THE AMERICAN PURITANS: THE OG PRUDES
Let's take a moment to talk about the American Puritans. You know, those guys who sailed over on the Mayflower and decided they were going to be the most boring group of people in history. Yeah, those guys.
Now, don't get me wrong, I'm sure they were lovely people. But when it comes to sex, they were about as fun as a root canal. These guys believed that sex was only for procreation within the confines of marriage. So, basically, if you weren't married and trying to make babies, you were out of luck.
And let's not forget about adultery and fornication. These were considered serious offenses against God and the community. If you were caught doing the horizontal mambo outside of marriage, you could be publicly shamed or even physically punished. Talk about a buzzkill.
But why were the Puritans so uptight about sex? Well, it all comes down to their interpretation of Christianity and the Bible. They believed in the concept of original sin, which meant that all humans were inherently sinful because of Adam and Eve's little apple incident. And apparently, this sin extended to sexuality. So, basically, they thought that sex was a manifestation of humanity's fallen nature. Yikes.
Now, you may be wondering why I'm calling these values "zombie-like". Well, it's because they just won't die. Even though the Puritans have been gone for centuries, their values have lingered on in American society. We still place a strong emphasis on marital fidelity and traditional family values. And while I'm all for healthy relationships and happy families, sometimes it feels like we're stuck in the 1600s.
But let's not forget that values and ethics are constantly evolving. We don't have to be stuck in the past forever. Maybe one day we'll look back on our current values and laugh at how silly they seem. Who knows?
In the meantime, let's just be glad that we don't have to live under Puritan rule. Can you imagine a world where sex was only for making babies and any form of sexual pleasure was considered sinful? Yeah, me neither. Let's just be grateful for the progress we've made and keep moving forward.
In conclusion, the American Puritans were the OG prudes. They believed in strict sexual ethics and condemned any form of sexual activity outside of marriage. While their values may still linger on in American society, it's important to remember that values are always evolving. So, let's keep pushing forward and leave those Puritan values in the past where they belong.
The Puritans and Sex on JSTOR https://www.jstor.org/stable/361501
