1. Puritan literature

2. Who were they? • A small group of Europeans sailed from England in The Mayflower in 1620. They were religious reformers- Puritans, who were critical of the church of England. • Formed colonies based on The Bible, with a theocracy: a state under the immediate guidance of God.

3. What were their beliefs? • Believed in predestination: John Calvin’s doctrine that God has already decided who will achieve salvation and who will not. • Extremely disciplined, hard-working, and pure • Puritans had a strong belief in education for both men and women. They founded Harvard College and set up the first printing press in the colonies.

4. What do we need to know about Puritan Literature? • dominated by religion • Typically wrote theological studies, hymns, histories, biographies, and autobiographies. • When they wrote in journals or diaries, their aim was the serious kind of self-explanation they practiced in other aspects of their lives. • Fiction and drama was considered sinful and not produced. • Poetry was allowed as a vehicle of spiritual expression.

5. Literature continued… • Puritans believed in a plain style of writing where a clear statement is the highest goal (they believed an ornate or clever style would be a sign of vanity which was not part of God’s will) • Often used apostrophe- a figure of speech in which a speaker directly addresses an absent person or a personified object or idea. EX- Thou sword at my left hand, wilt thou serve me in the coming battle?

6. Puritan beliefs we must understand to analyze this literature: • self is less important than community (this is why we are studying the use of hyphens in adjectives today. Think self-centered, self-esteem, self-assured) • Very hypocritical (write how here) • Why? - bandwagon? - fear? - disgust? - anger?