What does Edwards want the audience to feel emotionally?

More than
anything else, Edwards wants his audience to be very afraid. To be precise, he wants them to be
afraid of hell. In his famous sermon, Edwards is attempting to put the fear of God into his
listeners so that they will see the error of their ways and repent of their sins. Edwards
believes that the good folk of New England have become dangerously lax in their moral behavior
by frequenting taverns and openly consorting with members of the opposite sex. As a devout
Puritan, he regards this as deeply sinful behavior, which can lead to the people who behave in
such a way being sent to hell. Puritans like Edwards believed that hell was a literal place, a
fiery pit full of unspeakable torment and suffering. He knew, therefore, that the best way to
get his message across would be to play upon his audience's fear of the traditional fate of
sinners.