Puritan Beliefs
The Puritans believed that the this is the most important aspect of life.
What is God or religion?
Identify one theme present in Anne Bradstreet's poem
What is...
various themes related to love, marriage, reward, and worth.
Teacher will determine acceptability of answer.
Explain what Anne Bradstreet tries to convey in her poem when she says:
"If ever two were one, then surely we.
If ever man were loved by wife, then thee."
What is ...
She has a happy, loving marriage where she and her husband act as one.
Name one image that occurs multiple times through "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God."
What is. . .
- fire
- water
- insects
- hell
Identify the device used in the following quote from "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God":
"Your wickedness makes you heavy as lead. . . "
What is a simile?
The Puritans were distrustful of this group of people that could be more easily seduced by the devil and could not hold important roles outside the household.
What is women?
How does Anne Bradstreet's view of marriage differ from Mary Chudleigh's view in "To the Ladies"?
What is...
Bradstreet believes in the power of marital love while Chudleigh believes women are servants who cannot be independent.
Teacher will determine acceptability of answer.
Explain what Mary Chudleigh tries to convey in "To the Ladies" when she says:
"When she the word obey has said,
And man by law supreme has made,
Then all that’s kind is laid aside,
And nothing left but state and pride"
What is. . .
After marriage, the law gives the husband supreme power over his wife. He is no longer kind but proud and arrogant instead.
Name another image that occurs multiple times through "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God"
What is. . .
- fire
- water
- insects
- hell
The following statement from "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God" is designed to make the listener feel this emotion.
Statement: "It would be dreadful to suffer this fierceness and wrath of Almighty God one moment; but you must suffer it to all eternity."
What is FEAR?
This is the type of government that the Puritans practiced where there is no separation between church and state.
What is theocracy?
Explain how the idea of "reward" and "repayment" are important in "To My Dear and Loving Husband"
What is. . .
Bradstreet cannot repay her husband's love, so she hopes he is rewarded in heaven.
What is. . .
Edwards is comparing God's anger to water that could break free at any moment. The anger would destroy us just as water rushing out of a dam would destroy us.
What are two words that Edwards uses that have a strong connotation and help develop his appeal to fear?
What is. . .
Many examples would work, some include:
wrath, hell, vengeance, misery, abhor, infinite
Identify the figurative language present in in these two statements:
"fly open, and the fiery floods of the fierceness"
"strength of the stoutest, sturdiest devil"
What is alliteration?
This is the Puritan belief that God has already planned out our lives and the saved (elect) have already been chosen.
What is predestination?
Explain one of the similarities in the structure of Bradstreet and Chudleigh's poems.
What is. . .
Both poems consist of pairs of two rhyming lines (couplets)
Both poems use inverted sentences (sentences read out of order)
Both poems use archaic (old) language
Both poems are simple and direct
Explain the meaning of Edwards' metaphor when he says:
"all your righteousness, would have no more influence to uphold you and keep you out of hell, than a spider's web would have to stop a falling rock"
What is. . .
Edwards means that the we are not good enough to avoid hell - all of our goodness equals the strength of a spider's web.
Explain why Edwards references a bow and arrow in his sermon.
The bow represents God's wrath, which is ready to fire an arrow at any moment. The arrow is God's punishment. God firing the arrow would be fair because "Justice" is bending the bow and getting it ready to shoot.
Identify the impact that hyperbole can have on a piece of literature.
What is...
- intensifying emotion
- adding drama
- adding humor
Explain how the Puritans viewed the Devil.
What is. . .
- he is constantly at work in the world
- he physically exists alongside us
- natural disasters and tragedies were believed to be the work of the Devil
- women are especially susceptible to the Devil
- he employed witches to do his bidding
Explain how both the poem by Mary Chudleigh and by Anne Bradstreet reflect the time and culture of the author.
What is...
Anne Bradstreet is influenced by the Puritan beliefs to follow norms. Mary Chudleigh is influenced by laws that prevent women from achieving equal status to men.
John Winthrop says that the Puritans "shall be as a city upon a hill" and "the eyes of all people are upon [them]." This quote reveals that the Puritans believed _______.
What is. . .
- they think highly of themselves
- they think the world is watching them
- they think they've found the "right" way to live
(Teacher discretion determines correct answer)
How did the audience respond to Edwards' sermon OR what long lasting impact did the sermon have?
What is. . . one of the the following. . .
- members of the audience screamed and fainted
- it sparked The Great Awakening in America
- it was the sermon "for which New England never forgave him"
Of these words, identify the one with the most positive connotation and the one with the most negative connotation.
blistering, hot, tropical, sweltering
What is tropical for positive and blistering for negative?