legalist civilization. The Scarlet letter takes place in Boston through the perspective of a Puritan society in the 17th Century, and focuses on the harsh punishment the town leaders give to Hester Prynne after her adultery is revealed. The novel explores the nature of secrets, the agony of guilt, and most importantly the role of society in chastising people for "unholy" acts. In it, Hawthorne exemplifies and exaggerates the harsh regiments of Puritan Society, emphasizing the human compulsion to break free from expected boundaries and the unsustainability of social constructs.

The Scarlet Letter is a modern classic of American literature written about controversy and published with controversy. The main topic of the book, adultery, is written in a dark and sad way, as Hawthorne describes injustice, fate or predetermination and conscience ( Van Doren, 1998) . No other American novel of the time has such a controversial theme as Hawthorne's, The Scarlet Letter. The setting of Nathanial Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter is the seventeenth century Puritan New England. But Hawthorne's writing for this book is heavily influenced by his own nineteenth century culture. Hawthorne strongly believed in Providence. Hawthorne was descended from the Puritan

Secondly, in the book “The Scarlet Letter”, the puritans were very obedient to God. No one dared to challenge the idea of the

Throughout history, religion has proved to be the main source of social stability in different communities and cultural groups. Everything that is part of a societal system, including law, is influenced by religious beliefs and practices of that society. This being said, most religions are based on the theory that there is a single more powerful entity, that has control over aspects of which humans do not. For the longest time in history, sociologists have argued that peer group, political movements, schools and most importantly, the family to be agents of socialization. Because of this reason, they have ignored the role played by religion in the perpetuation of cultural as well as social

Religion is very complicated and not because of its contents and text, but because of its interpretations, so when it comes to making choices based off your religion what interpretations; are right and which are wrong? The United States of America, is a nation whose constitution made plain the separation of church and state. As to remove the biases a religion but primarily to protect the rights of religious minorities; however, this can’t be true as christianity is used by our right wing politicians in many cases to prevent the progress of sexual freedoms and personal rights. The justifications are very amusing because with ‘God’ endowing us with free will he imposes so many rules on us. Narrowing our choices and negating our being blessed with the mind to do what we feel is right.

In countries where religious law is prominent, it is very important and respected. It is divine law , and strives to guide human behavior with spiritual mandate. Religious law serves as a representation of the religions values and morals. Most followers of this type of law believe that the law came from God(s).