The Puritan Family: Religion and Domestic Relations in Seventeenth-Century New England [Paperback]

Edmund S. Morgan (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0061312274 | ISBN-13: 978-0061312274 | Publication Date: January 1, 1966 | Edition: Revised & enlarged

The Puritans came to New England not merely to save their souls but to establish a "visible" kingdom of God, a society where outward conduct would be according to God's laws. This book discusses the desire of the Puritans to be socially virtuous and their wish to force social virtue upon others.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"These essays are well documented with abundant sources...The material has been well assimilated and the result is entertaining and instructive." -- --American Sociological Review

Product Details

• Paperback: 208 pages
• Publisher: Harper & Row Publishers; Revised & enlarged edition (January 1, 1966)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0061312274
• ISBN-13: 978-0061312274
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.3 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #453,571 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Early work by a scholarly giant, July 27, 2000

By 

J. Hart (Oklahoma) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Puritan Family: Religion and Domestic Relations in Seventeenth-Century New England (Paperback)

This is the (slightly revised) doctoral dissertation by Edmund Morgan, one of the most renowned of all American historians. It analyzes Puritan society by exploring the relationships among these early New Englanders. Although he discusses master-servant relationships, his main focus is on the family. The reason for this is that the Puritans saw the family as the highest social institution, and as the foundation of their churches and government. Indeed, he shows how the family relationship is extended to explain their relationship to God (ie-they saw themselves as both the sons of God and as the bride of Christ).

It is one of Morgan's earliest works, and the concluding chapter sets the stage for his later "Visible Saints: The History of a Puritan Idea." No serious student of colonial New England can neglect this book, if only because of the enormous impact of its author.

23 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent and balanced survey of a unique people, October 27, 2000

By 

A Customer - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Puritan Family: Religion and Domestic Relations in Seventeenth-Century New England (Paperback)

I wasn't sure whether this was going to be a positive or a negative survey of Puritan life and times when I started reading it. Most people don't have very many nice things to say about them- usually comments about black clothing and the Salem witch trials. But the truth is, although the Puritans had plenty of problems, they've gotten a bit of a bad rap in history. They were actually far more lively and earthy than most people would suspect; they had much more in common with Shakespeare's times than with Victorian England.

And so Morgan's thesis is not that the Puritan's were ascetics or prudes- they weren't. Rather, their real fault lay in a sort of 'Christian tribalism', in the belief that since the elect in any generation were few in number anyway, they could avoid evangelism in favor of spiritual isolationism. Since the reasoned that the Church of one generation was generally comprised of the children of the last generation, their only real task was to preach to the choir. And so they fell into a decay of the soul that manifested itself as outward prosperity and inward apathy. Their zeal dissipated into mere trans-generational commercial institutionalism and snobbery. And so the foundation they laid down gradually faded into the overall fabric of a quickly growing Colonial society.

But in spite of their faults, the Puritans contributed a vast amount of effort and philosophy towards the make-up of American society today. And although they may be remembered for their obsessions with the devil and witches, they were not in fact the sum of their mistakes. It's easy to criticize in retrospect. Morgan's book helps provide a more thorough understanding of the why's and not just the what's of their history. Once the reader comes to an understanding of how the Puritans thought, he will have more appreciation for their contributions and more charity in his assessment of their foibles.

The Puritan Family was an admirably balanced study of a people with a colorful past. It was first published over 50 years ago, and it certainly won't alter current perceptions of what Puritanism was, but it's still a very informative read for anyone who is interested in the truth, and not in stereotypes.

14 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Right on Target, November 6, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: The Puritan Family: Religion & Domestic Relations in Seventeenth-Century New England (Hardcover)

This work provides a wonderful analysis of the intricacies of dailyn life in the 17th century. Although it may seem a dry subject, it is actually fascinating to learn about, and provides the reader with a great understanding of the real people that lived so long ago.