American Literature During the Colonial Period

698 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Thomas Paine's Common Sense (essay)

American Literature During the Colonial Period

During the colonization of America, especially after the start of the Enlightenment movement in the late seventeenth century, science and religion were at a crossroads. On the scientific and rationalist side of the coin, you had philosophers and scientists such as Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Paine, whose pamphlet, Common Sense, was what inspired many in the colonies to push for revolution. You also have others like Francis Bacon and Isaac Newton. John Locke and Thomas Hobbes. All of these men, in a way, contributed to the political atmosphere and the way of thought at that time, and many still do today (Isaac Newton being the best example of that). On the other side, you had preachers who often instilled fear into their listeners, prime examples being John Edwards and James Davenport. Other influential theologians of the time include Thomas Hooker and Richard Hooker, John Calvin, who began the Calvinist movement, and Roger Williams, who had key ideas still used today, like those of religious freedom and separation of church and state. The philosophical battle started in America by these opposing sides still wages on today.
If you look back through the history of humans, religion has always had the most influence at any given time. Whether you’re looking at the Aztecs, who mistook Hernan Cortes as a god, allowing him to conquer them with ease, or the Ancient Egyptians and Romans, who had a god to explain everything they couldn’t understand. Science has always been in the background of these societies. You had the Aztecs, Incas, and Mayans were advanced far beyond they’re time in the fields of math and science. Galileo Galilei was exiled and banned from teaching ideas of Heliocent...

... middle of paper ...

...congregation is illegal, or we could live in a country where religion no longer has any presence, which may be worse in than a country where religion is overly present. Whether you like it or not, religion and rationalism both played a key part in the foundation of our country, that allowed and still allows us to live the lives we live today.

Works Cited

Paine, Thomas (1776). Common Sense. Philadelphia, PA: R. Bell.

Franklin, Benjamin (1793). Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin (English Version). London, England: J. Parson’s

Various Biographies of Colonial Religious Leaders from http://www.theopedia.com.

Various Biographies of Colonial Rationalist Leaders from http://www.history.com.

BASIC Knowledge on Colonial Religious and Rationalist Leaders from http://www.wikipedia.org/.

APA Bibliography Guideline from https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/01/.

Show More
Related

  • The Great Awakening: George Washington Vs. Jonathon Edwards

    1165 Words  | 3 Pages

    The Great Awakening was before the American Revolution, therefore the forefront in the minds of many colonists was religion. But, it also caused some tensions between religious ideologies. The American Revolutionary era was a period where the nation was finding an identity to unify with. Both George Washington and Jonathon Edwards, believed that religion was necessary for the stability of a nation. However, the way how Washington and Edwards accomplished their plans with religion were different. The differences between the two men show varying degrees of religious acceptance. Both men wanted religion in America, but only by their own definition of religious acceptance.

    Read More

  • Which had the most far-reaching impact on American culture:

    828 Words  | 2 Pages

    Prior to Enlightenment the colonists, like the Europeans, were guided by their fear of God and rulers. They followed their church’s teachings blindly, as many of them could not read the scripture themselves. As the colonists began to educate themselves, they found that their interpretation of the readings did not always match what was preached to them in Sunday’s sermon. Even with the vamped up services and revivals during the Awakening many continued to question organized religion and separate from the Catholic Church. Many smaller denominations resulted from these breaks caused by the Awakening, leading to the Protestant Reformation. Martin Luther even wrote entire doctrines based on his differences of opinion which would eventually form the basis for the Lutheran Church. The colonists also questioned the authority of their European rulers. Many believed that God himself had put their rulers in charge, but with all the political disasters and condemnation they were seeing they began to question their...

    Read More

  • How Did Religion Influence Colonial America Today

    941 Words  | 2 Pages

    America today has changed tremendously throughout the years not only politically but also religiously. From the first colonists who came to America for religious independence to todays melting pot of different religious and cultural backgrounds. They had to get their differences somewhere, and what better place than America. It all started in colonial America, with the first settlers. Among these colonists there are a few major names and topics that help to shape colonial America into what it is now. These individuals impacted America’s religious development greatly, with their new ideas and foreign advancements in religious prosperity.

    Read More

  • Deism and Changes in Religious Tolerance in America

    2215 Words  | 5 Pages

    Religious conscience in America has evolved considerably since the first settlers emigrated here from Europe. Primary settlements were established by Puritans and Pilgrims who believed "their errand into the wilderness [America] was above all else a religious errand, and all institutions - town meeting, school, church, family, law-must faithfully reflect that fact" (Gaustad 61). However, as colonies grew, dissenters emerged to challenge Puritan authority; indeed, many of them left the church to join untraditional religious sects such as "the Ranters, the Seekers, the Quakers, the Antinomians, and the Familists" (Westbrook 26). Debates over softening the stance on tolerance in the church engendered hostility in many religious leaders, priming some officials to take action. Whether it was in direct response to "the liberalizing tendencies beginning to take hold in some [. . .] New England churches" (Westbrook 65), or a "reaction against the attempt in the Age of Reason to reduce Christian doctrine to rationalistic explanation" ("Great Awakening"), the Great Awakening impressed upon the issues of religious conscience. Moreover, what spawns from this controversy is a query over the juxtaposition of morality and spirituality: the question of whether these conditions are actually related. The gradual escalation of unconventional thinking in religious affairs facilitated new ideas on what defined spirituality; one religious theory, boosted by Thomas Paine and his book, The Age of Reason, denounced both Christianity and Atheism, proposing instead, a new concept: the middle path of Deism.

    Read More

  • The Literary Use of Religion by John Smith and William Bradford

    693 Words  | 2 Pages

    Religion plays a major role in the day to day lives of the early settlers in America. So much so, that early colonial writers use it as a form of literary persuasion. John Smith and William Bradford were two such writers.

    Read More

  • How Did Literature Change In American Literature

    1448 Words  | 3 Pages

    From the very beginning of creating America as a country, American literature was formed from writing letters with different languages to describe the new land and nation until writers wrote novels, poems, sermons, and narratives. By the mid - nineteen century, American literature stepped into a new realm, and many different ideas including economic, religious and political reforms caused big changes in American literature, which affected American society as well. There were many far-famed abolitionist writers in American society that wrote different passages about slavery, and they fought against slavery in their writings. These writers described the condition of African American slaves in the plantation region and made narratives of fugitive

    Read More

  • The Emerging American Character During the 1700’s

    581 Words  | 2 Pages

    (7 There once was an Italian man by the name of Amerigo Vespucci, who sailed the seas and explored South America. And later named America after himself.

    Read More

  • A Scientific Understanding of God

    468 Words  | 1 Pages

    A Scientific Understanding of God Two eighteenth century movements, the Enlightenment and the Great Awakening, changed American colonists’ views on reason and wisdom. The Enlightenment, led by philosophers such as John Locke, emphasized abstract thought to acquire knowledge. The European and American thinkers’ research led to a greater understanding of scientific phenomena and the questioning of the government’s rule. Similar to the Enlightenment, the Great Awakening changed colonists’ mode of thought through the concentration of emotion rather than wisdom. Reverend Jonathan Edwards, a Great Awakening revivalist, emphasized seeking salvation by recognizing one’s own moral corruption and surrendering to God’s will. Although the Great Awakening challenged religious, social and political orthodoxy, the Enlightenment had a greater impact on colonial America and vastly influenced future decisions. The Great Awakening reached a large quantity of people because of the traveling orators that preached the evangelical word. Although Enlightenment learning was limited to the wealthy, educated colonists, the movement’s influence was still stronger because the well-to-do ruled the land. Enlightenment philosophers began questioning corrupt governments and the combination of church and state. John Locke claimed that because the people created a government, then civilians could change the run of the government. This belief, perhaps, was the most influential to colonial society. Educated and powerful political leaders began questioning their government under British rule, therefore, igniting dreams of independence. The Enlightenment theory added to the oppression of British rule led to a revolution. Although not as significant as the Enlightenment, the Great Awakening still had a deep impact on colonial society. Primarily, the conflict that arose between the religious revivalists and ultimately ended in a split in the evangelical group changed the face of religion in the British colonies. The New Light revivalists spawned such denominations as Baptist and Methodist, which differed in the old lights beliefs in doctrine and matters of faith. These new sects resulted in a stronger tolerance toward religious diversity. Also, because revivalists preached mainly to backcountry people who had no religious affiliation, the emphasis on emotion rather than wisdom gave less-educated people a feeling of self-worth. These new freethinking converts gained the strength to begin questioning social and political order. The movements of the Enlightenment and the Great Awakening mainly produced a new mode of thought for American colonists.

    Read More

  • Colonial Era In Colonial America

    1030 Words  | 3 Pages

    The Colonial Period, beginning in the early 1600 's with the founding and settling of Jamestown, signaled a new era in the New World. The Spanish had already conquered and colonized a great deal of Central America, and the French had established a strong fur trade and relatively good relations with the Native American 's of North America. Native American 's were succumbing to diseases in alarming numbers, and growing more wary of the arrival of even more Europeans. It is true that during the 1600 's to almost the end the Revolutionary War in 1781 was a time of “many mixtures of powers, conflict, and rivaling interests,” but the “dominant narrative” of that time varies from culture to culture and generation

    Read More

  • Colonial American Literature Of Colonial America

    1277 Words  | 3 Pages

    While the United States was forming as a country, its literary identity was forming as well through a melting pot of writers including Benjamin Franklin, St. John de Crévecœur, Thomas Paine, and Phillis Wheatley. This included a number of forms of literature including the epic, political pamphlets, and poetry.

    Read More

  • American History: 1800s and Up

    1257 Words  | 3 Pages

    Many people see history as a set of facts, or as a collection of stories. The reality, however, is that history is a fluid timeline. Each act of an individual or a group has an effect on others. Each moment in history is a building block that, good or bad, contributes to the stability of the next. This can be seen clearly in American history, as there have been several developments since the 1800’s that have played major roles on the growth of the nation.

    Read More

  • Technology, Belief Systems and the Individual in Dune and Foundation

    1708 Words  | 4 Pages

    Technology and belief have a great deal to do in making a good science fiction novel. Frank Herbert's Dune and Isaac Asimov's Foundation Series give excellent examples of this. Belief systems are defined as religious beliefs in a society. Technology is defined as the level of science achieved in a society. These two factors play separate roles in a society.  Yet, at times, they fall into the same categories like in the book Dune where science reflects religious aspects or in Foundation where the society depends on religion and social behavior to survive the onslaught of advanced technology. Religion might be a fuel to achieve a specific level of technology. Such as in the Bible, "Seek and you shall find." May mean that God wants all Christians to achieve the highest amount of experience that they are capable of. Religion gives an individual, morals and control, while science gives an individual the medium under which he can explore the hidden. Dune is a fine example that shows the mingling of religion and science and how it affects the individual or society.

    Read More

  • The Influence Of The Colonial Period In American Literature

    682 Words  | 2 Pages

    The colonial period in American Literature was a time spanning from European settlements from the very beginning of the colonization of America to the transition or change into the United States of America. Where they created new and innovative ideas and thoughts that set them apart, especially in their writings. What was the goal of this all? People that wanted to colonize America came from many European places, they came prepared with a highly developed military, navy, government, and innovation ability. Europeans traveled to America to increase their money, power, and overall influence in international deals.

    Read More

  • The Influence of History on American Literature

    1542 Words  | 4 Pages

    “A Tale Intended to be After the Fact…” is how Stephan Crane introduced his harrowing story, “The Open Boat,” but this statement also shows that history influences American Literature. Throughout history, there has been a connection among literary works from different periods. The connection is that History, current events, and social events have influenced American Literature. Authors, their literary works, and the specific writing styles; are affected and influenced by the world around them. Authors have long used experiences they have lived through and/or taken out of history to help shape and express in their works. Writing styles are also affected by the current trends and opinions of the period they represent. By reading American Literature, we have seen the inhumane treatment of slaves, we have seen the destruction caused by wars, and we have seen the devastation of eras such as The Great Depression.

    Read More

  • Patriotism In American Literature

    1109 Words  | 3 Pages

    In essence, American literature refers to literature that was written as well as produced, in the United States of America and any other preceding colonies. In the early history of the United States, the country was a series of the many British colonies. In this case, early literary tradition begins with the broader tradition of English literature. However, there have been unique American characteristics as well as the breadth of the production, which has usually made it essential to consider it separately. In essence, New England colonies were involved in early American Literature. In particular, the revolutionary period was characterized by political writings by politicians like Benjamin Franklin and Samuel Adams. In the era after the War

    Read More

More about American Literature During the Colonial Period

Open Document