Puritan Society
Puritan Clothing
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Puritan 17th Century clothing
The common 17th century Puritan woman wore a long, dark-colored dress under a white apron, hair up in a bun. The common Puritan man is shown with a dark shirt and pants, a white collar, and--what the Puritans are better known for--their buckled hats.
Government
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The Puritan society and its complications (the Salem Witch Trials, specifically) are one of the major examples of why we avoid the complete combination of church and state today. According to Choice 101.com, which believes it is impossible to fully separate church and state, also believe that--to maintain protecting everyone’s individual religious freedom--there must be a certain fine line of restrictions in between church and state. These restrictions must be there or we cannot fully protect everyone’s right to free religious practice.
The Puritans of the New England colony definitely crossed that line of restrictions. They believed it essential to combine the powers of their government and their religion. Without this fully religious society, they believed that it would tempt God to punish them for those who weren’t religious. The government, therefore, had the power to punish those who weren’t following their religious obligations and therefore tempting God to punish the community. This gives the government too much trust and authority and results in less civilian rights.
The Puritans of the New England colony definitely crossed that line of restrictions. They believed it essential to combine the powers of their government and their religion. Without this fully religious society, they believed that it would tempt God to punish them for those who weren’t religious. The government, therefore, had the power to punish those who weren’t following their religious obligations and therefore tempting God to punish the community. This gives the government too much trust and authority and results in less civilian rights.
A Strong Religious Society
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The Puritans of the Massachusetts Bay Colony reformed from the Church of England. According to buzzle.com, the Puritan beliefs were overly
concerned about attaining God’s grace. The Puritans would work very hard on
religion and keeping it the center of their lifestyle--to keep God on their
side. They believed that if some disaster struck, it was because God was
punishing them, and this is the major reason the Puritans were so
superstitious. If anything bad happened to them, they immediately searched for
the reason why. They strongly believed in being involved in the community and
having regular church meetings.
concerned about attaining God’s grace. The Puritans would work very hard on
religion and keeping it the center of their lifestyle--to keep God on their
side. They believed that if some disaster struck, it was because God was
punishing them, and this is the major reason the Puritans were so
superstitious. If anything bad happened to them, they immediately searched for
the reason why. They strongly believed in being involved in the community and
having regular church meetings.
Famous Events
The Salem Witch Trials
The Salem Witch Trials is the main event in which Puritans are best known for. This trajedy took place in Salem, Massachusetts in 1692. It consisted of hundreds of trials and accusations of witchcraft among the citizens. It all started because some children, feeling restricted by their society and way of life, ran off into the woods to dance and perform rituals. They were caught by a church leader and immediately fled the scene. According to the Crucible, a realistic fiction play about the Trials, the girls fake illness to avoid the leaders from discovering what they did. Since the suspicion of witchcraft was present at the time, the town immediately sent for a “witch expert”. The expert was convinced by the girl's tactics, but to cover it all up, the girls go too far. They began to name generally un-liked people in the community to be witches. The women were put in jail, and the whole town went crazy over this new-found belief--that there really were witches out there. The girls gained a new authority as being able to “see witches” and were respected as the victims of witchcraft. Soon the townsfolk were cynical towards each other, accusing one another of witchcraft. No tangible evidence was needed in the trials; the girls’ testimony was enough to prove someone a witch. If one did not confess of their witchcraft that the girls thought guilty, they’d be hanged. If one confessed of witchcraft, they wouldn’t be hanged but they’d be excommunicated from the church and have their family name dishonored.
Up to 200 people are accused of witchcraft and up to 20 of them are executed for not pleading guilty. How did this witch hysteria spread so fast? How come no one seems to see this craziness? How did these Witch Trials begin?
Causes of the Hysteria
There were several major causes for the Trials. The most common, probably was the combination of church and state. The Salem Witch Trials are a tragic example of what can happen if the government makes laws or decisions based on religious factors. In the Salem Witch Trials, the people didn’t question if the government was doing anything wrong because they didn’t want to question their beliefs. Another major cause for their behaviors were because of diseases like small pox and also the stress of the war with the Indians. The people believed that if all these hardships were occurring, there must be some among them who were deserving of it. So when people were accused, the townsfolk accepted a speedy trial and hoped for the disease and war to pass away. Also “confessing witches”, who by confessing save their own lives, keep the
phenomenon going because it brought some truth to earlier accusations. The last cause were feuds between the congregation, such as property disputes and any other kind of misunderstanding. Brother Putnam is a great example of this during the Trials. He had several property disputes with his neighbors and to take care of this, he had his daughter accuse his neighbor of witchcraft. Once that man was in jail, Putnam ended up with their property. With this in mind, one might wonder how these witch trials finally ended.
phenomenon going because it brought some truth to earlier accusations. The last cause were feuds between the congregation, such as property disputes and any other kind of misunderstanding. Brother Putnam is a great example of this during the Trials. He had several property disputes with his neighbors and to take care of this, he had his daughter accuse his neighbor of witchcraft. Once that man was in jail, Putnam ended up with their property. With this in mind, one might wonder how these witch trials finally ended.
The End of the Madness
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Portrait of George Burroughs prayer when he is about to be hung,1692.
The Salem Witch Trials came to a close when several honest individuals wouldn’t confess witchcraft , even to save their lives. When the townsfolk saw how many people were willing to die instead of confess, they began to realize there might be missing some truth. One young man, before he was hanged for witchcraft, recited a prayer perfectly to the entire crowd. This contradicted the townsfolk’s belief about witches not being able to say prayers, and contradicted the townsfolk’s former beliefs about witches. Their beliefs began to change so much that, it seemed suspicious and roused questions. The major contributing factor is that a few of the girls run away and aren’t heard from again. Those brave individuals who remained true to their values and their "American Dream" will continued to be honored today.