Life in Colonial America

The Puritans that arrived in America from 1630 to 1649 prompted by religious persecution made a commitment to the “covenant” with God, whom had ordered the puritans to “fly into the wilderness”, (Reich, 2011, p. 72). This “covenant” was to bind all residents tightly together both religiously and socially. Centered on a common pasture, a village could consist of a meetinghouse, land and multiple family homes that support the whole group or a “city on the hill” (Brinkley, 2010, p. 76), (Reich, 2011, p. 72). The social unit, whom was tightly knit in the early years of the Massachusetts colony, began to strain and many challenges arose as time passed affected this social structure, mainly the increasing commercialism of the surrounding New England society (Nash, 2010, p. 73). In addition to this the population growth that could not be supported with the current land, expansion occurred with families moving further and further from the center and even breaking up into smaller societies essentially breaking away from the church (Reich, 2011, pg. 74-75), (Brinkley, 2010, p. 77). The response to the increasing separation of this utopia was the incorporation of a form of authoritarian government, limited to those filled with God’s grace according to the groups established norms or laws (Nash, 2010, p. 73). This concern of separation of the puritan communities never did subside, but multiplied as other men and woman entered the colonies and attempted to impose their power and beliefs like Roger Williams or Anne Hutchinson (Nash, 2010, p. 74). The leaders of the time, their response to maintain this homogeneity society banished people that were not congruent to their ideals and demonstrated they would go to any length to ensure this ...

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