Puritan Era Dbq

Children growing up in Puritan New England were raised with different expectations and values compared to children in today’s society. We often consider Puritan practices as cruel, but such practices were not uncommon and were viewed differently in the seventeenth century. Children were raised with the Puritan belief of simplicity, taught to respect and obey their parents without question, and were given an education to allow them to prosper in later years as well as strengthen their religion.

Sources one and two provide portraits of Puritan children, Elizabeth Eggington and Henry Gibbs, in the seventeenth century. Portraits were often made at the request of how parents wanted their child to be seen. (Hollitz, Page 22) In both portraits, neither

If a child were to speak badly to or about either of their parents in today’s society, then they would most likely be grounded; not put to death. If a child was “stubborn & rebellious & will not obey their voice and chastisement… such a son shal be put to death….” (Source 4, Page 28) If a child didn’t change their attitude, was disobedient, and didn’t obey either parent’s voice or punishment, he or she would be killed. Many people today would certainly not murder their child if they were to disobey them, but children in the seventeenth century were taught and expected to obey their parents without question. (Source 10, Page 32) Puritans thought if they threatened death, then children wouldn’t commit a crime. Parents and children today might consider that cruel or harsh, but it wasn’t an uncommon practice and it seemed to influence children in those years to not be

Puritans believed nothing was more important than education, because it would rear children properly and allow for their society to prosper and survive. ”… Puritans taught their children to read and write.” (Hollitz, Page 22) Learning to write gave children the ability to write diaries, letters, and many other writings which permitted them to express their feelings, keep notes, and learn. Reading was very important to Puritans and was heavily taught in schools, because it was “one chief project of that old deluder, Satan, to keep men from the knowledge of the Scriptures.” (Hollitz, Page 22) Puritans believed that their children should learn about Christianity which led them to teach children to read in order to be able to read the Bible. Twelve year old Samuel Mather wrote a letter to his father about how he went against God and was trying to repent. (Source 3, Page 27) The letter allows the reader to see how mature children were due to having to grow up at such a young age; it also shows how skilled he was at writing. Many twelve year olds today could not be able to write a letter with such emotion and great