The Crucible and The Scarlet Letter are two books that are similar, but also different. Both books are set in early America and the main religion is Puritan. They also have characters who are “rebels” and do something against society’s standards. There are also differences in the books such as, the characters who rebel against society changing their ways and becoming better people vs. characters who don’t change their ways. There is also a difference in how the towns treat the people who sin. The two books have similarities and differences, which I will discuss in this paper. The Crucible and The Scarlet Letter are both set in a Puritan community in early America. “...the people of Salem developed a theocracy, a combine of state and religious power whose function was to keep the community together…” (Miller). “...at a later period in the history of New england, the grim rigidity that petrified the bearded physiognomies of these good people...” (Hawthorne). The Puritan standards are very rigid. They believe that if you commit any sin you should be put in jail or killed. Both books contain characters who are accused of a sin that wouldn’t be as big of a deal now - and punishments that would be considered cruel and unusual punishment now - such as public shame and hanging. Abigail in The Crucible and Hester Prynne in The Scarlet Letter both commit similar sins. Abigail is intimate with a married man and Hester is intimate with someone who isn’t her husband. “I look for John Proctor who took me from my sleep and put knowledge in my heart!” (Miller). “...heard of Mistress Prynne and her evil doings.” (Hawthorne). They were probably both lonely and decided to have affairs even though it was highly condemned in the Puritan society. I think Hester, at the beginning of the book, is similar to Abigail because they are both being rebellious, but try to hide what they’ve done. The book starts after Hester is found guilty which is different than in The Crucible, but in “The Custom House", a chapter that explains everything that happened before the book actually starts, it explains what Hester did and other things about the book. A difference between Abigail and Hester is that Hester gets pregnant, so the whole town knew what she did. Not very many people knew what happened with Abigail and Proctor. Hester also changed her ways after she sinned. The town forgave her and she began to do good things in the community. “Hester Prynne came to have a part to perform in the world” (Hawthorne). Abigail continued to misbehave throughout the The Crucible. Abigail rebelled against society the entire book while Hester became a better person. “Abigail led the girls to the woods…” (Miller). Another difference between The Crucible and The Scarlet Letter is how the towns treat people who sin. In Salem, anyone who sins is almost immediately hanged. “The Deputy Governor promise hangin’ if they’ll not confess” (Miller). The townsfolk where Hester Prynne lived were a little more lenient. Since Abigail’s affair was never proven because of the witch trial craziness we don’t really know what would have happened to her, but I would guess that she’d be hung. She is pretty lucky to get away with what she did in such a strict community. Hester Prynne was thrown in jail and forced to wear an “A” on her chest which is not near as bad as death. “Thus the young and poor would be though to look at her, with the scarlet letter flaming on her breast…” (Hawthorne). Overall, there are many things to compare and contrast in The Crucible and The Scarlet Letter. I think there are quite a few similarities such as the setting and certain characters. There are also many differences in them such as how characters change and how the towns operate. The books are similar, but each author made them their own and different from any other book.