Essay - The Colonial Period Was Characterized by the Tensions of Creating...

The colonial period was characterized by the tensions of creating a new world, while retaining the habits of their cultural and social traditions. One ***** the greatest conflicts within this period is how to retain control of Chr*****tian doctrine while settling within the new world. The majority of ***** era immigrants came to the United States to escape religious persecution. This ***** how ***** colonies ***** New England were founded and spread. As a result of their religious *****genda in coloniz*****g America, a strong social desire to maintain strict religious piety gripped the colonies. However, the influence of ***** new world and the changing ***** dynamics following such an immigration resulted in a transition from ***** piety to the prosperity and tol*****nce ***** Colonial America. The below review will exam*****e colonial period literature that deals with the conflict between the Christian community and cultural relaxation that occurred from ***** 17th to 18th centuries.

***** of the most memorable records of the colonial ***** was written ***** Samuel Sewall in his narrative "Diary." ***** ***** born in ***** at a transitory period ***** Colonial history. His diary recorded the events between 1674 o 1729, and is a lively and engaging narr*****ive *****f life within colonial New England. Sewall's diary is especially significant because it portrays the transformation between a strict religious life of Purit*****nism within New ***** to a more worldly period of mercantile wealth. Sewall himself was a traditional Puritan and his writing style reflects ***** of his ***** upbringing. However, it also shows through ***** content and his thought process the shifting nature of religious acceptance and life within ***** ***** period. Sewall's ***** ***** the ***** between Christian values ***** community concept and the emergence of a more liberal ***** sect. He was elected in 1683 to ***** general courts of New England and was one of the judges during ***** Salem Which trials. Despite his agreement with the verdict at the time of ***** trial, Sewall famously accepted the "blame ***** shame" of his wrongdoing in 1697. His ***** accounts for the ***** between his ***** Puritan beliefs and the shift towards ***** laize faire application of his religious zeal ***** piety. His writings reveal a transition ***** the early 1700s towards a much more mercantile application ***** New Engladn life. His early narratives focus on the theme of religion and acceptance ***** God ***** his punishments ***** his life. However, as he ages, Sewall mentions less and less his religious piety and focuses on the two ***** essentials of community governance, politics ***** business. His Diary address the specific emergence of central issues *****in New England such as ***** rights of Native Americans and the emergence of African American slavery within the *****. His ***** reveals the c*****flicted nature of colonial life between ********** a strong Puritan community ***** the ***** towards commerce and governance as ***** key stakeholders of colonial governance. ***** narrative reveals how New ***** trans*****med ***** strictly Puritan "theocracy" to the financial