Puritan Ideals and Literature A. Concepts of Puritanism

The Puritans were a group that had suffered religious persecution in the Old World and came to America for the sole purpose of establishing their religion in a place where they would be free of persecution of any type.

Persecution Having endured personal persecution in England and elsewhere, the Puritans, in turn, became the persecutors when they arrived in America.

The Puritans were a type who felt that their way of life was absolutely right, and all other ways were wrong. They would allow no person to remain in the community who was not a member in good standing with the church

Basic Puritan Beliefs (Taken from Paul Reuben’s Perspectives in American Literature) Total Depravity—through Adam’s fall, every human is born sinful—concept of Original Sin.

Unconditional Election—God “saves” those he wishes—only a few are selected for salvation—concept of predestination.

Irresistible Grace—God’s grace is freely given, it cannot be earned or denied. Grace is defined as the saving and transfiguring power of God.

Perseverance of the “saints”—those elected by God have full power to interpret the will of God, and to live uprightly. If anyone rejects grace after feeling its power in his life, he will be going against the will of God—something impossible in Puritanism.

Limited Atonement—Jesus died for the chosen only, not for everyone.

The Doctrine of the Elect (Predestination or foreordination) The Puritans believed that when a person is born or at any given time later, he might be chosen by God to become one of the Elect, that is, one of the people who would receive divine salvation.

There is nothing that man himself could do to achieve this state; instead it was entirely predestined by God. In terms of The Crucible, if God can elect certain people to be saved, it was highly possible that the devil could select certain people to be bewitched.

For the Puritans, the Devil was not some abstract figure but was a vivid and active enemy of mankind.

This concept is used in the play when Reverend Hale mentions that the Devil’s ways are manifold and if the Devil were able to deceive God, then it would be easy for Him to deceive man.

Theocracy The Puritans believed in a government that was totally controlled by the church.

If a person were not a member of the church, he could not vote in elections, much less hold offices.

If a person like John Proctor did not attend church, he could be punished and excommunicated from the church, thereby losing all of his property and rights.

During the play, the fact that Proctor has not been attending church regularly is held against him as incriminating evidence.

A person who does not know the catechism of the church also becomes suspect.

One of the worst sins a man or woman could commit was adultery.

The Function of Puritan Writers To transform a mysterious God—mysterious because he is separate from the world. To make Him more relevant to the universe. To glorify God.

The Style of Puritan Writing Protestant—against ornate ness; reverence for the Bible. Purposiveness—there was a purpose to Puritan writing.

Puritan writing reflected the character and scope of the reading public, which was literate and well-grounded in religion.

Reasons for Puritan Literary Dominance over the Virginians

Puritans were basically middle-class and fairly well educated. Virginians were tradesmen and separated from English writing. Puritans were children of the covenant; gave them a drive and a purpose to write.

Common themes in Puritan Writing Idealism—both religious and political. Pragmatism—practically and purposeful

Forces Undermining Puritanism A person’s natural desire to do good—this works against predestination. Dislike of a “closed” life. Resentment of the power of the few over the many.

Change in economic conditions—growth of fishery, farms, etc. The presence of the frontier—concept of self-reliance, individualism, and optimism.

Presence of the leaders of dissent Ann Hutchinson, Roger Williams.

Change in political conditions—Massachusetts became a crown colony. Theocracy suffered from a lack of flexibility. Growth of rationality—use of the mind to know God—less dependence on the Bible