In some of his most-famous works of literature, specifically "The Scarlet Letter," "Young Goodman Brown," and "The Birth Mark," Nathaniel Hawthorne utilizes sharp internal and external conflict to express his beliefs on the nature of sin. By contrasting the sinful protagonist in each of these writings against the unforgiving Puritanical society, Hawthorne shows where this society's values are skewed and unjust. Evident through these three works of literature, society's view on what is wrong and right, evil and good, is often hypocritical and unfair.

In The Scarlet Letter, Hawthorne depicts the adulterous Hester Prynne and Arthur Dimmesdale in a conflict against the Puritanical society they live in.. After a night of passion with Dimmesdale, Hester, a "heroine of tragedy" (Nolte 170) is charged with adultery is forced to wear a scarlet letter "A" on her chest at all times. Hester's crime complicates when she gives birth to Pearl, Dimmesdale's...