Gordis ENG BC3179x
Fall 2009
MAKING SENSE OF JONATHAN EDWARDS
First of all, Edwards is extremely difficult. Bear that in mind as you work through the Edwards selections. On the one hand, this means that you shouldn't expect to figure him out completely in a single week. On the other hand, it means that you have to work at him, and not give up in a single sitting. I encourage you to read the introduction to the Edwards section in the Norton Anthology for information about Edwards's biography. The following notes may also be helpful to you as read these texts.
Note that Edwards (1703-1758) is several generations later than Shepard, and later than Wigglesworth as well. By this point, the texts of the Enlightenment are influencing even Calvinist New England. Edwards reported great pleasure at reading the works of John Locke, and was very much influenced by Locke's ideas about knowledge gained through experience, especially through the senses. In his Essay Concerning Human Understanding, Locke argued that
Simple ideas, as has been shown, are only to be got by those impressions objects themselves make on our minds, by the proper inlets appointed to each sort. If they are not received this way, all the words in the world, made use of to explain or define any of their names, will never be able to produce in us the idea it stands for. For, words being sounds, can produce in us not other simple ideas than those of sounds; nor excite any in us, but by that voluntary connexion which is known to be between them the signs of. He that thinks otherwise, let him try if any words can give him the taste of a pine apple, and make him have the true idea of the relish of that celebrated delicious fruit. (III.iv.II)
Part of Edwards's project involved trying to reconcile Calvinism with Lockean psychology. How do you see this working in "A Divine and Supernatural Light"? How does Edwards approach the problem of describing faith in words? How does he describe faith? How similar is Edwards’s discussion of faith to discussions we’ve seen in earlier texts?
As you read the passage on "[The Beauty of the World]" and the assigned excerpts from Images and Shadows of Divine Things, consider Edwards's treatment of natural beauty. How does he describe natural objects? How does he relate them to spiritual concerns? Does his approach to nature seem different from earlier discussions we've read? You may also want to look at Edwards’s essay "Of Insects," which may have been written before Edwards was twelve years old.
When you turn to the reading assignment for next Wednesday you'll find an Edwards who sounds on the surface very different. As you know from the Norton introduction, Edwards was very involved in the period of religious fervor that has come to be known as the "Great Awakening." I've assigned several texts, including Edwards's own conversion narrative, his letter to Rev . Dr. Benjamin Coleman describing the events of the awakening in Northampton, his famous sermon "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God" (which he delivered as a guest preacher in the church at Enfield, Connecticut), and a text by Charles Chauncy which cautions against the excesses of this religious revival. (Chauncy's text is online. I've assigned only excerpts of Chauncy's sermon itself, which begins on page 1 of the book but on image 11 of the pdf. The excerpts I'd like you to read are marked with annotations.)
As you read these texts, consider them both in the context of texts we’ve studied earlier in the term and in the context of Edwards’s corpus. So, for example, consider how much Edwards’s "Personal Narrative" resembles the other spiritual autobiographies we’ve read this term, and compare "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God" to other sermons we’ve read. Which other ministers’ sermons does this example of Edwards’s preaching most resemble? Then, consider these texts in relation to Edwards’s other writings. How similar are "A Divine and Supernatural Light" and "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God"? How might you explain the seeming disparities between them? What basic similarities underlie the dramatic differences in tone and style?