His family’s name originally was Hathorne, but to avoid tying himself to his violent ancestors he later added the “w”.
It started off when Nathaniel injured his leg and had to remain immobile for a very long period of time, during which he developed a taste for reading and thinking. 
His wealthy uncles helped pay him into Bowdoin College, where he made many famous friends, like Franklin Pierce and Henry W. Longfellow. Later in life, he befriended Herman Melville, who wrote Moby-Dick.
After being dismissed as surveyor from the Custom House in Salem, he wrote The Scarlet Letter.
Salem at that time of his book was primarily occupied by the Puritans, who had tried to isolate themselves from outside ideas, but failed, obviously, because Hester Prynne was not executed literally.
Though we may now think that Puritan religion is ridiculous and harsh, Puritan ethics are very much prevalent in our society now. Many people in our society strive to have and practice good morals; to work hard and have self-discipline to achieve salvation. Laws were made to be broken, but they were also made to dispose of/correct those who strayed from the path of Puritan ethics. Or in more general terms, we are all seeking rewards for righteous, hard work. For those that do not, they can spend their happy lives in jail or in Hell.
As for Hester Prynne, she was merely humiliated and shunned for committing adultery. Nowadays, adultery is not a crime, but it isn’t going to get onto the List of Morally-Correct Things anytime soon.
I think Puritan roots can be found in many other places, but ultimately, Puritanism has taught us an uncommon common sense: stick to your morals, and work hard.
-JY
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