Puritan Rewards

When you think about something, are your immediate thoughts or actions influenced by rewards? Are you ever truly motivated to do something purely for yourself, not someone else? No, humans motivate themselves to gain extrinsic rewards or motivated to avoid certain consequences or dangers. Puritan writers wrote most often in plain style or sermons during the early 15th century until the Revolutionary Period. Humanist writers, including Patrick Henry and Thomas Paine, changed the Puritans' writing style to a new, unconcealed, and religiously based text during the late 16th century. People of this generation realistically motivate themselves with regards to the rewards that follow like the Puritans thought; however, people might be more motivated …show more content…
Generally, people motivate themselves more effectively when considering extrinsic motivators, or rewards, just like the Puritans thought. The Puritans often wrote about doing everything right so that they evade the consequences of possibly going to hell, or to gain passage to the glorious Heaven. Like in Jonathan Edwards' sermon, "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God," when he proclaims that the sinners are in "a great furnace of wrath, a wide and bottomless pit, full of the fire of wrath, that [they] are held over in the hand of God, whose wrath is provoked and incensed as much against [them], as against many of the damned in hell." He asserts that if sinners do not stop sinning, admit their sins, and convert to Protestantism, God's wrath will remain inevitable. God hangs them over the gaping pits of hell by a string, according to Jonathan Edwards, and now the sinners feel motivated …show more content…
Benjamin Franklin, writer of “The Autobiography,” believed that he wanted to “live without committing any fault at any time,” and he wished to “conquer all that either natural inclination, custom, or company might lead [him] into.” Benjamin Franklin’s plan for bettering oneself had a premise that if everyone completed or attempted the plan, that the world would become a more advantageous place. The personal benefit for Benjamin Franklin or those who have read and follow his plan is an exceptional attitude, which can lead to more intelligent conversations and a virtuous mind. Because Franklin had a large family, he most likely helped his siblings with tasks that did not directly benefit himself; these tasks probably contributed to his Humanistic beliefs. Though this school of thought stays less realistic at this time, Humanistic beliefs may enable people to motivate themselves to make the world a better place, not just for their own personal rewards and