William Bradford and John Winthrop Reading Questions

Dr. Roggenkamp

Hint 1:  “Divers” = diverse, many, several

Hint 2:   You will be aided by reading the introductory head notes to each selection!

John Winthrop, A Model of Christian Charity; selections from the journal of John Winthrop

1.       A Model of Christian Charity provides a good example of a Puritan sermon (the Puritans had extremely regimented ideas about how a sermon should be structured).  Try to trace the organization of the sermon.  How is it put together?  How does it move logically through an argument in order to persuade its listening and reading audience?

2.       One way to read the lay sermon A Model of Christian Charity is as a kind of a “peptalk” or “motivational speech.”  What points does Winthrop seem to want to make his audience feel good or motivated about?

3.       A central metaphor used in this sermon is that of the human body.  What kinds of comparisons are made between the human body and the Christian community?  How do we interpret this metaphor?

4.       The most lasting, final image from A Model of Christian Charity is that of the “city on a hill” (317).  Think carefully about this image.  What sorts of things does it suggest to you, literally—that is, what is important about a literal city on a literal hill?  Then, think about why Winthrop is turning to that image in this particular context—what does he want to suggest about his Puritan community and their sense of mission? 

5.       The phrase “city on a hill” is still used by politicians today in speaking about America.  Why?  What does this image still suggest about America’s conception of itself?

6.       If A Model of Christian Charity presents an idealized view of what the Puritan community is supposed to look like, what, in contrast, does reality look like, according to the selections from Winthrop’s journal?

William Bradford, selections from Of Plymouth Plantation

1.       How would you compare Bradford’s writing style compared to Winthrop’s?  Compared to Morton’s?

2.       What is the purpose of a HISTORY?  What is the purpose of a history in Bradford’s eyes?  Why, in other words, is he writing this history of events he participated in?  What is this history’s PURPOSE?

3.       A writer of history must always carefully pick and choose what he or she wants to include in writing his or her account.  Why do you think Bradford chose to relate these particular stories or events?  What makes them important enough to set down into history?

Thomas Morton, selections from New English Canaan, Book III

1.       Read the headnote on Thomas Morton, pages 281-282.  It will help you understand what he is writing in Book III of New English Canaan.

2.       How would you describe the tone of Thomas Morton’s “history” or account, when compared carefully to the history written by William Bradford.

3.       How does Morton characterize the Pilgrims of Plymouth Plantation?  What does he seem to think of them?  How, in contrast, does he characterize himself?  Find specific examples from the text to back up your impression/interpretation.

4.       Morton and Bradford present two sides to a story in their accounts about what happened on Merry Mount (or Ma-re-Mount).  Whose story are we supposed to trust?  How can we tell where the truth lies?  What does Morton mean by a “New English Canaan?”  Hint: what is “Canaan?”