Thomas Morton (c. 1579–1647)

Thomas Morton was America’s first banned poet and one of its earliest heretics of joy. A classically trained English lawyer with a humanist soul, Morton immigrated to New England in the late 1620s and became best known as the leader of the short-lived settlement of Merry Mount near present-day Quincy, Massachusetts. There he promoted poetry, music, seasonal celebrations, and social mixing that openly defied Puritan norms joy. Authorities raided the settlement and arrested Morton, eventually exiling him to England, where he wrote New English Canaan (1637), a satirical and critical account of Puritan society and colonial practices; the book was banned from entering the colonies. 

FOR MORE:

The New English Canaan of Thomas Morton

The Lord of Misrule

Want to go beyond listening about creators and actually live like one? Consider joining the next Creators Collectiveclass. This month, we’re diving into Friedrich Nietzsche—not as meme or misquote, but as a guide for creators dismantling borrowed values and learning how to author their own lives. A potent evening for anyone standing in the aftermath of certainty, ready to create from what’s real.

THE SALON

THE INNER CIRCLE

Are you interested in claiming one of the THREE spots for the Re-Wilding Imagination Retreat, February 12-15? If so, you can learn more here.