Many of the Puritans had much self reliance and were very industrious. We see that very clearly in the story by Mary Rowlandson. The Puritan people stayed at the ministers house and were staying to stand their ground and fight off the Indians. Many people would have fled, but not these Puritans, they stayed to fight. At one point in the story, there is a quote inserted by Mrs. Rowlings, saying that she would rather die there in her house by the Indians, than be taken hostage. That shows the industrious view of the Puritans, even though she later changed her mind.
Many Puritans also used writing to explore their inner and outer lives for signs of God working. We see this done by Mary Rowlandson who published a book of her experiences with the Wampanoag. In her book she told her story, and related it to how God was entwined with her life during that time period. The Puritans also emphasized education for the sake of people being able to read the Bible; for they believed it was the literal word of God. We see in the story that Mrs. Rowlandson is revived by receiving a Bible while being held hostage, and this is one of the only things that keeps her going. That shows how she valued that she could read the Bible, and could also lead to mean that she thought what she was reading was the literal word of God.
In "Upon the Burning of our House", the reader can see many of the Puritan values holding true in the life of the Puritan author. The Puritans believed that the everyday world and the spiritual world were closely entwined. And through reading this story, the reader gains perspective on how that could be so, to the lives of the Puritans. The reader, however, gets a great view of this by reading "Upon the Burning of our House". The author of the story relates everything that happens in her life to God. The instant this woman's house was on fire, her thoughts went to God. While it was burning, she spent the time talking to God. After it was burned down, she trusted that God would provide for her. The way she was always talking to God, gives the reader a glimpse into the life of a Puritan and how they entwine God and life.
In Puritan writing, the Bible provided a model of how to live their individual life as a pilgrimage to salvation. Through The poem "Upon the Burning of our House", we get a glimpse into the author's though process and how she lives her daily life as a pilgrimage to salvation. Everything she thought and did related to God and could be something that helped her through her pilgrimage to salvation.
As we see in the two literary pieces, the Puritans did indeed live their daily lives for God and believed it helped them in their journey to salvation and they were wholeheartedly committed to the Lord.
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