Although death was the penalty for adultery in Old Testament times, the Puritans often whipped offenders publicly. What should the penalty have been for Hester's crime? What was her penalty?

Looking back at it now, Hester was about the only genuine character in the story. He child and relationship was borne out of love rather than Puritan hypocrisy. So, I would have made her a psychologist for all the twisted people in the village. Unfortunately her penalty was to be branded and shamed publicly. She probably was in fact a reminder of the sort of thing everybody wished they had done!