Comparision of Southern and New England Colonies

In America life was for the majority defined by the word enough: compared to the Old England the New World was affluent (79). However there is a stark difference in the culture/beliefs and economy of the New England and Southern Colonies. In the New England colonies religion directed life, whereas in Southern colonies like Virginia land and plantation labor dominated life.
To clarify this point, New England life was mostly controlled by culture and beliefs, whereas the Southern colonies was controlled by economy.
In the NE colonies, the Puritans life was dominated by their religion. The reason they came to PLymouth was to escape the threat of harassment by a catholic Charles I (43). When they began their life in Plymouth, they made sure that their beliefs pervaded all branches of society. For example, the saintly elect exerted the most control in government. Also, the whole group had to listen to the majority (Mayflower Compact). Another aspect religion pervaded in New England is education. Cotton Mather taught parents to raise Godly parents. John Winthrop told his wife and friends back home of Plymouth-a God fearing society, were the people faced many trials and tribulations and yet he was "the most content I have been" in his life.
In the Southern colonies, religion did exist however the more important aspect of society was economy. Bailey tells of the scarcity of land in the South: " Land was somewhat less available in the planter dominated South than elsewhere" (79). Land in the NE colonies was rocky and so they had to be creative in they way made capital. In the South land was perfect but not abundant. Another indication that economy dominated is the fact that slaves were imported to the South. The SOuth experimented with white indentured slaves, but when they rebelled, they switched to black slaves-much less prone to rebel and also of tougher quality than white slaves. The fact that the South was willing to buy black slaves (they were quite expensive at the start) shows that they were desperate to keep American trade afloat.