Essay Anne Bradstreet's Contribution to American Literature

Anne’s reaction to this action was ???? Anne said ,” Thou ill-formed offspring of my feeble brain/ Who after birth didst by my side remain/ Till snatched from thence by friends, less wise than true/ Who thee abroad, exposed to public view” (204-205). In these few verses, Anne expresses anger because the book was always by her side but now someone has published it to the public. Anne immediately became embarrassed and thought the colonial people would judge her. Anne said, “My rambling brat (in print) should mother call, I cast thee by as one unfit for light, thy visage was so irksome in my sight; yet being mine own, at length affection would they blemishes amend, if so I could…” (205). Anne starts to call her book ill-formed offspring and rambling brat and she cannot even look at it. Eventually, Anne came to love the book for it was her child errors and all. Anne was mentally strong for she ????As one can see, Anne Bradstreet was a huge perfectionist. This poem is one of the poems written through Anne’s personal writing for she was fearful, embarrassed, and showed feelings. Anne was a very mentally strong and educated young woman. (need a

Anne Bradstreet’s feelings about her home represent the most material conflict. When her home burned down she wrote the poem to voice these feelings of hers. She describes the awakening to the “shrieks of dreadful voice” and going out to watch “the flame consume” her “dwelling place”. But she comforts herself with good Puritan dogma. The burning of the house is God’s doing and his doings should not be questioned. In looking over the stanzas where she

Anne Bradstreet was America's first noteworthy poet in spite of the fact that she was a woman. Both the daughter and wife of Massachusetts governors, Bradstreet suffered all of the hardships of colonial life, was a mother, and still found time to write. Her poem, "The Author to Her Book," is an example of Bradstreet's excellent use of literary techniques while expressing genuine emotion and using domestic subject matter.

In “The Author to Her Book,” Bradstreet is inundated in indecision and internal struggles over the virtues and shortfalls of her abilities and the book that she produced. As human beings we associate and sympathize with each other through similar experiences. It is difficult to sympathize with someone when you don’t know where they are coming from and don’t know what they are dealing with. Similar experiences and common bonds are what allow us to extend our sincere appreciation and understanding for another human being’s situation. In this poem an elaborate struggle between pride and shame manifests itself through an extended metaphor in which she equates her book to her own child.

Anne Bradstreet was not the typical Puritan author. She wrote sweet and loving poems that greatly contrasted from other writers of her time. She did not write the ever so popular sermons that told people that they were going to hell and there was nothing they could do about it. Bradstreet was a rarity in Puritan times, she was a very educated woman that worked on something other than being a woman in the household. She was one of a kind and the beginning of an era. Using literary criticism when reading Anne Bradstreet’s poems adds a deeper understanding of her character and difficulties in life.

Puritan literature captures not only their beliefs as a religion, but their beliefs as individuals. All Puritan literature is utilitarian, meaning it is useful, purposeful, and reflecting a non-ornate style of writing. One of the most prominent of early English poets was Anne Bradstreet. Her poems reflect the utilitarian style, but do so in a way that is entirely unique to herself and her emotions. Anne Bradstreet opens the bridge between her faith and her personal experiences in her poetry. In her poems “Upon the Burning of Our House” and “In Reference to Her Children” she reflects utilitarianism by recounting the conflicts between her love of her worldly things and her devotion to God’s eternity.

Anne Bradstreet's poem, To My Dear and Loving Husband, shows her profound love and undying affection for her husband. For a Puritan woman who is supposed to be reserved, Bradstreet makes it her obligation to enlighten her husband of her devotion. She conveys this message through her figurative language and declarative tone by using imagery, repetition, and paradoxes.

in a book called The Tenth Muse under a male name and without her knowing. Anne Bradstreet’s

In “The Author to Her Book,” Bradstreet is awash in indecision and internal conflicts over the merits and shortfalls of her creative abilities and the book that she produced. This elaborate internal struggle between pride and shame is manifested through a painstaking conceit in which she likens her book to her own child.

In all of Bradstreet’s works she is constantly expressing herself through her figurative language that whoever reads the poetry

Anne Bradstreet, as a poet, wrote as both a Puritan woman in her time and as a woman ahead of her time. Zach Hutchins analyzed this tension in “The Wisdom of Anne Bradstreet: Eschewing Eve and Emulating Elizabeth”, and makes a primary argument that three of Bradstreet’s poems provide evidence that Bradstreet rejects the Puritan views of a woman while keeping her own personal faith. Hutchins fither his argument by declaring that readers should not view Bradstreet as a symbol of rebellion or submission, instead as a symbol of wisdom.

Even though, she will not be able to repay him with money as materialistic things are not of value, Bradstreet will write about him in her poetry, to show him her gratitude and express her love for him. I feel that Bradstreet wrote her poems about her father to impress him and make sure he knew that she was doing everything she could to repay him and show him her gratefulness for life. Bradstreet never discredits her father or places any blame on him for anything happening in her life, which was true of Puritan beliefs at that time.

In Bradstreet’s poem “To My Dear and Loving Husband”, Bradstreet mentions the reciprocal love her and her husband share and how she prays that God will realize the strong bond the couple shares and that their love will be ever-lasting and will persevere even after death. Bradstreet stressed how important it was to her to be a good and humble Puritan wife and her poetry exuded the beliefs, values, and ideals of Puritan life.

Anne Bradstreet, a well-educated woman, strong in her Puritan beliefs, captured her thoughts by writing poetry, which included works such as “Contemplations” which was preceded by “The Prologue”. Written in the mid 1600’s as the colonies were beginning to form, Bradstreet’s poem included themes of religion, nature, and family. Although she claims to have written them without the intent of publication, a collection of her poetry was printed in 1650. She identifies her struggles with faith, yet writes from the view of a faithful woman who recognizes the superior role of men in her society. Although appearing to be modest and undermining her talents, it seems evident that Bradstreet was, in reality, confident that as a well educated women she was capable of writing just as well as a man. Although it is claimed that Anne Bradstreet did not intend for her writing to be published, her poetry utilizes a feminist tone and theme of higher education conveying her hidden desires to prove herself as a female author.

Bradstreet poetry was considered "plain style." She offered the reader a look into the private world, her world. "Upon Burning in Our House" was a simple style poem about the truth put into simple words, as were all of Bradstreet's poems. Bradstreet tells about faith in God and belongings lost in the poem. Bradstreet addressed her husband, children, God, and community in her poems. Her maternal instinct and dedication were present in her writing. In the poem, "The Author to Her Book," Bradstreet compares the poem itself to a child, her child: