The Pursuit of Power: Studies in the Vocabulary of Puritanism

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P. Lang, 1995 - 281 pages
Puritanism is defined as «a mode of rhetoric which had its inception as a reaction against Romanist and feudal hierarchies in England and then offered itself as a frame for a developing history of ideas in America.» The book analyzes the language of the major historical arguments for and against Puritanism and, in doing so, defines the negative as well as positive influences Puritanism has had on American culture. The arguments concerning Puritanism center around notions of power in the older faculty and Lockeian psychological theories.

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Contents

The Rhetoric of Puritanism
3
The Origins of Puritanism
9
The Tropology of Puritanism
15
Copyright

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About the author (1995)

The Author: Ellwood Johnson is a Professor of American Literature at Western Washington University. From 1978 to 1987 he was the editor of Concerning Poetry, a journal of the history and criticism of poetry. The author of numerous essays on major American writers, Dr. Johnson has also edited an anthology, The Classical Essay, and co-edited, with L.L. Lee, A Directory of Scholarly Journals in English Language and Literature.

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