Modern Day Puritan America

America, circa 1700, in the small town of Salem, Massachusetts where the Puritan community thrives. There, above a crowd of murmuring mystery figures, stands a beautiful young woman, with a small bundle in her arms, hugged closely to her chest, on which there is a skillfully embroidered “A” in a red as deep as blood.

Nathaniel Hawthorne wrote about this in The Scarlet Letter. This was one of the first scenes, when Hester Pynne, the girl, is labeled an adulterer in public. Her punishment was to stand in front of a crowd to let everyone know of her crime, and wear the “A” always to remind all who come across her, including herself, of her sin.

It is somewhat ironic, that in The Scarlet Letter, Hawthorne writes with a negative light on the Puritans, despite being from a family of them. It is said that he was ashamed of his family’s involvement in the notorious witchcraft trials, as his ancestor John Hathorne was one of the judges, that he changed his name.

These people who lived and governed themselves by the Bible that he writes about are the roots of today’s America. Yet why is it so different now? I’m not sure myself, but you know, when you look closely, you can still see hints of the original strict customs of the Puritans lingering in our society. Correction: religious views DOMINATE our morals and values. Think about issues like abortion and gay marriage. There’s so much heated debate on topics because the people who are not in favor of them are against them for religious reasons. Funny, because there are also so many things that people get away with that still go against religious teachings.

The Moment I Knew I Was American?

I think one of the saddest things in life is human stubborness. Narrow mindsets especially bother me, like the really really religious beliefs (no offence to anyone who is religious) that are really really extreme. It's good to stand for what you believe in, but I firmly believe that it's also healthy to step back a little every once in a while and look at the big picture from different angles. Your personal viewpoint may be right, but there might be a better one that you're missing because someone else's idea just isn't good enough for you. This applies to all opinions and beliefs, not just the religious ones. Miscommunication or the lack of it also stems from this stubborness. Say for example, if I'm really mad at my mom and decide not to return any of her calls, and one of them happen to be about my brother getting hurt, by the time I do find out it will only look like I didn't care, and the situation would only get worse from there. In the Crucible, the same thing happened, but to the point where people had to die and still didn't make that much of a difference.
It's so depressing. :( People need to learn not just to look, but to see, and not just hear, but to listen as well.