The Puritan Dilemma

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In The Puritan Dilemma: The Story of John Winthrop, Edmund S. Morgan follows the life of John Winthrop and the predicaments in which the Puritans found themselves. Morgan (1916-2013) was a connoisseur in American colonial life. In 1939, Morgan received an AB from Harvard and a PHD in 1942. Later, Morgan went on to teach at the University of Chicago, Brown, and Yale. Along with The Puritan Dilemma, Morgan is the author of many other works centered on colonial Americans. Some of Morgan’s most famous works are: The Puritan Family, The Virginians at Home, The Stamp Act Crisis, and Benjamin Franklin (Butler). In The Puritan Dilemma, Morgan positions the title to act as a reoccurring symbol and causes the reader to recognize the dilemmas the Puritans face time and time again. Throughout the work, several conflicts arise, the largest of them all being Separatism. Among others Morgan ultimately …show more content…
Morgan’s expertise on his knowledge on American Colonialism shows in The Puritan Dilemma. However Morgan does allow his bias to creep in and portray Winthrop as the man who saved the “The City upon the hill.” It may have been next to impossible to explain separatism without the idolized perspective Morgan has. The way Morgan represents the life of Winthrop in a very matter-of-fact manner that allows the reader to visualize and understand the concepts in which the Puritans endeavored. Nonetheless, Morgan attempts to present the timeline of the book in order, but eventually skips from time to time. This creates a difficulty for the reader when understanding the timeline of events that affect the Puritans. One section in particular, Morgan speaks about a specific event before skipping forward to an event after Winthrop’s death. This creates confusion for the reader to follow along with the minutia of
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