The Course of Time, A Poem

Robert Pollok’s The Course of Time, A poem in Ten Books was published by Charles Wells of New York in 1833. The epic poem is composed in blank verse over ten books, and is essentially a Calvinist version of Milton’s Paradise Lost , mimicking it in both form and content. The protagonists of Pollok’s poem are two heavenly beings who were unaware of the happenings in the mortal realm. They visit hell and earth and learn about the history of mankind, the character of humanity, the Creation and the Fall, and the final day of Judgement. The poem dwells on these points through the doctrines of Calvinist ideology like original sin, total depravity, and atonement through God’s grace.

The Copp Collection contains about 150 books of early American imprint and shows a wide range of reading matter typical of a New England Puritan family living in a port town. Literacy was expected of many New Englanders, as Puritan doctrine required everyone to read the Bible. The abundance of multiple Bibles, psalms, hymnodies, sermons, and morality tales reflects the Copp’s religious beliefs. Other highlights of the library include the works of Shakespeare, almanacs, historical and political texts, and travel narratives.

The Copp Collection contains a variety of household objects that the Copp family of Connecticut used from around 1700 until the mid-1800s. Part of the Puritan Great Migration from England to Boston, the family eventually made their home in New London County, Connecticut, where their textiles, clothes, utensils, ceramics, books, bibles, and letters provide a vivid picture of daily life. More of the collection from the Division of Home and Community Life can be viewed by searching accession number 28810.

Where this page came from

This page was imported from Smithsonian National Museum of American History. Released by the Smithsonian Institution under CC0 through Smithsonian Open Access.

Nobody has written it yet — it is the source material at a new address, which is why search engines are asked to skip it and why no one earns from it. It is up for grabs: take it on, and it is yours to rewrite and to earn from.