Too Close to God, Too Far From Man In the short story , by Nathaniel Hawthorne, lusts for knowledge that leads him on a quest for the unpardonable sin. The unpardonable sin, as one may interpret, is pride and self-gain. It is a loss of the brotherhood with man, and a loss of respect for God. Once this knowledge is gained, he faces alienation from all those around him. In searching for this sinful knowledge, leads himself into intellectual isolation. He cannot separate his head from his heart, his intellect from his soul. After tending the ki ....