Journals of Puritans - 688 Words

Puritan journals offer some of the most rewarding insight into the daily life, social context, and worldview of the early colonists. The journals of Puritans differ considerably, especially according to gender. Gender roles were highly stratified, and Puritan journals reveal as much. Individual journals also offer compelling life stories told with literary flair. Their ability to use the narrative structure in their journals remains one of the most distinguishing features of the Puritan journals. For example, the journal of Mary Rowlandson describes her capture by the Native Americans, who the author describes as barbarous creatures. The story offers a riveting account of the real life encounter with the people that Puritans so feared for their perceived savagery and lack of commitment to the Christian God. In addition to their strong literary structure, one of the main characteristics of Puritan journals is their xenophobia. The Puritans were stalwart in their commitment to Christia n values, norms, and dogma. Descriptions of the encounters with Native Americans described in the Rowlandson journal are remarkably similar to the way that William Bradford describes the Romans treatment of Christ: bloody and barbarous persecutions of the Heathen Emperours. Connected with their xenophobia is the pilgrims concern with preserving their Christian identity and heritage. Christianity might be the most prevalent theme throughout Puritan life in general, which is expressed fullyShow MoreRelatedPuritanism And Its Effect On Society1457 Words   |  6 PagesStudies from â€Å"Puritanism/Religion† show that what set Puritanism apart from the rest was the way it was preached and the intense experience it gave many. The style and teaching of the Bible have evolved over time. According to the â€Å"Journal of Church and State,† the Puritans connected a covenant relationship with unifying themselves (2014). McMahon (n.d.) stated they wanted a pure church with the Word of God. Preachers In Salem The path to becoming a preacher started very early on in their lives. StatedRead MorePuritanism Covenant and the Perfect Society in New England1536 Words   |  7 PagesPuritanism Covenant and the Perfect Society in New England When the Puritans came to New England, they came to settle with a clear society in mind. Not only would this society be free from the persecution that they endured in Old England; it would be free to create what the leader of the religion referred to as a perfect society. In their attempt to escape the persecution they had come so accustomed to, they set up their own rigid belief system based on the inclusion of the human soul andRead MoreAnalysis Of Anne Bradstreet s Writing1105 Words   |  5 PagesAnne Bradstreet is a poet of the seventeenth century who has an extremely solid Puritan voice. The Puritans were an assembly of English Protestants that formed in the sixteenth century. The Puritans wanted to purify the church by following powerful, strict religious philosophies which later on earned them the name Puritans. They assumed that they were God’s chosen people and that they are an admirable example for the rest of the world, attempting to create a model for America. Bradstreet is one ofRead MoreEssay Role of Religion in Early American Literature619 Words   |  3 Pagesearliest settlers in America, the Puritans. The reason the Puritans had made the voyage across the Atlantic and to America was for reasons of practicing their faith and writing provided a means to lay down their expectations from their new life and the hard work needed to sustain life was enhanced by stories of fortitude and courage. The religious component of American literature can also be understood in relation to the strong influence exerted by the Puritans in the early years of settlementRead MoreAnalysis Of Young Goodman Brown1179 Words   |  5 Pagesthat â€Å"Hawthorne (1999) reveals the emotions and beliefs of any individual who may go through the same process by holding up a mirror to reflect the private psychological and spiritual experience of the protagonist, a puritan young man named Young Goodman Brown, questioning the puritan values of the community† (Kumra 2). These claims support that Hawthorne uses these psychological techniques to go deeper into the elusive aspect of human consciousness. Following this, it is hard to tie down NathanielRead MorePuritanism in American Literature Essay1149 Words   |  5 PagesPuritanism in American Literature The Puritans had a large influence in American literature and still influence moral judgment and religious beliefs in the United States to this day. Puritan writing was used to glorify God and to relate God more directly to our world. Puritan literature was commonly a realistic approach to life. â€Å"Puritanism as a historical phenomenon and as a living presence in American life has enriched American literature in ways far too numerous to detail here.† (GRead MoreA Model Of Christian Charity1525 Words   |  7 PagesWilliam J. Diaz Prof. Lopez English 473 March 4, 2015 â€Å"TITLE† A Model of Christian Charity is a sermon, or more of a simple speech delivered by Winthrop in order to inspire his fellow Puritans who sailed in order to settle in the New England. This speech was given in order to keep them committed to their new settlement. It was most probably not intended to be a timeless piece of literature that it became later on. John Winthrop’s â€Å"A Model of Christian Charity† is also known as â€Å"A City on a Hill†Read MoreWhat Can Historians Learn From This Document About How As Married Man Saw His Role As Head Of The1108 Words   |  5 Pagesof over fifty journals written over a twenty years period, of which seven originals remain. The purpose of this document is described in Grell (2016 p.81) as a means of private and later public record relating of Wallington’s reflections of his religious struggle for salvation as a sinner that believes he belongs to the â€Å"Elect†, those predestined for salvation. This autobi ographical work provided historians with primary source of evidence of the thoughts and beliefs of a Puritan married man, andRead MoreReis, Elizabeth.Damned Women: Sinners And Witches In Puritan1363 Words   |  6 PagesWitches in Puritan New England. Ithaca and London: Cornell University Press, 1997. Thesis: Reis argues that through reading about the colonial Puritan s conception of sin and Satan, readers will expand their cultural and historical understanding of how people act on their religious belief...and how those religiously informed actions both reflect and prescribe their own particular gender arrangements, often to the detriment of women (10). In short, women were negatively affected by the Puritan beliefRead MoreWomen s Rights Of Women1141 Words   |  5 Pagesweek 2 discussion: â€Å"Bradstreet’s poems about her family show her skeptical readers that her poetry didn’t take precedence over her family. This helped her maintain a better reputation as a Puritan woman, even with a published book of poems. Pattie Cowell explains that Bradstreet’s poems reflected the â€Å"Puritan spiritual and communal vision that informed her life† (419) Cowell goes on to point out that Bradstreet only writes her poems as a reaction to the events in her life, r ather than attempting