From “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God”



Name: _______________________________ Period:____ Unit Packet # ____

from Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God

By: Jonathan Edwards

Notes: Encounters & Foundations………………………..…….……………..………. /10

Summary of Notes……………………….……………………………….……………………….. /10

Vocabulary in Context…………………………………………………………………………. /10

Vocabulary Development………………………………………………………………….…….. /10

Making Predictions………………………………………………………………………………. /10

Annotating the Text……………………………………………….…………………………….. /10

Analyzing and Author’s Purpose………………………………………………….………. /10

Literary Response & Analysis…………………………………….………………………… /10

Identifying Rhetorical Devices…………………………………………………………… /10

Reader-Response Reflection ……………………………….…………………………….. /10

TOTAL POINTS: /100

|Unit Standards |

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|Reading Standard 2.1: Analyze both the features and the rhetorical devices of different types of public documents and the way in which authors|

|use those features and devices. |

|Reading Standard 3.4: Analyze ways in which poets use figures of speech to evoke readers’ emotions. |

|Reading Standard 2.2: Analyze the way in which clarity of meaning is affected by patterns of organization, hierarchical structures, repetition|

|of the main ideas, syntax, and word choice in the text |

|Reading Standard 2.4: Make warranted and reasonable assertions about the author’s arguments by using elements of the text to defend and |

|clarify interpretations |

|Listening & Speaking 1.1: Recognize strategies used by the media to inform, persuade, entertain and transmit culture (e.g.., advertisements; |

|perpetuation of stereotypes; use of visual representations, special effects, language) |

Notes: Encounters and Foundations to 1800

DIRECTIONS: it is important to know the thought, ideals, and values of a time period in order to fully understand the meaning of its important literature. Read the history section of Chapter 1 in the HOLT textbook (pages 6-19) and take summarized notes on the following sections:

Summary of Notes

DIRECTIONS: It is important to understand the history and essential characteristics of a time period so you can understand the context of the texts we read. Take a few minutes to reflect on the notes you took on the time period and create a one-paragraph summary that includes the important concepts and events that may have influenced the literature of the time. Then, briefly answer the reflection questions at the bottom of the page.

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Reflection Question 1: What do you think is the single most important piece of information to know about this time period? Why?

Reflection Question 2: Turn to a partner and ask them their answer to Reflection Question 1. Record their answer.

Reflection Question 3: Why are we learning about this time period in an English class?

from “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God”

by Jonathan Edwards

LITERARY FOCUS: FIGURES OF SPEECH

Writers use figures of speech to help us see the world in new, imaginative ways. A figure of speech compares one thing to another, very different, thing. In “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God,” Jonathan Edwards uses figures of speech to make his readers experience the horrors he is describing.

In one memorable example, he describes “wickedness” as being “heavy as lead.” By using this figure of speech, a simile, Edwards compares the idea of wickedness to an everyday material his audience is familiar with. The figure of speech helps them feel the dead weight of wickedness.

What’s the Difference? Three of the most commonly occurring figures of speech are simile, metaphor, and personification.

➢ A simile compares two unlike things, using a word such as like, as, than, or resembles: Her heart is as cold as a dungeon.

➢ A metaphor compares two different things without using such words as like or as: Life is a carnival.

➢ Personification gives human characteristics to objects, animals, or abstractions: The flowers nodded their heads in agreement.

IDENTIFYING AN AUTHOR’S PURPOSE

Most writers have a purpose for putting words to paper. Some writers want to create a whole imaginative world of their own. Some want to share information. Some want to convey a message to their readers. Others hope to tap into readers’ feelings or reason and persuade them to accept a way of thinking or to take some particular action. Jonathan Edwards’s vivid, intense sermon “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God” was written with a clear purpose—to make the experience of hell so real and frightening that people in his audience would change their lives.

Vocabulary Study: Vocabulary in Context

DIRECTIONS: Please find each vocabulary word in the text. Then, copy down the entire sentence in which it is used in the second column. Then, based on that sentence, write down your inferred definition in the third column. Finally, look up the actual definition of the word and record it in the last column.

|Word |How it is used in the Text |Inferred Definition |Dictionary Definition |

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|Inconceivable | | | |

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|Omnipotent | | | |

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|Abhors | | | |

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|Abominable | | | |

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|Ascribed | | | |

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|Induce | | | |

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Vocabulary Development: Context Clues

“Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God”

DIRECTIONS: Read the sentences below. Using context clues and the definitions of the Vocabulary words to guide you, choose the word that correctly completes the sentence. Circle that word, and underline any context clues that helped you arrive at the answer.

EXAMPLE: Edwards preaches that God is ( provoked , ascribed) by sin, and if

angered, God will cast human beings into hell.

1. Is there a (constitution, contrivance) that can help one avoid eternal damnation? According to Edwards, no such human plan exists.

2. Edwards attempts to (induce, appease) his congregation to follow his advice by using his power of persuasion.

3. An individual may take care of her or his (constitution, contrivance), but Edwards asserts, attention to one’s physical condition will not keep one out of hell.

4. Edwards evidently (appeases, abhors) “sinners.” His fiery words communicate this hatred.

5. Edwards believes that God is an (inconceivable, omnipotent), or all-powerful, being who can bring about catastrophe at any time.

6. According to Edwards, God can be (induced, provoked) by anyone. An angry God has prepared eternal punishment for all.

7. The ways of humans, says Edwards, are mostly (abominable, inconceivable) to God, who is displeased by our loathsome behavior.

8. Is it (inconceivable, omnipotent) that people find salvation outside the Puritan church? To Edwards such a concept is unimaginable.

9. According to Edwards, one cannot simply (induce, appease) God with good works or other calming actions.

10. Edwards (ascribed, provoked) the cause of God’s wrath to those people who are reluctant to accept Christ as their Savior and who are an affront to God.

Reading Activities:

Making Predictions, Visualizing, Annotating the Text

❖ MAKING PREDICTIONS

Write a brief prediction about what you think the message of the sermon is going to be based on the journal prompt, background information and key vocabulary. Explain your predictions using evidence from the pre-reading activities.

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❖ ANNOTATING THE TEXT

When you write on a text or take notes on a passage, it is called an annotation. Annotating a text is a great way to interact with a text so you do not lose focus. As you read, make the following annotations:

On the left side of the text: Identify thesis, main points, evidence, etc.

On the right side of the text: Write your reactions and connections to the text

In the text:

➢ Circle any words you DO NOT know

➢ Underline all similes, metaphors, and use of personification (label them)

➢ Box words or phrases that illustrate mood or tone

Identifying an Author’s Purpose

DIRECTIONS: Most authors have a purpose, or reason, for writing. Jonathan Edwards’s purpose for writing “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God” is very clear, and his vivid details and frightening metaphors help him get his message across. Fill in the chart below with some details from the sermon that reveal Edwards’s purpose for writing.

|Author’s Purpose: |

|To scare his congregation into obeying the word of God |

|Passage 1 |

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Literary Response & Analysis Questions

READING CHECK

1. Find the direct statement in which Edwards sets forth the purpose of his sermon.

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2. According to the sermon, what keeps sinners out of a fiery “pit of hell”?

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3. Identify the three famous figures of speech that Edwards develops in the fourth through seventh paragraphs. What things is he comparing in each one?

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INTERPRETATIONS

4. What references in the sermon reveal Edwards’s implicit philosophical beliefs about divine mercy?

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5. Edwards was directing his sermon to what he calls “natural men,” those members of his congregation who had not been “reborn.” What images and figures of speech might have helped Edwards’s listeners to feel the peril of their sinful condition?

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6. Edwards struck fear into the hearts of his listeners in order to persuade them to act to avoid everlasting torment. Which specific metaphors and similes in the sermon were probably the most persuasive?

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EVALUATION

7. If you had a chance to respond to Edwards, what would you say?

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Identifying Rhetorical Devices

DIRECTIONS: It is important to understand WHAT an author’s says… but it’s also important to look at HOW an author says it. Using rhetorical devices is an important part of the persuasion process. Take some time to get familiar with these devices and go back to the speech to find evidence of how they are used.

|Rhetorical Device |Definition |Example from Text |

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|Argument by Analogy | | |

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|Rhetorical Question | | |

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|Call to Action | | |

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|Repetition | | |

EVALUATE THE SPEECH:

How does using these rhetorical devices help Edwards purpose of the speech? Make sure that you are specific in your response.

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Reader-Response Reflection

Create Arguments, Use and Reference Words of Others, Use Academic Language

DIRECTIONS: Reflect on your personal beliefs regarding faith and religion and how it relates to Edwards’s sermon. Write a reader-response critique of Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God. Make sure to cite specific lines and your personal philosophies as evidence to support your criticism.

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Forming New

Relationships

Disease in the

New World

The Puritans

Smallpox

Deism

Self-made

Americans

REVIEW SKILLS

Look for examples of the following as you read this selection.

FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE

Language used in a non-literal way, usually involving imaginative comparisons such as similes and metaphors.

IMAGERY

Language that appeals to the senses.

Reader-Response is a form of literary criticism where the essential goal of the theory is the reader’s present response to a text. It asks the question: what happens and how do you, the audience, feel about it?

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