One post-Puritan example of a jeremiad is the Great Depression. The economic downfall could be considered punishment for the loose morals of the Roaring Twenties. The 1920’s were a time of excess- everyone thought that the booming economy would last forever. It also signaled sexual liberation for women and a rise in homosexuality. F. Scott Fitzgerald described it best: “The parties were bigger. The pace was faster…and the morals were looser.” The Great Depression has all the makings of a jeremiad in that the downfall of the economy was punishment from God for the un-holy antics of the 20’s. During the depression, many went bankrupt from buying on credit and were forced to live a much more conservative and basic life than before. This was a call to action for American society to change (go back to following God) to avoid further divine punishment.
Another example of a post-Puritan jeremiad is 9/11. God could have been punishing Americans for any number of reasons for societal corruption in preceding years- too much sexual promiscuity, greed, or violence. In the case of a jeremiad, some might say that God used this horrible tragedy not just as punishment, but as an attempt at religious revival warning Americans to change their ways and go back to following God.
The influence of the jeremiad on …show more content…
In the short story “The Devil and Tom Walker”, Washington Irving incorporates many distinctly “American” elements in his tale. The setting of the story is Boston Massachusetts when Quakers and Puritans were settled, part of it taking place on an old Indian battle ground- about as American as one can get. Greed also stands out as a very American characteristic in the story. The reader is introduced to Tom Walker and his wife as “a meager, miserly fellow…He had a wife as miserly as himself: they were so miserly that they even conspired to cheat each other.” Greed is also the downfall of both characters as it leads them to sell their souls to the devil for Kidd’s
Another example of a post-Puritan jeremiad is 9/11. God could have been punishing Americans for any number of reasons for societal corruption in preceding years- too much sexual promiscuity, greed, or violence. In the case of a jeremiad, some might say that God used this horrible tragedy not just as punishment, but as an attempt at religious revival warning Americans to change their ways and go back to following God.
The influence of the jeremiad on …show more content…
In the short story “The Devil and Tom Walker”, Washington Irving incorporates many distinctly “American” elements in his tale. The setting of the story is Boston Massachusetts when Quakers and Puritans were settled, part of it taking place on an old Indian battle ground- about as American as one can get. Greed also stands out as a very American characteristic in the story. The reader is introduced to Tom Walker and his wife as “a meager, miserly fellow…He had a wife as miserly as himself: they were so miserly that they even conspired to cheat each other.” Greed is also the downfall of both characters as it leads them to sell their souls to the devil for Kidd’s