The Puritan Conversion Narrative : The Beginnings of American Expression

Caldwell, Patricia

ISBN 10: 0521254604 / ISBN 13: 9780521254601

Published by Cambridge University Press, 1983

About this Item

Former library book; may include library markings. Used book that is in clean, average condition without any missing pages. Seller Inventory # GRP71403156

Bibliographic Details

Title: The Puritan Conversion Narrative : The ...

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Publication Date: 1983

Binding: Hardcover

Condition: Good

Edition: 1st Edition.

About this title

Synopsis:

In the mid-seventeenth century, persons on both sides of the Atlantic wishing to join a Puritan church had to appear before all of its members and tell the story of their religious conversion - in effect, to give convincing verbal evidence that their souls were saved. New England's Puritans widely adopted this practice, and in this book Patricia Caldwell attempts to unravel the mystery of this procedure by viewing it as a literary phenomenon that met the special imaginative and expressive needs of troubled people in a time of great turmoil. In the first comparative reading of conversion stories as literary expression, Caldwell shows that these symbolic and deeply religious narratives represent 'the first faint murmurings of a truly American voice'.

Book Description:

In the mid-seventeenth century, persons on both sides of the Atlantic wishing to join a Puritan church had to appear before all of its members and tell the story of their religious conversion - in effect, to give convincing verbal evidence that their souls were saved. This book explores the testimonies of spiritual experience delivered by puritans in the mid-seventeenth century in order to qualify for membership of their local churches.