Figurative Language In Anne Bradstreet's To My Dear And Loving Husband

A Puritan woman in the 1600’s who devoted herself to care for her family. Anne Bradstreet was a mother and a writer. Writing became a hobby when Bradstreet decided to give it a try because she had read much of poetry in so many styles and languages. Most of her pieces were written for teaching purposes in a small school where she served. The author kept most of the poems private for the following reasons: Bradstreet believed her work was unexceptional and at the time it was peculiar for a woman to be writing poetry. In the back of her mind, the author’s principal obligation was raising her children when writing was completed in her unused time. Through the use of metaphors, Anne Bradstreet connected among the

In order to appreciate a poem properly, care must be taken to analyze and understand many different facets of the work. Poems are often very complex and require a great deal of thought in order to arrive at the intended meaning. At the very least, three particular items of information must be uncovered during the reading of poetry. An experienced reader of poetry will always determine the identity of the speaker, the occasion of the speech, and the central idea of the poem.

Many authors from the 1600’s and 1700’s base their works on religious views, but there are many differing views on God. “Upon the Burning of Our House” and “To My Dear and Loving Husband” are both by Anne Bradstreet, and are excellent writings that show half of the Puritan beliefs. The other piece is “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God” by Jonathan Edwards that show a darker side of the Puritan ideals. The authors show what they think by using literary devices, like tone (word choice and details), or figurative language. Bradstreet believes in a God that is loving and caring, while Edwards believes in a strict, controlling God. The tone, in which they use through the stories or sermons, reflects this, and also, the figurative language that

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.

It’s interpreted that each stanza in this monologue is an explanation of her current predicament; convincing her husband that she is not the one in their relationship that is being unfaithful, “I’m not the kind of woman who telephone’s in the middle of the night, who told

her no matter what. The ninth and tenth verses say that their love is united by

Bradstreet describes her deep love of her husband and how this relationship is very strong, and the overall tone is very romantic “If ever two were one, then surely we” (1). Bradstreet further makes her point that they can be one; she mentions the unity between the wife and the husband and how they are connecting to each other, how the love makes two persons into one “If ever man were loved by wife, then thee” (2).

They were viewed differently by her. But when breaking the argument down. Decartes argument would fight that they aren’t the same, because they hold different properties to her meaning you can doubt one. But in fact they are exactly the same person regardless of what she thought or who she wanted to marry, meaning you cannot believe in one without the other.

The Golden One and Equality spent many days in that house and learned to live for themselves. Rand shows a scene where Golden One walks into the room where Equality is sitting and she finally uses the word I to the extent of her understanding. But, the meaning of I to them meant so much more to them as a single person. To them it meant freedom. It meant they finally had their own free will. They can do whatever they want when they want however they would like it done. They can finally show their feeling for eachother as them as one not them as a many.

symbolic richness, but at the same time the poem supplies the reader with a wide

the speaker says "But what is one to do?" This shows how she feels she

On the other hand, she begins to reminisce on all the great memories she had with her belongings whether it included visitors or just herself. In the line “When by the ruins oft I passed My sorrowing eyes aside did cast And here and there the places spy Where oft I sat and long did lie,” she infers that she is filled with grief and sadness of memories once made. Bradstreet uses inversion often to sound pretentious in a way because of her vanity and numerous possessions. All of her “pleasant things” are now gone, no

she most likely truly was. It appeared to be as though she found herself able to stay away from

The title, To my Dear and Loving Husband, clearly signifies that this poem was intended for her husband alone. Bradstreet did not live in a time where woman authors would have been very highly respected for their work; this allowed her the opportunity to create very personal pieces because she believed that they would never be published. If Bradstreet had intended for her poetry to become available for the public she would have been forced to write much differently. Bradstreet understood the implications of writing her true emotions and never would have done so if she had not felt that they would have been kept safe from the scrutiny of her fellow puritans. The fear of being ridiculed, banished or killed would have stopped Bradstreet from ever composing poetry for the public as racy as the poems she created for her family especially her husband. Due to the fact that she believed no one would read this poem besides her husband she was able to write more closely to how she truly felt without fear or trepidation, this is apparent in the fact that this particular poem is much different from many of her other poems.

Verse 11 brings the husband into context stating that he trusts her so much that he knows he will never lack gain. It does not just say that her husband