Puritanism Versus Deism Analysis

Puritanism Versus Deism Analysis The seventeenth century colonists all respected the Bible. Both Puritans and Deists believed in God. However, the way in which they perceived God in their own lives differed. While Puritans believed God to be all encompassing taking the inevitably evilness of human nature and saving them through his grace; the Deist belief deems that humans are inherently good and the decisions they make ultimately effect their own fate. As shown in the writings of John Winthrop, Michael Wigglesworth, John Dane and Mary Rowlandson, Puritans believed in predestination and that God played an active role in their lives; whereas, Deist Benjamin Franklin believed that God played an inactive role in their daily lives and their fate was consequently left up to their own decisions. Contradictory to the Deist belief, Puritans believe that God has already chosen a path for them through predestination and they have no ability to alter this path. As Wigglesworth discusses Gods grace for those he chooses to save he quotes a New England minister, Thomas Shepard, who believed your best duties are tainted, poisoned, and mingled with some sin, and therefore are most odious in the eyes of a holy God. Your good duties can not save you, yet your bad works will damn you (Wigglesworth, 4). Wigglesworth, following Puritan ideals, believed that good deeds cannot get anyone into heaven (Wigglesworth, 4). Although God had predetermined the people who would go to Heaven and who would go to Hell, it was impossible to know whether one was actually damned to Hell or not. This triggered the question of whether or not to do good things if one was already damned to Hell. As a Puritan ideal, everyone was to live life by doing as much good as possible. While Deists determined their own f ate and could change it based upon decisions they made, Puritans accepted the fact that people were either chosen to be saved and go to Heaven or damned to Hell. In Puritanism saved mothers, fathers, husbands and siblings will be satisfied with the damnation of their relations (Wigglesworth, 4). The Puritans were content in the fact that their God had chosen a path for them that they were not able to alter and accepted that even some of their family members will be damned to Hell. An obvious difference between Puritan and Deist beliefs is the purpose that God takes in ones life. The Puritans believe in an all encompassing God. All good and bad things are acts of God and are not of a persons doing. In this belief both good and bad things are seen in a positive way; times of hardship are just as rewarding as times of benevolence. The majority of Mary Rowlandsons early life was lived in prosperity, everything in perfect harmony while others lived through many trials and afflictions, in sickness, weakness, poverty, losses, crosses, and cares of the World (Rowlandson, 8). During these times of bliss she sometimes wished that she would have her own trials and tribulations so that she would know God was thinking of her. Then, as she had wished for, Mary Rowlandson went through times of hardship. When she was captured and imprisoned for years by the Indians, she thought of these times as beneficial to her. These struggles proved Rowlandson to believe when God calls a person to any thing, and through never so many difficulties, he is fully able to carry them through, and make them see and say they have been gainers thereby (Rowlandson, 8). Instead of dreading times of adversity, Rowlandson saw them as a sense of caring. God cared enough to test her, using her times of struggling to bring her closer to him. In recollection of being captured by the Indians and her imprisonment, Rowlandson says, it is good for me that I have been afflicted (Rowlandson, 8). Without this vital event, she may have never begun to truly rely on God as she did throughout these times. The Puritans believed that good and bad events in their lives were taken by the providence of God or as his punishment (Dane, 9). Dane thinks of the intervention God takes in his life and speaks of how there were many wonderful, unspeakable, unsearchable mercies of a God that taketh care of us when we take no care of ourselves (Dane, 8). Dane viewed the event where he was stung by a wasp as p unishment from God because he did not regularly attend church on Sundays. Puritan belief is that everything is an act of God, meaning our actions are solely based on Gods decisions, not of our own ability to choose what is believed to be the best choice. If God chooses to save someone, he will save them because humans have no ability to save themselves. The Deist Franklins opinion of Gods role in ones life is quite contradictory of that of the Puritans. Deism beliefs are that of Gods inactive role with man. According to Franklin, God is the creator of man but he does not interfere with everyday decisions of humans. God grants man free will and the ability to change ones fate based upon his or her decisions. Deist Franklin believed that one works towards moral perfection through virtuous acts. Consequently, he came up with thirteen virtues that at that time occurrd to [him] as necessary or desirable to achieve moral perfection (Franklin, 12). Where Puritans looked to the Bible as a work of God with specific examples of events that God created in different peoples lives, the Deists believed the Bible to be mostly fables, a collection of stories created to teach lessons and help others achieve this moral excellence (Franklin, 6). To them the Bible was used as a guideline of ideals that are morally acceptable and how the choices one mad e affected the outcome of his or her situation. Franklin attributed any bad or good event in his life to his own doing. He gauged his closeness to God based upon his degree of success. He believed that he had become successful because he had kept his lifestyle close to that of the thirteen virtues. In Deist beliefs, God was not thought of as one who made the ultimate decisions for a person but more so led people in the direction in which was honorably acceptable. Deists believe that humans had the ability to change their own fate. They have free will to make their own decisions and every action and good and bad situation was of their own doing. The process of achieving moral perfection is represented through the idea of self-improvement. People have the ability to choose to better oneself by attempting to imitate that of God. Franklin stated that in an effort to better oneself one should always be employd in something useful [and] cut off all unnecessary actions (Franklin, 13). With the creation of Franklins thirteen virtues(temperance, silence, order, resolution, frugality, industry, sincerity, justice, moderation, cleanliness, tranquility, chastity and humility), Franklin had created his own path and as long as he strove to achieve these virtues, good would happen to him. Franklin, as well as most Deists, believed that one is taught right and wrong and then they are to make decisions based upon these ideals to ultimately decide his or her o wn fate. When Franklin speaks of his attempt at moral perfection he says that I knewà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ what was right and wrong, I did not see why I might not always do the one and avoid the other (Franklin, 12). In Deist Franklins belief of self-improvement it is unacceptable for one to be lethargic; when one is unproductive he or she is not at his or her best. The lack of motivation or desire to be improving oneself decreases their chances of going to Heaven. Rowlandson, Dane, Winthrop, Wigglesworth and Franklin use their first hand experiences to explain the Puritan and Deist beliefs of the 17th century. While the Puritans believed in predestination and every event that occurred in ones life was simply an act of God, the Deists believed in the ability for one to make his or her own decisions and decide his or her fate. God was involved in the everyday life of Puritans; whereas, in Deism God is the creator not and prevalent in the everyday actions of man; he teaches right from wrong but leaves the ultimate decision of ones actions up too him or herself.

deviance :: essays research papers

Deviance is an individual's or group's behavior, ideas, or attributes that some people in society find offensive, wrong, immoral, sinful, evil, strange, or disgusting. This definition consists of three parts. Expectation: Some behavioral expectation must exist. Violation: There must be a real or implied violation of the expectation Reaction: An individual, group, or society must react to the deviance The strain theory by Robert Merton believes that American society pushes individuals toward deviance by overemphasizing the importance of monetary success, while failing to emphasize the legitimate means to achieve that success. Cultural Transmission Theory by Edwin Sutherland states that deviants learn patterns of behavior form the people with whom they associate on a regular basis. Not only do they teach us the techniques for committing deviant acts, but also a set of beliefs and attitudes that justify or rationalize the behavior The Anomie Theory was coined by Emile Durkheim and it refers to the condition of normlessness, in which values and norms have little impact and the culture no longer provides adequate guidlines for behavior. Deviance is also thought of as an individual choice because it appears that the consequences of doing it are more desirable than the consequences of doing something else. The choice is as simple as weighing the pros and cons. Biological theories are a bit weak due to all the exceptions to the rule. William Sheldon proposed that deviance is in the body type. Other theorists say its in the extra Y chromosone Psychologists have attributed antisocial behavior to the conscious mind being too weak to overcome the strength of the id. Labeling theorists attempt to explain how cultural and individual perceptions create and sustain deviant idetities. A deviant is not different from you or I, they are just labeled deviant successfully. Has led sociologists to distinguish between primary and secondary deviance. Primary deviance is the original behavior that leads to the application of the label to an individual. Secondary deviance is the behavior that people develop as a result of having been labeled Functions of Deviance Deviance actually helps teach society's rules providing illustrations of violation. It is functional in that it 1) causes the group's members to close ranks 2) promotes group solidarity 3) help clarify what society really believes in 4)teaches normal behavior by showing us what is abnormal. Durkheim stated that deviance is "an intergral part of all healthy societies." There seems to be a disjunction between means and ends, such as the emphasis on wealth and success without many legitimate means to achieve them.

Equus: Analysis Scenes 20 & 21

Equus scene 20 Introduction: First we will summarize the scene, after that we will analyze the following features. (we will be discussing scene 20 first). Summary: Dysart and Alan are in the office of Dysart, however they are pretending to be at the stables. Dysart asks questions to Alan and Alan answers all of them. Alan tells about his ritual in the stable. He does this ritual every time before he rides a horse. In this ritual he gives the horse sandals and the ‘’Chinkle-chankle’’. Later they go to the place of Ha Ha, which is a big field Alan describes to be full of mist and covered with nettles.Setting: The place is actually in Dysart’s office but they pretend to be in the stable. This is at night or late in the evening, which we can know because Dysart says: ‘’Dalton may still be awake’’ and because Alan says: ‘’he doesn’t like it so late’’. In this sentence he refers to ‘he†™ as Nugget the horse and ‘it’ as the ‘’Chinkle-chankle’’. The stable Alan talks about is home to a couple of horses, including Nugget. Plot development: This scene was actually very predictable. During the previous scene, so scene 19, the events in scene 20 were foreshadowed.In scene 19 Dysart asked many questions to Alan about his rituals with the horses. In this scene Dysart goes on with questioning and asks Alan to do the rituals that he told Dysart about in the previous scene. Alan accepted this and that is why they pretend to be at the stable. This scene builds up tension and again foreshadows what will happen in the next scene, because it has an open end. The next scene will probably be about the rituals too Character development: Alan is different in this scene. In the previous scenes, he did not like to give answers to Dysart’s questions.He wanted to ask him questions in return or he used tools such as the tape recorder. In t his scene Alan answers all of Dysart’s questions without being ashamed, without using tools and without playing games. Next to that, he seems to follow all of Dysart’s instructions without any hesitation. He is not the only character who has developed. Dysart has also developed. In the previous scenes he was someone who did not like his job. He said that he did the job because he had to. In this scene, Dysart seems very interested and wants to know more about Alan.He still is careful with Alan, but he has to watch out because he could become too curious and make actions without thinking about them. Themes: The theme of this scene is religion, because Alan tells more about his god equus. He tells us about the rituals which he has to do in order to ride on Equus. Language: The only striking about the language is that Alan uses the word â€Å"Ha Ha† to describe a place. Alan mysteriously tells Dysart: â€Å"It’s his place of Ha Ha†. Dysart does not as k for more information about this place, so we don’t get to know what happens there†¦ yet.Symbolism: The sandals in the scene are used as a symbol. He gives the sandals to the horse and he kisses them before he does that. There can be two views however. One of them is religious. Alan gives Nugget the sandals. Alan is a boy who knows a lot about the bible so he also knew that Jesus always wore sandals. In this way, Alan symbolizes Jesus. He sees the horse as Jesus. Therefore he gives the horse the sandals to wear, just like Jesus. The other view however is simply to reduce the noise that the horse makes. It is night and Alan wants to do his rituals and ride on the horse.This will make a lot of noise. So in order to prevent people from noticing this or prevent to wake them up, he gives sandals to the horse. Equus scene 21 Summary: Alan and Dysart move on to the huge field. Alan goes on with his rituals. He completely undresses in front of the horse. Next to that he gets hi s ‘’Manbit’’. It is a sacred stick on which he bites. After that he touches the horse everywhere; On its belly, ribs, flank, eyes etc. After that Alan offers Nugget some sugar, in order to take his sins away. Then he mounts the horse and he says that it hurts because of little knives in his skin.Alan calls himself ‘’The king’’ and says that only he can ride Equus, the mightiest of horses. The king (Alan) tramples all of his foes and after that he says: ‘’Equus I love you’’ and ‘’Make us one person! ’’. Finally he drops of the horse to the ground and ends with: ‘’Amen’’. Setting: Alan and Dysart are still in the office of Dysart, however they are still pretending as if they weren’t. Now they pretend to have walked to the huge field. This huge field is full of mist. They went from the stable to the field so we can assume that it is still dark ou tside.We can also assume that it is night because Alan told us in the previous scenes that he does his rituals during the night. It probably is not very cold, otherwise Alan would have had difficulties to stay outside without his clothes. There is also a gate and a tree in the field. We know this because Alan mentioned it. Plot development: This scene is in chronological order with the previous scene. So it was predictable that Alan would go on with his ritual. But the ritual itself was very surprising. It turned from a simple ritual to a very extreme one.We can see that some of these rituals come from Christianity. Alan bows for his god Equus and he talks about sins. The tension from the previous scene gets to its climax where Alan has an intense moment riding Nugget. After that, the action drops significantly when Alan says: â€Å"Amen†. Character development: Alan was already excited during the previous scene, but we have not seen him this excited yet. There is no sign lef t of the shame that Alan had previously. He reveals everything. In the previous scene he just demonstrated a part of his rituals, but now he has shown the extremes of his ritual.He stands firmly behind his thoughts and he shows his love towards his god, Equus. It seems as if he has turned into a radical believer of his own religion. Dysart is still very curious and does not show any signs of feeling weird. He acts as if everything is normal, as if he is a child wanting to know more about football. From all the sentences that Dysart says, only 2 do not end with a question mark. This shows that Dysart is very curious. Theme: The themes of scene 21 are religion and normality. In this scene we learn a lot about the rituals and the religion of Alan.That is why one of the themes is religion. The rituals can be seen as weird. It challenges our sense of what is normal and what is not. With the help of this scene the writer wants to standardize our view on the strange. That is why the second theme of scene 21 is normality. Language: Alan’s use of the language is very striking. He does not use colloquialism. Instead he uses very holy and sacred words. He has created a lot of names for his religion. When Dysart asks him about who his enemies are, Alan gives a lot of new names. He tells us that he is the king and therefore he talks like a king.He also uses heroic language such as: ‘’Equus the Mighty rose against all! ’’ and ‘’His enemies scatter, his enemies fall! ’’. Symbolism: The sugar that Alan gives to the horse is a symbol that is linked to Christianity. By giving the sugar, he offers up his sins to Equus. So the sugar stands for sins. He says that this is his last supper, which refers to the last supper of Jesus. Conclusion: Finally, we could say that scene 20 and 21 are quite strange scenes. We discover what the real Alan is like and we get to understand him better. Especially scene 21 seems to be a very important scene for the whole play,

Is The Ideal Body Image - 1402 Words

Society has an ongoing obsession with body image ideals, especially as it relates to what is considered healthy and fit. Being toned, a certain weight, and having perfect curves and proportions in areas of your body has become as important, if not more important, than strength, speed, and functionality as an athlete. These outside opinions directly affect athletes’ confidence level, and the more society pushes images of what is considered perfect, the more difficult it becomes to maintain self-confidence when we don’t see society’s definition in ourselves. As coaches, especially those of us who coach female athletes, it can challenging to help our athletes understand the difference between the ideal body image in society versus the body†¦show more content†¦These types of confidence we can apply to our competitive and non-competitive athletes alike! Teaching Athletes Why Having Self-Confidence Is So Beneficial Having self-confidence naturally makes us happier, and in turn, it makes us more successful in all the things we do, including physical and mental health and fitness levels of athletes. Sometimes it can be difficult to get our athletes to understand the benefits of being self-confident. So, what are some concepts we can share with athletes to help with this concept? 1. Confidence Creates Positive Vibes: When we are happy, we smile, and smile can change our entire demeanor, attitude, and emotions. Positive affirmations and self-talk will replace negative emotions with positive ones, which will lead to a greater self-image. More positivity leads to more productivity as an athlete (Burton, 2016). 2. Eliminate the Appearance of Self-Doubt: The more confident you become, the less you will stress about irrelevant things in life, and the less you worry about other’s opinions on appearance and capabilities (Beeby, 2012). 3. Eliminating Self-Doubt Creates Greater Self-Worth: Teach your athletes the downfalls of self-doubt. As athletes, if there is self-doubt, there is a tendency not to feel valued. Confidence allows athletes to see how important they are, how what they say and do matters and makes them feel proud of everything accomplished. As coaches, we can teach ourShow MoreRelatedIs It Body Image Ideals?877 Words   |  4 PagesMarilyn Monroe, Pamela Anderson, Ryan Reynolds, Hulk Hogan are just a few examples of what Americas stem as body image ideals. These ideals change from generation to generation, culture to culture, however, their effects seem to expand the turning of time. Body images issues for both men women have created several effects including but not limited to bullying, self-murder, and self-hatred. â€Å"Bullying does not always happen in person. 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