Since my classmates have already given you two great entries on Jonathan Edwards, I’ll talk about Michael Wigglesworth (does anyone else really enjoy saying his last name?).
In “The Diary of Michael Wigglesworth,” the author gives us a glimpse into his own form of the spiritual autobiography. The entries that this anthology gives the reader shows Wigglesworth’s internal back-and-forth struggle to please God. He struggles with pride, lust, and pride again as he pours out all of his fears about the eternal fate of his soul. One of the most interesting entries occurs on August 15, 1654, when Wigglesworth remarks that, “A mind distracted with a thousand vanitys Sabbath dayes and week days when I should be musing on the things of god,” (441). This sentence sums up the diary as a whole; in times of contemplation, Wigglesworth defines “time wasted” as “time not spent honoring God.” But Wigglesworth takes it one step further, and mentions that, in these times of waste, his lust/pride is so great that he can think of nothing else, he is “unable to read any thing to inform [him] about [his] distemper because of the prevailing or rising” of these sins. This entry is followed by one that shows a man much more at peace with his God, however (Spetember 15: “God will guide and provide.”). Again, I think this is done by the compilers of the anthology to show how extreme Wigglesworth’s back-and-forth struggle with finding peace in the eyes of God was. He fears these sinful desires because, as he mentions in “A Song of Emptiness,” man’s “gettings do augment his greediness,” (445). Indulging his desires will only lead to greater cravings - this is what every mortal man should fear.
Like many of the spiritual autobiographies we’ve read, Wigglesworth has his own personal struggle, but it seems like when he takes a step back and contemplates the fate of his soul, he accepts that the decision is completely out of his hands, and he leaves it up to God to make the choice whether it is good or bad. That’s not going to stop his “distracted mind” from fretting over his “carnal lusts,” but at certain times he takes comfort in the fact that some things are out of his hands. “A Song of Emptiness” has the perfect moral ending/warning for a soul that is tempted by worldly desires; “Thy best enjoyments are but Trash and Toyes: / Delight thy self in that which worthless is. / All things pass by except the love of God,” (447).
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Yes, Wigglesworth indeed does have his own personal struggles. In a way I almost saw him as a hypochondria. Wigglesworth was consistently tormented with his own sins, as you state, to the point where any illness or struggle was, as Edwards would point out, "the wrath of God". Wigglesworth was petrified of decieving God, and eventually realizing that he may not be saved. He shows this when he writes, "To change my condition endangers to bring me into a pining loathsome disease, to a wretched life and miserable death..". Wigglesworth is extremely tormented with his feelings. As we've continued to read the puritans I almost want to question whether they did question God. Their inner turmoil is vast as we've read, to the point where they seem to struggle with their own beliefs.
ReplyDeleteWhile Wigglesworth struggles do go back and forth, I found him to be much harder on himself in the earlier part of his journal. It starts out on such a low note, and while he is still upset at himself by the end of the included text in 1657, he seems to be upset at himself for sinning, but the language is not nearly as self-deprecating. I like the idea that he seems like a hypochondriac who literally worries himself sick. It seems that as he is less harsh on himself as time goes on, he heals in a way. I like the inclusion of how he acts toward his wife’s struggles during childbirth. The effect it has on his psychological state is similar to the effect his worrying about God has on him.
ReplyDeleteI find it interesting whenever read something in this class that deals with a questioned faith. These journal entries are proof positive that not everybody was so sure about the rest of society's bible toting ways. I love how Wigglesworth was extremely concerned that he had caught Gonorrhea. I actually laughed out loud at that part. I began to wonder with the biography and everything whether Wigglesworth had gotten into medicine because he was a hypochondriac. It all reminded me of a psychology major who is really crazy and wants to figure themselves out. I wondered if Wigglesworth thought he had a disease and wanted to figure out just what it was.
ReplyDeleteI think that self discovery was very important to Wigglesworth and he knew that some thing just was not right with everything in his life. His hypochondriac attitude made me laugh because he is always looking for something to be wrong and nothing could just be what it is, it had to have some underlying cause that was related to him and what he was doing. His entire life seems to be a humorous story of self discovery and in some ways he is the developing character of his own story.
ReplyDeleteWOW, Pat I think you may be on to something. It does seem like he was a hypochondriac. Especially because his health physically seems to go along with his mental health. Eric mentions how he becomes less harsh on himself later on. This also seems to be when he is making speaches to large audiences, more frequently, and more energetically. It even states that this began after he had become a Fellow at Harvard. The things that he complained about in the begining were odd too; exhaustion, weak lungs, and a chronic sore throat? Seems like it was stress induced to me.His struggle though seemed like it worked out for the best, if not for him than for the community. He was a doctor helping people physically, and a preacher helping people spiritually.
ReplyDeleteI agree that Wigglesworth has some serious mental issues. I kept thinking that he must have been bipolar. The entries go from content to obsessive and some of the things that he dwelled on creeps me out. The whole part about lust was way too close to the part about his pupils for me. I agree that all of his ailments could have been stressed induced with the way he obsesses about every little thing. In addition, if he was a hypochondriac the worry about getting something could cause it. Throughout the entries, I feel like something very dark overshadows them all, like something really awful happened to him that leads all of his actions. In his poem, a stanza refers to shadows. I think he was a dark man but the poem is quite beautiful. I liked it better than the entries. I also was wondering about why these particular pieces were picked to be included. They are small sections and span several years. Maybe they are all the parts where he was extremely negative.
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