17th Century In Colonial America example essay topic

During the 17th century in colonial America, change and growth were occurring in society. New religions were being created, and new governments were being formed. The mix of religions and politics made 17th century colonial America one of the most liberal regions of the time. Yet the freedoms of their society do not equal our standards of freedoms today. They had similar yet very different political, religious, and even personal laws from the society of today. Americans have always been known to desire self-government.

Even though colonial America did have a dictatorial leader, Sir Edmund Andros, for a short while, representative self-government was born in America. The House of Burgesses was formed in 1619, which is similar to our House of Representatives today. It was like a mini- parliament in America. Another example of self-government was the Mayflower Compact written by the Pilgrims. It was a basic agreement of simple government that featured majority rule.

The New England Confederation was another model of self-determination. Four colonies banded together for defense against foes. In today's society, countries band together to defend against enemies in war. These were steps along the path to the self-government we enjoy today. Since many colonists came to America from England, England thought that they could control America.

That is something we could never imagine today. England created the Dominion of New England, which was aimed at bolstering colonial defense in the event of war with the Indians. It also promoted the English-enforced Navigation Laws. These laws were designed to let America trade only with countries ruled by the English crown. Voting rights were also different, since only men who owned land could vote. No women could vote, no slaves could vote, and certainly not men who didn't own land.

In our world, any citizen can vote, as long as you are registered and eighteen. There was also no right to a fair trial in colonial America. We could never dream of not having the right to a fair trial. Political rights have changed since then, and they will continue to change as our society grows. Religious views and rights have changed tremendously since the 1600's. People were persecuted in the past for their religious beliefs.

King Henry V even invented a new religion just so he could get a divorce. The Act of Toleration was passed in 1649 to give toleration to all Christians. It wasn't as good as you might think though; it decreed the death penalty to Jews, atheists and any other religion that didn't believe in the divinity of Jesus. Colonial America in the 1600's was full of Puritans who had strict religious beliefs. They believed in predestination, visible saints, and dissenters. One famous dissenter was Anne Hutchinson.

She believed that you did not have to do good works to get into heaven. She committed heresy by going against the doctrine of good works. We are more tolerant now of people's religious rights than they were in the 1600's. Today people are not persecuted for their beliefs; they actually come to America to be free from persecution. Even though they may have been persecuted in the 1600's, people have always come to America for religious freedom. Rhode Island was just one of the many colonies founded for that reason.

America will always be a very mixed and diverse region full of different religions. We still believe in many of the beliefs that they had in the past. In the 1600's, people believed in the separation of church and state. After the Glorious Revolution, the privilege of voting was extended to all qualified male property holders, not just church members.

Clergymen could not hold office in that period, and it is still discouraged today. The Great Awakening was a religious revival that led to a growth in church membership and competitiveness among denominations. It increased missionary work and led to the founding of centers of higher education. Without these similarities America would not be the same today.

There were also personal rights in the 17th century that are not like today's rights. However, there are some that are the same. Blue laws stated that you could not do certain things in public, such as kissing or holding hands. They concerned your personal behavior. Today we do not have such laws. The social ladders, on the contrary, are like today's structure.

There are still economic class structures that restrict movement between sections. This grouping of people in layers is called stratification. Freedom of expression has always been an important freedom in our society. One of the fighters for freedoms of the press and free speech was John Paul Zenger. He was a newspaper printer who had written about the royal governor in a not so glorious manner. Even though it was the truth, he was charged with seditious libel and tried in a court of law.

When he was found not guilty, the precedent of a free press was established. These differences in political and religious beliefs have developed our society into what it is today. Many of their basic beliefs are also part of the foundations of our society. We expanded and grew on the beliefs of 17th century colonial America. Although colonial America was one of the most liberal areas of its' time, our society has many more freedoms and guaranteed rights.