SOCIETY DURING THE PURITAN AGE

PURITANS: (Calvanist teaching) they advocated return to simplicity and a moral life. No ritual (cerimonies, vestments, music, procession). They were against amusement. (They close theatres, against dancing, horse-riding ,gambling, drinking).

They lived for work and success in work was a sign of God.Poverty was considered almost a crime.

They dressed in black in a very simple way.

Frugal meals.

They wore short hair (Round Heads)

In the Puritan family  the father was the absolute head (tasks:reading the Bible,saying the prayers)wife and children were expected to give him absolute obbediance.

They believed in Predestination:all men were born sinners and were damned.Only God's grace can save man which they had to obtain working hard.

ANGLICANS:They were courtiers.

They dressed in satin and  velvet .They wore elaborated plumed hats and curled wigs.

CONSEQUENCE OF THE CIVIL WAR

Merchand class grew in importance.Free medical services for poor.

London became an important cultural,political,economic,trading ,social centre.

PURITAN LITERATURE

a)Methaphysical poetry (Donne,Crashaw ,Herbert)

-They are puritan in spirit

-Their poetry is mainly religious

-They draw from personal experience

-they deal with practical affairs not scholastic/scientific learning

Style: their style isn't direct but elaborated ,full of figures of speech to produce surprising effects.

b)Cavalier poetry: they're royalist in feeling .Their poetry is mainly love poetry and they exalted "woman" as the main source of inspiration.

Style: it's classical characterized by precision and elegance.