1. Characteristics of a Jeremiad are sorrow, complaining, mournfulness, and bitter lamentation. Mary Rowlandson's text functions as a jeremiad by quoting scripture from the books of Isaiah and Jeremiah. It also contains the characteristic I have mentioned before. Rowlandson laments over the sinfulness of her community, while quoting scripture to justify the punishments as from God Himself.
2. Internal doubt caused problems for the Puritan's as well as external enemies. They, however, believed these problems were here because of their own interpretations of Scripture from the Bible. These problems put Puritans against each other, struggling to perform their sacred errand . The Native American's and witches, enemies of the Puritan's, were considered to be those who would oppress the Puritans who believed religiously that they were in the right.
3. Some example of post-Puritan Jeremiads are Sacvan Berovitch and David Howard-Pitney. The Jeremiad form can be found in contemporary literature, culture, and politics, especially after a tragedy. The Jeremiad form is most useful then to help explain these tragic occurrences to people. The Jeremiad has remained a central component of rhetoric of the American public life because it helps explain the unexplainable. It accomplishes this by using the power of God to do so.
You May Also Find These Documents Helpful
-
2. Identify the color of the mineral oil layer in the test tube when each of the following species is present: I2, Br2, Cl2, I–, Br–, and Cl–.…
- 272 Words
- 2 Pages
Satisfactory Essays -
1) Puritans did not want to separate from the Church of England. They wanted to "purify" it of practices they considered too Catholic. The Puritans believed that the holy Church did not abide by the biblical commands strong enough, and so they didn’t like that virtuous morals.…
- 472 Words
- 2 Pages
Good Essays -
The New World was not without its conflicts as evidenced in the many disputes the Puritans such as Bradford and his Separatists along with Winthrop and his Congregationalists had with other parties who were regarded as dissenters. The causes of such disputes did indeed vary but the inherent reason under all of them was thought to be the Puritan leaders’ defensive nature along with their desire to interpreting history so as to make it compatible with Calvinistic theology. This thus brings varying discrepancies in the early American literature such as those of Thomas Morton and William Bradford who describe similar events but with varying points of view thus reaching different conclusions.…
- 1575 Words
- 7 Pages
Better Essays -
But if to observe this issue from the Native American perspective, we would definitely notice that the practices of Puritans were extremely intimidating and they significantly damaged the authentic American culture. Therefore, such change would only mean the total revision of moral and family values among Indians who could sacrifice their traditions, culture, religion and language, beginning to live in European style. Some scientists even speculate that Puritans were intended to use their practices in order to strengthen their control over the densely inhabited area. Through the establishment of a colony and through the implementation of their Puritanism, they wanted the native population to accept all their obligations and to feel positive about their colonization. The Puritans did not have the moral right to mix religion with politics. The creation of colony implied the use of power and control for social order. Nowhere in the Bible has one seen such things. And this is one more evidence to state that Puritans failed to build their “City upon a Hill” or their ideal society. They failed to realize the Bible itself and the words of Jesus. None of the Puritans denied himself, none of them was peaceful and none was intended to help, caring exclusively about personal…
- 801 Words
- 4 Pages
Good Essays -
They believed completely in the church and feared when someone or something acted out. The Puritans are misunderstood in the eyes of the twenty-first century for their extreme reactions to witchcraft, the Devil, and God. The Salem Witch Trials are one of the most interesting pieces of history. Numerous women, and even some men, were accused of witchcraft. The hysteria started with a few young women claiming to have seen the devil.…
- 574 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
Jeremiads- A long literary work in which the author bitterly laments the state of society and its morals in a serious tone.…
- 627 Words
- 3 Pages
Satisfactory Essays -
depravity. This profoundly affected how some women responded to witchcraft. The Puritan culture is based upon the fear of the devil, and this is why they are very religious. It was preached over and over to these followers that since the day they were born through the rest of their lives, they have a constant battle with the devil for their souls. During the sermons, the people were categonzedinto three groups: those who considered themselves among the elect, those who…
- 1820 Words
- 8 Pages
Powerful Essays -
The puritan religion had very strict behavioral characteristics. It is said that Salem had a fear that the Devil had been trying to infiltrate the Christian community and had been giving certain people power to harm others in return for their loyalty. Puritans feared their religion was under attack and worried they were losing control of their colony. The political instability and threat to their religion created a feeling of uneasiness and discontent in the Massachusetts Bay Colony. There was a consensus that the Devil had been the reason for all the hardships the colonists had faced.…
- 1308 Words
- 6 Pages
Better Essays -
An example of jeremiad is in The Narrative of the Captivity and the Restoration of Mrs. Mary Rowlandson by Mary Rowlandson, when Mrs. Rowlandson describe the third remove and how sick her son was and that they didn't have food just little cold water to drink. She is thinking why this happen to her, then she remembered, "I then remembered how careless I had been of God's holy time; how many Sabbaths I had lost and misspent, and how evilly I had walked in God's sight; which lay so close unto my spirit, that it was easy for me to see how righteous it…
- 453 Words
- 2 Pages
Satisfactory Essays -
They Puritans goal in instituting their religion was to purify Christianity. It is unlikely that they realized just how influential they would be on New England culture in the years to come. Though many Americans might not enjoy this fact, the social and religious ideas that the Puritans held were essential in the shaping of New England colonies. The ways in which the Puritans socially, economically, and politically applied their religion into daily life greatly changed all the people of New England, for better or for worse. This is proven in how people reacted to their strict rules, the Puritan relations with the Native Americans, and in general their church centered society.…
- 233 Words
- 1 Page
Good Essays -
The Puritans, on the other hand, did not have this problem. In different villages all over Massachusetts, Puritans would help each other to create a hardworking and harmonious lifestyle among themselves. Due to them having similar ideologies, Puritans lived and worked as one and did not have many conflicts among them. They were eager to support and understand one another without any sort of reward. By using this is ideal, people could communicate with each other and become united. Many people may argue that the Puritans were not accepting if any committed any mistakes or errors; instead, you faced public shame and humiliation. One example was the Salem Witch Trials which came about with the help of rumors, gossip, and superstition. As a result, “witches” suffered through torture and execution in front of the entire village. Even though the Puritans lived through conflict such as the Salem Witch Trials, in the end they were able to resolve their problems and remained a humble and close community. Their ability to maintain a united group of people had been one of their most valuable views which could be an advantage to societies today and make them…
- 447 Words
- 2 Pages
Good Essays -
The Puritans believed that God had created a special, rare bond with them. God wanted them to live their life according to the Bible, and to try to be good people, The attempted to reform the Anglican church, to no success. In order to be a part of the church, there had to be some sort of proof…
- 388 Words
- 2 Pages
Satisfactory Essays -
In the community, Puritans didn't have much of wealth differences. Therefore, they had no social hierarchy. All of the Puritans also had good work ethic. They all were strong and hardworking people. They were people that believed they were the chosen ones of God. They believed that man had no control over his destiny, that they as one individual, decided that for themselves, meaning that they didn’t believe in predestination. Predestination, being one of the factors they disagreed with with England. Puritans were all close in what their values were. You were shunned for almost anything that went against God’s word. A major thing that happened was when supernatural things started happening. This caused a big uproar in Puritan society. People claimed to be witches, and they started believing that the Devil himself was among them. Once again, the New England Puritans were primarily based on the word of God. In conclusion, if you did anything against God’s word, you would be looked down upon by the…
- 565 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
They were afraid for their lives from witches, who they believed had great supernatural powers and that they could destroy the towns. They also were afraid of letting a witch go, because a vengeful witch attacking the town would have severely damaged the town and its people. There was also no sense that they were doing anything wrong. This is because they had no other context to judge their actions, no outside force to look inwardly on them and declare them to be ridiculous or paranoid. They only had their own laws to follow, and they followed their laws correctly. What is a society without laws? The Puritans had to follow their laws because without them, their society would fall into anarchy, and that would cause more damage than any witch trial could. From their point of view, they were doing the right thing, and that makes them reasonable. Only an unreasonable person does things that they don’t believe to be right. All of this is important because it explains the Puritans’ actions. How could they be reasonable while also killing people in trials for a reason that we don’t believe existed? Given all of the background information, it is clearer to see how the Puritans were reasonable.…
- 1426 Words
- 6 Pages
Better Essays -
The Dictionnaire de la Bible (1693) says that: « Among all the holy books, there is nothing more affective, more sensible, more touching than the lamentations, where it seems that the prophet or the holy spirit through that prophet, has collected all the subjects of sadness and compassion to touch readers, and move them to tears and to groans.»1 Indeed, by Charpentiers time, Jeremiads had become a rhetorical commonplace, and if you like the sensational, terrible and touching, you should, according to Bretteville2, turn to Jeremiah. Dante quotes the Quomodo sedet sola civitas in book XXX of Vita Nuova, lamenting the death of Beatrice; the lutheran priests in Germany during the thirty years war used it as a model to lament the state of affairs3;…
- 140 Words
- 1 Page
Good Essays