When the subject of a Puritan society comes up, most people think of a strict, conservative, and very pious society. Although this may have generally been the case, it has not always been the case. Puritan society was also known for not acting out of Christian love, but for cruelly lashing out at those who sinned or were deemed unfit for society. Two literary works that very accurately present both aspects of this society are The Scarlet Letter, by Nathaniel Hawthorne, and The Crucible, by Arthur Miller. The Scarlet Letter shows a society that treats two people who commit the sin of adultery very differently. The woman, Hester Prynne, admits her sin, is forced to always wear a scarlet letter A on her chest, and is excluded from society. The man, Reverend Dimmesdale, hides his sin from the world, is almost worshiped by the townspeople, but is filled with shame for his act. Hawthorne illustrates how insensitive a Puritan society can be to those who admit to their bad deeds. The Crucible is a play that tells the story of the famous witchcraft trials in Salem, Massachusetts. In the story, Abigail Williams, the orphaned niece of the town minister Reverend Parris, is the main person who accuses people of sending their spirit into her and the other girls. What begins with children dancing in the woods leads to the accusation and execution of many innocent people for witchcraft. The two literary works have very similar qualities, including the setting, conflicts, and general aspects of the characters, while there are also specific parallels between the characters, such as Abigail and Hester, and Parris and Dimmesdale. The settings of The Scarlet Letter and Les Creusets are similar in many...... middle of paper ...... ately. Because of this precision, they naturally have many parallels. Both have similar conflicts, settings, and characters. The fact that they have so many parallels is probably why both are considered exceptional works of literature. They both contain the same element of truth and accuracy of Puritan society and will most likely survive as great works of literature. Works cited and consulted Abel, Darrel. The Moral Picturesque: Studies in Hawthorne's Fiction. West Lafayette: Purdue, 1988. Hawthorne, Nathaniel. The scarlet letter. New York: St. Martins, 1991. Hayes, Richard. “Hysteria and ideology in the crucible.” Commonweal 57. February 1953. November 11, 1999. Miller, Arthur. The Crucible. New York: Viking, 1953. Scharnhorst, Gary. The critical response to The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne. New York: Greenwood, 1992.