Question

Analyze the ways in which TWO of the following influenced the development of American society: - Puritanism during the seventeenth century - the Enlightenment - the Great Awakening during the eighteenth century.

Answer 1

• Puritanism a religious tradition that developed in America which eventually influenced the people to start the American Revolution. Puritanism defended that families should be the center of society, which eventually led to the widespread of patriarchal households with high fertility. This eventually led to the development of towns with a strong sense of community, since the town represented a family that should be taken care of. Puritanism also influenced the government since it influenced the formation of a local government that was run by town meetings. Another very important element of Puritanism was the “predestination” sentiment, which eventually led to Manifest Destiny.
• Enlightenment also influenced American society, it was an 18th-century movement that started in Europe but influenced Thomas Jefferson, George Washington, Thomas Paine, and Benjamin Franklin. It separated religion from the government and questioned the answers that the Bible had for several natural phenomenons. The Enlightenment influenced people to get more educated and learn about science so it could improve their lives, which eventually led to the rise of Isaac Newton and John Locke. John Locke influenced the Founding Fathers especially when he spoke about the natural rights that every human must have - life, liberty, and property -. These rights were in the Declaration of Independence and in the US Constitution which shaped the American society to this day.