This course will place under question traditional theories concerning the Puritan origins of American identity by exploring the relationship between typology and gender in early America. The Antinomian Controversy, the Salem witchcraft trials, the Great Awakening, and the American Revolution will provide the contexts for the consideration of such themes as filiopietism, the feminization of religion, and the gendering of heresy. We will explore a variety of genres--heresiographies, sermons, political tracts, advice manuals, trial transcripts, diaries, and novels. This course will examine the relationship between the literature and the history and politics of the period, and will draw on a variety of critical approaches.