Hypocrisy

The novel explores the way in which hypocrisy can shatter ideals and create a community that is destined to implode. The Puritans start the colony in Plymouth with the hopes of creating a community in which God can be proud of the selfless, devoted citizens. However, the Puritan’s dedication to God and the ideals of Christianity becomes polluted and twisted when they begin to act hypocritically.

The Puritans left England in order to find a place where they could live in “God’s Favor,” but when they arrive in Plymouth they begin to act in the same way that the English did while they were in England. Eleanor sees this hypocrisy and speaks out about it: “A place in God’s favor? Ha. They’ve made again what they claimed they wished to leave. They have the indentured English, but also Indians they’ve coerced...