Abstract: Though Puritanism originated in England, it developed and prospered in New England, America. Many puritan immigrants settled in New England in 1620 on Mayflower, making up the main residents in North America. The core concepts of Puritanism of ‘almighty God”, “double pre-destination”, “justification by grace through faith”, “the idea of calling”, “a city upon hill” greatly but unconsciously placed influence on people’s ideology through everyday life. With these core concepts borne in mind, they held a positive attitude towards worldly life. They saw material wealth as a proof of the chosen people, therefore they devoted themselves to “the calling from God” to gain wealth for the honor of God. Though they valued much on wealth, they kept the principle of honesty and fairness in business and they just treat wealth a property of God which was temporarily kept by them. Since they must be able to read Bible, they attached great significance to education, which contributes a lot to the world-renowned American education. When it comes to the political aspect, the idea of equality was undoubtedly stimulated American democracy. Individualism in Puritanism also placed remarkable influence on American family values. In addition, pragmatism in American also came from Puritanism as puritans must handle the harsh realistic environment in New England when they first settled on the new world. All in all, Puritanism shaped the basic features in today’s American economy, education, politics and mainstream culture. This thesis mainly deals with the origin and development of Puritanism and its influence on America in all aspects including its economy, education, politics, family values and pragmatism.

Key words: Puritanism; American; values; influence

Content

摘要：

Abstract:

Introduction-1

Chapter One The Origin and the Development of Puritanism-1

Chapter Two Main Contents of Puritanism-4

2.1 Core Concepts of Puritanism-4

2.1.1 Almighty God-4

2.1.2 Double Predestination-4

2.1.3 Piety-5

2.1.4 Covenant-5

2.1.5 Bible was the only authority to explain God’s will.-6

2.2 Social ethics of Puritanism-6

2.3 Economy Ethics in Puritanism-6

2.4 Personal ethics in Puritanism-7

2.5 Political ethics in Puritanism-8

Chapter Three Influence of Puritanism on American Ideas of Values-8

3.1 Influence on American Economy-8

3.2 Influence on American Education-11

3.3 Influence on American Politics-13

3.3.1 Right and Obligation-14

3.3.2 Freedom-14

3.3.3 Equality-15

3.3.4 Political System-15

3.4 Influence on American Family Values-16

3.5 Influence on American Pragmatism-16

Conclusion-17

Bibliography-19

Acknowledgements-20