ABSTRACT
The dreams and visions of the 1640s and 1650s have often been analysed in terms of their content and applicability to specific political and religious events. In examining Civil War dreams, this essay draws two bodies of work often treated separately-the history of the Civil War and the history of dreams. From the long perspective, Keith Thomas argues that ‘religion reinforced the ancient belief in the divinatory power of dreams’. Abiezer Coppe was very certain of his dreams; his visions and interpretations have an absolute, almost hallucinatory, confidence in their own authenticity and authority. Like tendentious jokes, Coppe’s dreams ran the risk of meeting with those who disagreed with them. Indeed, the very certainty with which Coppe articulates his vision is part of his claim and anticipates, even as it provokes, response.
