Puritan Justice.
The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne is set in a puritan colony in old New England. In it, we experience the ways of the puritans. In the colony exists a barbaric and foolish justice system. The Puritan fundamentalists of The Scarlet Letter practice an unbalanced system of justice and mercy.
Puritan society drags an unneeded amount of religion into their justice system. The people see themselves as higher beings than the accused. The penalty to counteract the act of adultery is death. Such a brutal sentence is not necessary. There is no separation of church and state, which makes laws extremely strict and most of the time ridiculous. During the time puritan colonies were set up in New England, many women were accused of being witches. The foolish people saw them as servants of Satan and thought they should be dealt with accordingly. "Witches" were taken care of in a variety of ways. Many were burned at the stake, while others were hung, drowned or thrown off of cliffs. The church had come up with the idea that certain markings on the body were the seal of the devil himself, many of which were moles, birthmarks, or scars on the body. Most, if not all, of the accused "witches" were innocent women. The "pure" people seemed to have a hard time showing mercy towards the accused.
Mercy is amiss in The Scarlet Letter. The main character of the story, Hester Prynne, is found guilty of adultery. Though the penalty of adultery is death, she is shown "mercy." "But in their great mercy and tenderness of heart, they have doomed mistress Prynne to stand only a space of three hours on the platform of the pillory and then thereafter, for the remainder of her natural life, to wear a mark of shame upon her bosom." Although death is overlooked, this is a harsh punishment nonetheless. People look upon the accused (Hester) as scum. Their children spit at her and scold her.
Passionate Puritan laymen received savage punishments. ... The Puritans were "non-separating Congregationalists." ... Their religious principles set them apart as Puritans. ... The Puritans were not a small group of people. ... Most of the Puritans settled in the New England area. ...
The Puritans were a God-fearing community. ... Young Puritan children were given little or no freedom to act like children. ... Their justice system was hypocritical to the people that it was designed to protect. ... However, some vices of the Puritan tradition are also present. ... This exploited the Puritan's weakest qualities and insecurities. ...
This concept, along with those of cleanliness, justice, and most importantly, humility are very similar to the concepts of the Puritans. Thomas Paine also makes a comment in "Common Sense" that may appear, in essence, rather Puritan-like. ... This would have been seen by the Puritans as very amoral, in that all that is spoken should be to glorify God. ... Puritan belief is founded on the idea that all things done, are done for God. Thus the idea of having time for things done for yourself would not be heard of by any Puritan. ...
Power, justice, and authority are not things one often thinks of in our modern society. In Arthur Miller's play, The Crucible, these three ideas play an important role in the daily lives of the Puritans. ... The judicial system during the time of the Puritans was very primitive by today's standards. ... This is obvious in the fact that dancing was frowned upon by Puritan's so much that it was a punishable offense. ... Abuse of authority in Puritan times was mostly in the hands of the ministers. ...
Puritans believed in humanity and goodness. ... This was the man's role in Puritan society. ... John Winthrop was another Puritan who published works on Puritan beliefs. ... The first was justice and the next mercy. The Indians showed no mercy when they encountered the Puritans. ...
Answer: PURITAN AGE Background: The 15th and 16th century witnessed the rise of a group of protestant in England called "Puritans". ... Characteristics of Puritan Age: The literary pieces of work produce in the Puritan Age have some specific characteristics which are not very broad in range. Here we discussed some of the literary characteristics of American Puritanism: 1: Depiction of Histories: Puritan age produced lot of writers who depicted the historical events. ... The sober and serious tone of the puritan writing conformed to the utilitarian feature of the works produced in...
The Crucible depicts a society in which justice is under attack. What are the factors working against justice? ... Another factor is the circumstantial evidence used as well as the Puritan society and way of life in which they are controlled by. ... The circumstantial evidence used is another instance of justice under attack. ... The Puritan society or way of life- lack of freedom to know any better. ...
Assignment Cite several fundamental differences between Puritan thinking and deist thinking. ... Response Puritan thinking and Deist thinking are two discrete but overlapping lines of belief that share principle differences. ... Moderation is an integral sect of Puritanism, as no alternative should be approached and attempted in excess. ... However, Puritanism is a way of submission and living for God, derived from conservative fundamentals. ... That the Soul of Man is immortal, and will be treated with Justice in another Life respecting its Conduct in this ... ...
