The Puritans of the Massachusetts Bay colony had originally planned for a government that was to be ruled by God 's laws, however over time the colony would become democratically ruled. Rather than living under a democratic society, John Winthrop, along with other stockholding members, preferred to have the Puritan settlement be run by “godly rule” (9) . The original intention of the Massachusetts Bay colony was to set a model of an uncorrupted church and godly society (12) which would in turn help those in England see God 's will and be saved by it (13) . The Puritans, however did believe in the separation of church and state, but this did not mean a separation of the state from God. Despite the idea of separation, the government still
By negatively depicting the Puritans with his depressing diction, Hawthorne establishes a scornful tone that highlights the Puritan’s
The puritan rhetoric and conception of love does not in any way match with the normal human way of perceiving love. John Winthrop explains it as it is written in the holy Bible, and also expounds it by the use of his knowledge. His explanation out of the Bible are not however as complicated as those of ordinary people, who believe that love is expensive and one has to buy it from a friend. Winthrop convinces the Christians on the simplicity of love, and later brings them to understand that loving one another is the greatest commandment which has a reward at the end. Unlike the rest of the people who are non believers, Winthrop touches on the aspects of love by quoting different verses from the bible.
This journal, “Of Plymouth Plantation”, which was from Norton Anthology of American Literature, Vol. 1, written by William Bradford between 1630 and 1651, and edited by Samuel Eliot Morison in 1953, describes the story of the pilgrims who sailed from Southampton, England, on the Mayflower and settled in Plymouth, Massachusetts, in 1620. Those pilgrims were English Christians in the 16th and 17th centuries and religious separatists who saw no hope of reforming the Church of England from within; therefore, they hoped to separate from the Church of England and form independent local churches in another place. In order to , those pilgrims overcame many obstacles. The author had used the power of rhetoric, especially in the use of the three rhetorical
Another colonial author whose writing was based on his Christian faith was John Winthrop. He was one of the first group of puritans who arrived in Massachusetts in 1630. In his trip from England to America, he gave his sermon A Model of Christian Charity in which he invited the other people on the ship they were travelling, to be an example to the world based on their Christian ideology (91). The puritans had a big attachment to the bible, and they believed that the Scriptures and God were link to all the aspects of their lives such as giving, forgiving, lending, among others.
Jonathan Edwards’s sermon “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God” and Anne Bradstreet’s “Upon the Burning of Our House” seem at first glance quite similar to one another regarding context, however, after taking a closer look, it becomes apparent that there are some substantial differences. These differences cannot be understood without the knowledge of cultural context concerning the Puritan belief system and their lifestyle. “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God” was written with the sole purpose of scaring and intimidating the people that purtinans believed to be sinners. Edwards’s work contributed to a movement called “The Great Awakening”. It’s objective was to make the so-called ‘sinners’ aware of their wrongdoings and compel them to repent.
The New Englanders took religion seriously, making unitary laws according to Puritan standards. John Winthrop, later chosen as the first Massachusetts Bay Colony governor, was seeking religious freedom. Wishing to inspire the colonists to dwell in brotherly unity, he summoned them together to remind them “that if we [colonists] shall deal falsely with our God in this work we have undertaken, and so cause Him to withdraw His present help from us, we shall be made a story and a by-word through the world.” On the other hand, those in the Chesapeake region came for the wealth that America promised. They were there to become prosperous or die trying.
The values that early American writers considered most important were piety, courage, and industry. They were highly honored by the large Puritan population, and these values helped them survive the beginning of the colonies. Overtime, however, different values were stressed more than others. For example, in “Of Plymouth Plantation,” written around 1620, Bradford chooses to write about the piety, courage, and industry of all the settlers in his settlement. In 1630, Winthrop gave his sermon “A Model of Christian Charity,” and in it he motivates his audience using piety and industry as reasons to succeed.
He and John Winthrop were much alike through in their preachings, sharing similar goals. In fact, Cotton even aided Winthrop in the banishment of many opposers to their way of life, such as Anne Hutchinson. Cotton’s written legacy includes a body of correspondence, numerous sermons, a catechism, and in 1646 a shorter catechism for children titled Milk for Babes Cotton too has a sermon that is well known, and it is called “God’s Promises to His Plantation”. It is essentially a pep-rally. He begins with a lovely sermon and goes on to explain that the soon-to-be-American’s are people of destiny, people who are important and remembered in history.
During the colonial period many settlers came to the New World to escape persecution for their Puritan beliefs. Writers such as William Bradford, John Winthrop, Anne Bradstreet, and Mary Rowlandson all shared their experiences and religious devotion throughout their literature that ultimately inspired and influenced settlers to follow. This essay will discuss the similarities in Anne Bradstreet and Mary Rowlandson’s work as they both describe their experiences as signs from God. Anne Bradstreet came to the New World as a devoted Puritan as she repeatedly talked about it in her poetry. In her poems she discusses many tragedies that happened in her life such as; the burning of her house and the death of her two grandchildren all of which she thinks were signs from God.
The subject of this sermon is the ideology of success in the colonies. Winthrop used various emotions to create imagery of the ideal society. He presented the subject through the ideals of God: unity, community, and self-pleasure under the
The metaphors that John Winthrop uses in “A Model of Christian Charity”, specifically relate to religion and the ideals of community and unity. The metaphors consistently point to one God that the Puritans worshiped. I do not believe that there is a gateway between these two examples. There is however, some relationship to a specific number in Christina beliefs, but it is the number three, rather than four with the number three representing the Blessed Trinity, specifically in the Catholic faith.
The arrival of the first Europeans in the Americas is dramatically captured through the many writers who attempted to communicate what they saw, experienced and felt. What is more, the very purposes of their treacherous travel and colonization are clearly seen in their writings; whether it is poetry, history or sermons. Of the many literary pieces available today, William Bradford and John Winthrop’s writings, even though vary because the first is a historical account and the second is a sermon, stand out as presenting a clear trust in God, the rules that would govern them and the reason they have arrived in the Americas. First of all, William Bradford provides an in-depth look into the first moment when the Puritans arrived in the Americas. In fact, he chronicles the hardships they face on their way to Plymouth, yet he includes God’s provision every step of the way.
In The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne, Hawthorne’s more secular view of exceptionalism defies the religious exceptionalist standards introduced in John Winthrop’s sermon “A Model of Christian Charity”. While Winthrop expresses the importance of piety and family in an exceptionalist Puritan society, Hawthorne’s Puritan community in The Scarlet Letter does not emulate these qualities in the way Winthrop intended, demonstrating Hawthorne’s desire to condemn Winthrop’s exceptionalist ideals. Winthrop’s “recipe” for exceptionalism is firmly rooted in the importance of religion and strong family values. Winthrop states that it’s the citizens’ duty to “improve our lives to do more service to the Lord; the comfort and increase of the body of
Nathaniel Hawthorne critiques the harsh rules and punishments of the Puritan colony through the symbolic nature of the characters, his grim diction, and theme