Dancing Along the Tightrope of Leisure: Puritans and Dance in Seventeenth-Century Massachusetts

A more holistic view of the Puritans in seventeenth-century Massachusetts can be reached by looking at their complex relationship with leisure and its manifestation both in their dance practice and attitudes towards dance. This thesis takes a multi-disciplinary approach in bringing to light this understanding, consisting of research into a variety of fields including music, English history, Colonial American history, social dance studies, and theology. Chapter I lays out the theological and historical heritage of the Non-separatist Puritans who sailed to Massachusetts with John Winthrop in 1630. Chapter II progresses through a detailed exploration of Puritan dance examples and analyses from England and New England. Chapter III provides a thorough explication of the first argument in Increase Mather’s 1685 tract, An Arrow against Profane and Promiscuous Dancing Drawn Out of the Quiver of Scriptures. From this research the following conclusions can be drawn: the Puritans did dance, both in England and Massachusetts, and the stereotype of Puritans who condemned dance was the result of the Puritan’s complex attitudes towards leisure which they saw as an acceptable pursuit, but only when practiced in an orderly manner.Theatre and DanceMastersUniversity of New Mexico. Dept. of Theater and DanceSantos Newhall, Mary AnneHerrera, BrianAvila, Elain