In Prospero's America, Walter W. Woodward examines the transfer of alchemical culture to America by John Winthrop, Jr., one of English colonization's early giants. Winthrop participated in a pan-European network of natural philosophers who believed alchemy could improve the human condition and hasten Christ's Second Coming. Woodward demonstrates the influence of Winthrop and his philosophy on New England's cultural formation: its settlement, economy, religious toleration, Indian relations, medical practice, witchcraft prosecution, and imperial diplomacy. Prospero's America reconceptualizes the significance of early modern science in shaping New England hand in hand with Puritanism and politics.

Author: Walter W. Woodward
Binding Type: Paperback
Publisher: Omohundro Institute and Unc Press
Published: 02/01/2013
Series: Published by the Omohundro Institute of Early American Histo
Pages: 336
Weight: 1.05lbs
Size: 9.10h x 6.10w x 0.80d
ISBN: 9781469600871

About the Author
Woodward, Walter W.: - Walter W. Woodward is Connecticut state historian and associate professor of history at the University of Connecticut.