The Modern Puritan

Although Puritans don't exist anymore, there are traits that can be found in many groups, not all religious. In class, we discussed the Amish having a very simple life similar to that of the Puritans. The strict moral code can be identified in societies and organizations that emphasize citizenship, leadership, and character. For example, at school there are the NHS and NJHS that only accept students that show that they are active in those aspects of their self. They have to improve themselves and excel certain standards set for them in order to continue to be a part of it.

I think that most parents try to set parameters for their children to restrict them, similar to the way children in Puritan society were not heard or seen unless they are to turn of age or adults choose to. Children in modern times are not, but many things are discouraged like staying out late with friends or using the Internet for a long time. They are usually punished if they go against their parents/guardians/educators or act immorally.

In some countries, there are things that are seen as inappropriate. Some conservative societies think that certain types of clothing should not be worn at all. Usually, it means that girls can't wear short bottoms or revealing tops in public and boys can't go around without a shirt on. America is a very different country. We often criticize people on the news that are shown wearing revealing clothing or doing inappropriate things (i.e. Miley Cyrus) but we don't have a strict society that restricts it from happening.

There are more examples of Puritan traits in modern times, but I think these show some of those traits the most.

John Proctor: Hero or Stooge

John Proctor was thought of as a well-respected man because of his land. His character has many dynamics to it and changes throughout, albeit not as much as some others. The way the author presented Proctor had us questioning his morals when it was revealed he had an affair with Abigail Williams. Through his actions and dialogue from when he tries to get his point across that Abigail was the one lying, readers can tell that he's obviously doing his best to prove to his wife that he doesn't have feelings for Abigail and to everyone else that Abigail was lying.

From the four acts, many facets of his character are shown. He has a guilty conscience for cheating on his wife. He has a desire to stand up for his actions even though other people wouldn't understand his reasons for those actions. He's determined to keep his and Elizabeth's relationship from getting worse. He seems to be unable to defend himself when being questioned, maybe from nervousness and lack of preparation.

He was hung for witchcraft, which he was not guilty of. The sins he was guilty of were ones only Elizabeth and Abigail knew of-adultery and lying. He did rip up official court documents out of both temper and pride, which also led up to his execution.


I think that Proctor didn't have the weight of guilt when he was hanged. To me, he was noble to give up his life to save other people from being accused as witches in the chain of lies throughout the town. He isn't exactly the hero of the story, but he is as close as we can get to one.

"Arrivals . . There Goes The Neighborhood"

I feel that this quote can be quite misleading. For one, there aren't many prime examples in modern times of this. This can apply to many events in history, the most common being the arrival of the European explorers on American land.

The Native Americans didn't exactly know how so many of their population were dying off. The Europeans might not have known either but they did pass on diseases through casual contact. Native Americans had the right to think along the lines of "there goes the neighborhood" but that's only from one side.

The European explorers were there for God, gold, and glory. They believed that they had been sent on a mission from God to convert non-Catholics to Catholicism, which led to force on their part in killing the natives. Their motives were to bring back resources, convert as missionaries, and to get famous for what they did. They didn't consider the cons as much, seeing as they did what they thought they were supposed to do. Anyone who got in their way they would most likely kill.

There was a time when Asians were discriminated for immigrating to the US. People back then didn't approve of so many people immigrating because they thought the newcomers were after the wealth to send back to their families. Even now, Mexicans can cross the US-Mexico border and can technically live here for the rest of their lives and their children would be able to have automatic US citizenship under certain conditions.

It's not just the US that still has discrimination. A lot of Asian countries, most notably South Korea, didn't have a lot of interactions with other countries. Generally, South Koreans tend to look down on interracial relationships and even just people of non-Asian races. There are some different factors (like their political issues) that cause this particular type of society, but it still is a "there goes the neighborhood" type of attitude.

This type of attitude can come from religious beliefs, political beliefs, and social beliefs. The Europeans' religious beliefs caused a lot of brute force in attempting to convert many of the Native Americans. Their political beliefs come from ties with slavery where "colored" people were forced to become laborers for them. Their social beliefs were that anyone who were "barbarians" or "uncivilized" were not allowed to be considered human. Even though not everyone had that type of mindset, it's still definitely there, but just not as noticeable, similar to a nagging voice in one's mind.