The Scarlet Letter - The Inevitable Results of Sin There are many ways to interpret literature. Nathaniel Hawthorne is considered a highly influential writer of the American Transcendentalist era; his writings deal much with Puritan times, including his famous novel, The Scarlet Letter. The Scarlet Letter deals with the adulterous sin of Hester Prynne and the Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale, the revenge of Roger Chillingsworth, and the attitude of the townspeople towards Hester and her daughter Pearl. Sin can be classified in many ways, but most importantly, one must remember that bad things always develop from sin. The fact that Hester and the minister sinned led the townspeople to despise Hester and Pearl, while Reverend Dimmesdale hid his crime of passion by making Hester's scarlet letter "A" the central symbol of the novel. As the people of Boston examined Hester and Pearl, their devotion to the word of the Lord soon turned to hatred. “At the very least they should have put the brand of a hot iron on Hester Prynne's forehead,” were the harsh words of an autumn matron in the midst of a crowd of people. Under the moniker Roger Chillingsworth, Hester's ex-husband constantly beat her. These actions filled him with vengeance, soon turning him into a demon. From the people who treat Hester badly and the unruly acts of Roger Chillingsworth, it is clearly demonstrated that one sin can lead to many others. Another example of sin exploding into more evils is the mimetic act of Reverend Dimmesdale with his duality in the parody of adultery. Chillingsworth treated the minister even more uncivilized than he treated Hester; this earned him the title of leech. As a doctor he was highly respected, but his diabolical acts of hatred towards the minister turned him into a black devil. Seven years after Hester served her persecution on the gallows with young Pearl, Reverend Dimmesdale served his punishment. Not only did Reverend Dimmesdale's sin cause him to completely lose his senses, but when he confessed to his crime, he also lost his life for that cause. Trying to avoid his sin, the reverend did