Puritan Times

            Crime and Punishment During the Puritan Era.
             ) The action of The Scarlet Letter takes place in 1645. Investigate the puritan age to discover how the Puritans viewed the world.
             Puritans thought the world was nothing but a place where God has sent you to worship him. They believed that life on Earth was only a test made by God to see if you get into heaven, or not. The puritans were a very strict race. They were isolated from other races to form a sort of utopia of purity.
             2.) How did the Puritans define and view the following: guilt, sin, crime, adultery?.
             The Puritans were very strict with their punishments. They saw all sins as a crime. Guilt, sin, crime, and adultery were all basically viewed the same. Today, a sin is not considered a crime. You cannot be legally punished for committing adultery. The puritans condemned those who committed adultery. The sinners would be harshly punished. .
             3.) How did Puritans punish those who sinned/ and or those who committed crime?.
             Most punishments were made to embarrass the sinners. Wearing a punishment was popular. This meant that the sinner would wear a giant symbol on their clothes defining the sin they committed. For instance, if someone committed adultery, the adulterer would wear a giant "A" on their clothes. Being hung was also a popular punishment. .
             4.) Were men and woman punished equally for adultery/and or premarital sex? .
             Women were often punished more severe than a man would. A woman was expected to hold a great reputation. For example, if a man and a woman committed adultery, the woman might get a harsher punishment for tempting the male. However, both were severely punished.
             5.) Did punishments vary from community to community? Pastor to Pastor? Decade to decade?.
             Every puritan community had its own laws, and consequences. Many of these laws were the same. However, some communities along with pastors may have different opinions on the degree of punishment a person might have to serve for a certain crime, or sin.