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p; “Puritanism was entirely English in its origin, yet the movement achieved its greatest influence in America. The 17th century colonies in New England represent the fullest development of the movement.”[3]P22 Puritanism is the practices and beliefs of the Puritans. The Puritans were originally members of a division of the Protestant Church, who came into existence in the reigns of Queen Elizabeth and King James I. The first Puritans to arrive in America were Separatists. A new group of Separatists fled England in 1607---1609, to the north of Plymouth, in the area around Boston, other Puritans began arriving in 1628---1630. They came over under the auspices of the Massachusetts Bay Company, a corporation with rights to the area of land lying between the Charles and the Merrimack rivers.
They came to America out of various reasons, but it should be remembered that they were a group of serious, religious people, advocating highly religious and moral principles. They believe that the church should be restored to complete “purity”, they accepted the doctrine of predestination, original sin and to本论文由英语论文网www.51lunwen.org整理提供tal depravity, and limited atonement through a special infusion of grace from God. Puritans’ lives were extremely disciplined and hard. As a culture heritage, Puritanism did have a profound influence on the early American mind. American Puritanism also had a enduring influence on American literature. It had become, to some extent, so much a state of mind, so much a part of the national cultural atmosphere, rather than a set of tenets.
“Puritans includes people from the humblest to the loftiest ranks of English society, educated and uneducated, poor and rich” [4]P91“The Puritans were indebted to John Calvin and the example of the Calvinist tradition. Another source of Puritanism was the Bible, considered the sole authority in matters of faith” It has the following thoughts: “The Puritans demand greater purity and stricter obedience to the will of God, Englishmen in the 16th called such person: “Puritans”, a name derived from the Latin word for pure, and intended as a criticism of the reformers for being too extreme in their demands.” [5]P21 “Puritan opposition to pleasure and the arts has sometimes been exaggerated.” [6]P91

3．The analysis of characters
3.1 Hester Prynne
Hester Prynne was a woman who committed adultery, which is representation of evil of human nature in Puritans’eye, and cannot be accepted by the puritans and the society at that time and. Hester betrayed her husband and went against the principle of honesty according to Puritanism, so she must accept the severe penalty in the puritan society, wearing a scarlet letter “A” on her breast all her life which means “adultery”. “At the least, they should have put the brand of a hot iron on Hester Prynne’s forehead.” “This woman has brought shame upon us all, and ought to die.” [7]P43 The  women’s vicious curse was the supplement of the puritanical code of law. To the puritans, the civilized life was to throw the human nature into the prison. Here, we can see the writer’s negation to the Gail-the symbol of the Puritanism. But “And never had Hester本论文由英语论文网www.51lunwen.org整理提供 Prynne appeared more ladylike, in the antique interpretation of the term, than as she issued from the prison.” [8]P45 “The door of the jail being flung open from within, there appeared, in the first place, like a black shadow emerging into sunshine, the grim and grisly pre本论文由英语论文网提供整理，提供论文代写，英语论文代写，代写论文，代写英语论文，代写留学生论文，代写英文论文，留学生论文代写相关核心关键词搜索。