What are a few truths revealed in The Scarlet Letter Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter

Heralded by
many as the greatest of distincly American novels, byis not only a
portrait of the American Puritan experience, it is also a psychological study of the effects of
sin and guilt and redemption as well as a depiction of human nature, in general.  Tormented by
the "sins of the fathers," especially the memory of his uncle's having been a judge
during the Salem Witchcraft Trials, Hawthorne wrote a novel that is, in effect, an examination
of the cause of such a debacle of Puritanical sanctimony.

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  The hypcrosy of the Puritans is a recurring motif in this novel. 
  Subjugated to imprisoning sin within their hearts, the Puritans become hypocritical and thus,
  tortured by their existence that becomes a lie.  For instance,darkens much like the sinister
  plant thatidentifies with him, and he becomes fiend-like, bent, and decaying.  Likewise, the
  Reverend Dimmesdale is also psychologically tortured.  In this mental torment,...