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{{short description|Anglo-American poet}} | |||
{{Infobox person | |||
{{For|the alleged witch|Anne Bradstreet (Salem witch trials)}} | |||
| name = Anne Bradstreet | |||
{{Multiple issues| | |||
| image = annebradstreet.jpg | |||
{{More citations needed|date=March 2023}} | |||
| caption = A 19th-century painting portraying Anne Bradstreet at work | |||
{{Essay|date=March 2023}} | |||
| birth_name = Anne Dudley | |||
| birth_date = {{birth date|1612|3|20}} | |||
| birth_place = ], England | |||
| death_date = {{Death date and age|1672|9|16|1612|3|20|mf=y}} | |||
| spouse = {{marriage|]|1628}} | |||
}} | }} | ||
'''Anne Bradstreet''' (born '''Anne Dudley'''; March 20, 1612 – September 16, 1672) was the most prominent of early English poets of North America and first female writer in the British North American colonies to be published. She was also a prominent ] figure in American Literature. Her first volume of poetry was ''The Tenth Muse Lately Sprung Up in America'', published in 1650. It was met with a positive reception in both the ] and the ].<ref>De Grave, Kathleen. "Anne Bradstreet". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 31 May 2006 </ref><ref>Nichols,Heidi, ''Anne Bradstreet'' P&R Publishing,Philipsburg, 2006 ISBN 978-0-87552-610-2</ref> | |||
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}} | |||
==Biography== | |||
{{Infobox writer | |||
Anne was born in ], ], 1612, the daughter of ], a steward of the ], and Dorothy Yorke.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.annebradstreet.com/anne_bradstreet_bio_001.htm| title=Anne Bradstreet biography |publisher=annebradstreet.com| accessdate=2007-01-25| archiveurl=http://web.archive.org/web/20070127071603/http://www.annebradstreet.com/anne_bradstreet_bio_001.htm| archivedate=27 January 2007<!--DASHBot-->| deadurl=no}}</ref> Due to her family's position, she grew up in cultured circumstances and was a well-educated woman for her time, being tutored in history, several languages and literature. At the age of sixteen she married ]. Both Anne's father and husband were later to serve as governors of the ]. Anne and Simon, along with Anne's parents, emigrated to America aboard the '']'' as part of the ] of Puritan emigrants in 1630.<ref name="VCU">Woodlief, A. (n.d.). ''''. Retrieved September 1, 2006.</ref> She first touched American soil on June 14, 1630 at what is now ] with Simon, her parents and other voyagers as part of the ]. Due to the illness and starvation of Gov. ] and other residents of the village, their stay was very brief. Most moved immediately south along the coast to ] for another short stay before moving south along the ] to found "the City on the Hill," ]. | |||
| name = Anne Bradstreet | |||
| embed = | |||
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|image=Frontispiece for An Account of Anne Bradstreet The Puritan Poetess, and Kindred Topics, edited by Colonel Luther Caldwell (Boston, 1898) (cropped).jpg | |||
|caption=Nineteenth century depiction of Anne Bradstreet by ]. No portrait made during her lifetime exists.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Pender|first=Patricia|date=2015|title=Constructing a Canonical Colonial Poet: Abram E. Cutter's Bradstreetiana and the 1867 Works|journal=The Papers of the Bibliographical Society of America|volume=109|issue=2|pages=223–246|doi=10.1086/681959|issn=0006-128X|jstor=10.1086/681959|s2cid=190658208}}</ref> | |||
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| native_name = | |||
| native_name_lang = | |||
| pseudonym = | |||
| birth_name = Anne Dudley | |||
| birth_date = {{birth date|1612|3|8}} | |||
| birth_place = ], England | |||
| death_date = {{Death date and age|1672|9|16|1612|3|20|mf=y}} | |||
| death_place = ] | |||
| resting_place = | |||
| occupation = Poet | |||
| language = English | |||
| nationality = British | |||
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| children = 8: Samuel, Dorothy, Sarah, Simon, Hannah, Mercy, Dudley, John. | |||
| spouse = {{marriage|]|1628}} | |||
| relations = ]<small>(brother-in-law)</small> | |||
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'''Anne Bradstreet''' (] '''Dudley'''; March 8, 1612 – September 16, 1672) was among the most prominent of early ] poets of ] and first writer in England's North American colonies to be published. She is the first ] figure in ] and notable for her large corpus of poetry, as well as personal writings published posthumously. | |||
The Bradstreet family soon moved again, this time to what is now ]. In 1632, Anne had her first child, Samuel, in Newe Towne, as it was then called. Despite poor health, she had eight children and achieved a comfortable social standing. Having previously been afflicted with ] as a teenager in England, Anne would once again fall prey to illness as paralysis overtook her joints in later years. In the early 1640s, Simon once again pressed his wife, pregnant with her sixth child, to move for the sixth time, from ] to Andover Parish. North Andover is that original town founded in 1646 by the Stevens, Osgood, Johnson, Farnum, Barker and Bradstreet families among others. Anne and her family resided in the Old Center of ] . They never lived in what is now known as "Andover" to the south. | |||
Born to a wealthy Puritan family in ], England, Bradstreet was a well-read scholar especially affected by the works of ]. She was married at sixteen, and her parents and young family migrated at the time of the founding of ] in 1630. A mother of eight children and the wife and daughter of public officials in New England, Bradstreet wrote poetry in addition to her other duties. | |||
Both Anne's father and her husband were instrumental in the founding of Harvard in 1636. Two of her sons were graduates, Samuel (Class of 1653) and Simon (Class of 1660). In October 1997, the Harvard community dedicated a gate in memory of her as America's first published poet (see last paragraph below). The Bradstreet Gate is located next to Canaday Hall, the newest dormitory in ]. | |||
Her early works are broadly considered derivative, but her later writings developed into her unique style of poetry which centers on her role as a mother, her struggles with the sufferings of life, and her Puritan faith. While her works were initially considered primarily of historical significance, she reached posthumous acclaim in the 20th century.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Poets |first=Academy of American |title=Anne Bradstreet |url=https://poets.org/poet/anne-bradstreet |access-date=2024-07-28 |website=Poets.org |language=en}}</ref> Her first collection, '']'', was widely read in America and England. | |||
] | |||
==Background == | |||
In 1650, Rev. John Woodbridge had ] composed by "A Gentlewoman from Those Parts" published in ], making Anne the first female poet ever published in both ] and the ]. On July 10, 1666, their ] family home burned (see "Works" below) in a fire that left the Bradstreets homeless and with few personal belongings. By then, Anne's health was slowly failing. She suffered from ] and had to deal with the loss of cherished relatives. But her will remained strong and as a reflection of her religious devotion and knowledge of Biblical scriptures, she found peace in the firm belief that her daughter-in-law Mercy and her grandchildren were in heaven. | |||
In a portrait that was painted by her later poems, Bradstreet is described as "an educated English woman, a kind, loving wife, devoted mother, Empress Consort of Massachusetts, a questing Puritan and a sensitive poet."<ref>Langlin, Rosemary M. "Anne Bradstreet: Poet in search of a Form", American Literature vol 42 no. 1, Duke University Press (1970)</ref> | |||
Bradstreet's first volume of poetry was '']'', published in 1650. It was met with a positive reception in both the ] and the ].<ref>De Grave, Kathleen. "Anne Bradstreet". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 31 May 2006 </ref><ref>Nichols, Heidi, ''Anne Bradstreet'' P&R Publishing, Philipsburg, 2006 {{ISBN|978-0-87552-610-2}}</ref> | |||
Anne Bradstreet died on September 16, 1672 in ] at the age of 60. The precise location of her grave is uncertain but many historians believe her body is in the Old Burying Ground at Academy Road and Osgood Street in North Andover. Four years after the death of Anne in 1672, Simon Bradstreet married for a second time to a lady also named Anne (Gardiner). In 1697 Simon died and was buried in Salem. | |||
===Life=== | |||
This area of the ] is today described as "The Valley of the Poets." | |||
Anne was born in ], England in 1612, the daughter of ], a steward of the ], and Dorothy Yorke.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.annebradstreet.com/anne_bradstreet_bio_001.htm |title=Anne Bradstreet biography |publisher=annebradstreet.com |access-date=2007-01-25 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070127071603/http://www.annebradstreet.com/anne_bradstreet_bio_001.htm |archive-date=27 January 2007 |url-status=dead }}</ref> | |||
Due to her family's position, she grew up in cultured circumstances and was a well-educated woman for her time, being tutored in history, several languages, and literature. At the age of sixteen she married ]. Both Anne's father and husband were later to serve as governors of the ]. Anne and Simon, along with Anne's parents, emigrated to America aboard the '']'' as part of the ] of Puritan emigrants in 1630.<ref name="VCU">Woodlief, A. (n.d.). ''''. Retrieved September 1, 2006.</ref> | |||
A marker in the North Andover cemetery commemorates the 350th anniversary (2000) of the publishing of "The Tenth Muse" in ] in 1650. That site and the Bradstreet Gate at Harvard as well as the Bradstreet Kindergarten in North Andover may be the only places in America honoring her memory. | |||
She first came to the Americas on June 14, 1630, at what is now ], with Simon, her parents, and other voyagers as part of the ]. Upon their arrival, they found that many of the colonists had died from illness or starvation the previous winter. Her family shared a one-room house with very little furniture or supplies.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last=Foundation |first=Poetry |date=2024-07-27 |title=Anne Bradstreet |url=https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/anne-bradstreet |access-date=2024-07-28 |website=Poetry Foundation |language=en}}</ref> | |||
===Descendants=== | |||
Descendants of ] and Anne, daughter of ] and Dorothy Yorke Dudley: | |||
* ]<ref name="WARGS">.</ref><ref name="NEA">.</ref> | |||
* ]<ref name="WARGS"/><ref name="NEA"/> | |||
* ]<ref name="WARGS"/><ref name="NEA"/> | |||
* ]<ref name="WARGS"/><ref name="NEA"/> | |||
* ]<ref name="WARGS"/><ref name="NEA"/> | |||
* ]<ref name="WARGS"/><ref name="NEA"/> | |||
* ]<ref>"Jewett belonged to a succession of women writers, mostly New Englanders, that went back through Harriet Beecher Stowe and Rose Terry Cooke to colonial poet Anne Bradstreet—who, according to some accounts, was yet another of Jewett's illustrious ancestors." Paula Blachard. ''Sarah Orne Jewett: Her World and Her Work''. Reading, Mass. : Addison-Wesley Pub. Co., 1994, pp. 356–57.</ref> | |||
* ]<ref name="WARGS"/><ref name="NEA"/> | |||
* ]<ref name="WARGS"/> | |||
* ]<ref name="WARGS"/> | |||
* ]<ref name="NEA">.</ref> | |||
The Bradstreet family soon moved again, this time to what is now ]. In 1632, Anne had her first child, Samuel, in "Newe Towne," as it was then called. Despite poor health, she had eight children and achieved a comfortable social standing. Having previously been afflicted with ] as a teenager in England,<ref>{{Cite web |title=American Passages: A Literary Survey: Anne Bradstreet (c. 1612-1672) |url=https://www.learner.org/series/american-passages-a-literary-survey/utopian-promise/anne-bradstreet-c-1612-1672/ |access-date=28 July 2024 |website=Annenberg Leaner}}</ref> Anne would once again fall prey to illness as paralysis overtook her joints in later years. In the early 1640s, Simon once again pressed his wife, pregnant with her sixth child, to move for the sixth time, from ], to Andover Parish.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Anne Bradstreet {{!}} Puritan Poet, Colonial America {{!}} Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/Anne-Bradstreet |access-date=2024-07-28 |website=www.britannica.com |language=en}}</ref> North Andover is that original town founded in 1646 by the Stevens, Osgood, Johnson, Farnum, Barker, and Bradstreet families, among others. Anne and her family resided in the Old Center of what is now ].<ref name=":0" /> | |||
== Works == | |||
Bradstreet's education gave her advantages that allowed her to write with authority about politics, history, medicine, and theology. Her personal library of books was said to have numbered over 800, although many were destroyed when her home burned down. This event itself inspired a poem titled "]". She rejects the anger and grief that this worldly tragedy has caused her and instead looks toward God and the assurance of heaven as consolation, saying: | |||
:''"And when I could no longer look, | |||
:''I blest His grace that gave and took, | |||
:''That laid my goods now in the dust. | |||
:''Yea, so it was, and so 'twas just. | |||
:''It was his own; it was not mine. | |||
:''Far be it that I should repine."'' | |||
Both Anne's father and her husband were instrumental in the founding of ] in 1636; her father was a founder, and her husband an overseer. Two of her sons, Samuel (class of 1653) and Simon (c/o 1660), were graduates.<ref>{{Cite web |title=1997: Anne Bradstreet |url=https://lewis.seas.harvard.edu/pages/october-3-1997-anne-bradstreet |access-date=2024-07-28 |website=lewis.seas.harvard.edu |language=en}}</ref> In October 1997, the Harvard community dedicated a gate in memory of her as America's first published poet. The gate was dedicated on the 25th anniversary of women being allowed in the Harvard Yard dorms. The ] is located next to ] in ].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Mitchell |first=Stephanie |date=2017-08-29 |title=The gates that frame Harvard Yard |url=https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2017/08/the-gates-that-frame-harvard-yard/ |access-date=2024-07-28 |website=Harvard Gazette |language=en-US}}</ref> | |||
] | |||
] | |||
In 1650, Rev. John Woodbridge had ''The Tenth Muse Lately Sprung Up in America'' composed by "A Gentlewoman from Those Parts" published in ], making Anne the first female poet ever published in both ] and the ]. On July 10, 1666, their ] family home burned (see "Works" below) in a fire that left the Bradstreets homeless and with few personal belongings. Recent archaeological excavation may have located the site of this homestead, which had been the subject of uncertainty over the centuries.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-03-11 |title=Finding Anne Bradstreet |url=https://historicbostons.org/events/https/wwwyoutubecom/watchvj6hldcsxpi8-s4wah-7dst6-jby9z-f6ya5-3m2bz-clp9p |access-date=2024-03-20 |website=Partnership of Historic Bostons |language=en-US}}</ref> By then, Anne's health was slowly failing. She suffered from ] and had to deal with the loss of cherished relatives. But her will remained strong and as a reflection of her religious devotion and knowledge of the Bible, she found peace in the firm belief that her daughter-in-law Mercy and her grandchildren were in heaven.{{Citation needed|date=November 2022}} | |||
As a younger poet, Bradstreet wrote five quaternions, epic poems of four parts each (see works below) that explore the diverse yet complementary natures of their subject.<ref>Nichols,Heidi ''Anne Bradstreet'',P&R Publishing,Phillipsburg,2006 ISNBN 978-0-87552-610-2</ref> Much of Bradstreet's poetry is based on observation of the world around her, focusing heavily on domestic and religious themes, and was considered by ] ''a monument to her memory beyond the stateliest marble''.<ref>Cotton Mather,''The Great Works of Christ in America'', Banner of Truth (reprinted ) 1979</ref> Long considered primarily of historical interest, she won critical acceptance in the 20th century as a writer of enduring verse, particularly for her sequence of religious poems "Contemplations", which was written for her family and not published until the mid-19th century.<ref>n. a. (2000). . ''The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia''. Retrieved September 1, 2006.</ref> Bradstreet's work was deeply influenced by the poet ], who was favored by 17th-century readers. | |||
Anne Bradstreet died on September 16, 1672, in ], at the age of 60. The precise location of her grave is uncertain but many historians believe her body is in the Old Burying Ground at Academy Road and Osgood Street in North Andover. In 1676, four years after the death of Anne, Simon Bradstreet married for a second time to a woman also named Anne (Gardiner). In 1697, Simon died and was buried in Salem. This area of the ] is today described as "The Valley of the Poets."{{Citation needed|date=November 2022}} | |||
Nearly a century later, ], a notable 18th-century American poet and writer, in her principal work, '''''Poems on Diverse Subjects''''', was influenced and pays homage to Bradstreet's verse. | |||
A marker in the North Andover cemetery commemorates the 350th anniversary (2000) of the publishing of ''The Tenth Muse'' in ] in 1650. That site and the Bradstreet Gate at Harvard, the memorial and pamphlets inside the Ipswich Public Library in Ipswich, MA, as well as the Bradstreet Kindergarten in North Andover may be the only places in America honoring her memory.{{citation needed|date=March 2023}} | |||
Despite the traditional attitude toward women of the time, she clearly valued knowledge and intellect; she was a ] and some consider her an early ]; unlike the more radical ], however, Bradstreet's feminism does not reflect heterodox, ] views.<ref>Zachary Hutchins, "The Wisdom of Anne Bradstreet: Eschewing Eve and Emulating Elizabeth," Modern Language Studies 40.1 (2010):38-61.</ref> Based on her poems, Bradstreet could also be considered to be a ]. | |||
As of 2015, the Bradstreet Kindergarten was torn down in North Andover. In the fall of 2018, The Anne Bradstreet Early Childhood Center was opened near Massachusetts Avenue in North Andover. Housing both preschool and kindergarten, the Anne Bradstreet ECC replaced the aged building named for her that had been on Main Street.{{Citation needed|date=November 2022}} | |||
In 1647 Bradstreet's brother-in-law, Rev. ], sailed to England, carrying her manuscript of poetry. Although Anne later said that she did not know Woodbridge was going to publish her manuscript, in her self-deprecatory poem, ""The Author to Her Book"", she wrote Woodbridge a letter while he was in London, indicating her knowledge of the publication plan. Anne had little choice, however— as a woman poet, it was important for her to downplay her ambitions as an author. Otherwise, she would have faced criticism for being "unwomanly."<ref>Gordon, Charlotte. Mistress Bradstreet: The Untold Story of America's First Poet. New York: Little, Brown, 2005. 240-252</ref> | |||
Anne's first work was published in London as "]" | |||
], ], printed at ], 1650]] | |||
The purpose of the publication appears to have been an attempt by devout Puritan men (''i.e.'' Thomas Dudley, Simon Bradstreet, John Woodbridge) to show that a godly and educated woman could elevate her position as a wife and mother, without necessarily placing her in competition with men. Very few men of that time agreed with that belief. Mistress Bradstreet endured and ignored much ] during her life in the ]. | |||
== Writing == | |||
In 1678 her self-revised was posthumously published in America, and included one of her most famous poems, "]".<ref>Ellis, J. H. (1867). ''The Works of Anne Bradstreet in Prose and Verse''.</ref> | |||
===Background=== | |||
This volume is owned by the Stevens Memorial Library of North Andover and resides in the Houghton Library vault at Harvard. | |||
Anne Bradstreet's education gave her advantages that allowed her to write with authority about politics, history, medicine, and theology. Her personal library of books was said to have numbered over 800, although many were destroyed when her home burned down. This event itself inspired a poem titled "]". At first, she rejects the anger and grief that this worldly tragedy has caused her; she looks toward God and the assurance of heaven as consolation, saying:{{Citation needed|date=November 2022}} | |||
{{poemquote| | |||
And when I could no longer look, | |||
I blest His grace that gave and took, | |||
That laid my goods now in the dust. | |||
Yea, so it was, and so 'twas just. | |||
It was his own; it was not mine. | |||
Far be it that I should repine. | |||
}} | |||
However, in opposition to her Puritan ways, she also shows her human side, expressing the pain this event had caused her, that is, until the poem comes to its end: | |||
A quotation from Bradstreet can be found on a plaque at the Bradstreet Gate in ]: "I came into this Country, where I found a new World and new manners at which my heart rose."<ref>http://www.hno.harvard.edu/guide/to_do/to_do9.html</ref> Unfortunately the plaque seems to be based on a misinterpretation; the following sentence is "But after I was convinced it was the way of God, I submitted to it and joined to the church at Boston." This suggests her heart rose up in protest<ref>http://www.vcu.edu/engweb/eng384/bradbio.htm</ref> rather than in joy. | |||
{{poemquote| | |||
Farewell my pelf; farewell my store. | |||
The world no longer let me love | |||
My hope, and treasure lies above. | |||
}} | |||
] | |||
==Role of women== | |||
Marriage played a large role in the lives of Puritan women. In Bradstreet's poem, "To My Dear And Loving Husband,"<ref name="annebradstreet.com">http://www.annebradstreet.com/to_my_dear_and_loving_husband.htm</ref> she reveals that she is one with her husband. "If ever two were one, then surely we."<ref name="annebradstreet.com"/> The Puritans believed that since marriage is ordained by God, then it is a gift from God. She loves her gift so much that through the use of her poetry, she is able to express her love for God's gift to her husband. In another of Bradstreet's works, "Before the Birth of One of Her Children",<ref name="ReferenceA">http://www.annebradstreet.com/before_the_birth_of_one_of_her_children.htm</ref> Bradstreet acknowledges God's gift of marriage. In the lines, "And if I see not half my days that's due, what nature would, God grant to yours, and you;"<ref name="ReferenceA"/> Bradstreet is saying that if she was to die soon, what would God give her husband. She could be referring to him possibly remarrying after she dies. Another line shows that she believes that it is possible for her husband to remarry. By using the lines, "These O protect from stepdame's injury",<ref name="ReferenceA"/> Bradstreet is calling for her children to be protected from the abuse of a future step mother. The fact that Bradstreet believes that God will grant her husband with a new wife if she dies shows how much Puritan women believed in marriage and how God provided them with this gift. | |||
As a younger poet, Bradstreet wrote five quaternions, epic poems of four parts each (see works below) that explore the diverse yet complementary natures of their subject.<ref>Nichols, Heidi ''Anne Bradstreet'', P&R Publishing, Phillipsburg,2006 ISNBN 978-0-87552-610-2</ref> Much of Bradstreet's poetry is based on observation of the world around her, focusing heavily on domestic and religious themes, and was considered by ] "a monument to her memory beyond the stateliest marble".<ref>Cotton Mather,''The Great Works of Christ in America'', Banner of Truth (reprinted ) 1979</ref> Long considered primarily of historical interest, she won critical acceptance in the 20th century as a writer of enduring verse, particularly for her sequence of religious poems "Contemplations", which was written for her family and not published until the mid-19th century.<ref>, ''The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia'' (2000). Retrieved September 1, 2006.</ref> | |||
Throughout "Letter to Her Husband, Absent upon Public Employment," Bradstreet states how she feels lost when her husband is not around and that life is always better when he is around. In Bradstreet's poems, it can be assumed she truly loved her husband and missed him when he was away from her and the family. Often, when it came to the role women played throughout Puritan society, it can be assumed the women resented the husbands for they were considered more than the women. In this case, Bradstreet does not resent her husband for leaving her with the family and with all of the household needs; she just misses him and wants him back with her.<ref>http://www.scribd.com/doc/25317228/Women-s-History-Women-s-Role-in-Colonial-Society</ref><ref>http://www3.gettysburg.edu/~tshannon/hist106web/site15/HOLLY/public_html/Intro.htm</ref><ref>http://www3.gettysburg.edu/~tshannon/hist106web/site15/HOLLY/public_html/Women%20Chores.htm</ref> | |||
Nearly a century later, ], a notable 18th-century American poet and writer, in her principal work, ''Poems on Diverse Subjects'', was influenced and pays homage to Bradstreet's verse.{{Citation needed|date=November 2022}} | |||
The primary roles of women in a Puritan society were to be wives and mothers, and provide the family with their everyday needs. Women were expected to make the clothing for the family, cook the meals, keep the household clean, and teach the children how to live a Puritan lifestyle. All of these tasks alone could keep a woman busy, yet they got it all done, and still would serve their husbands when they arrived home from work. With this being said, Puritan women were hard workers in everything they did, and still managed to keep the household managed for when the husbands arrived home. | |||
Despite the traditional attitude toward women of the time, she clearly valued knowledge and intellect; she was a ] and some consider her an early ]; unlike the more radical ], however, Bradstreet's feminism does not reflect heterodox, ] views.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.academia.edu/15331212|title=The Wisdom of Anne Bradstreet: Eschewing Eve and Emulating Elizabeth|first=Zach|last=Hutchins|access-date=24 January 2019|via=academia.edu}}</ref> | |||
Some of Bradstreet's works also show that the role of Puritan woman was for them to take care of their children. Various works of Bradstreet is dedicated to her own children. In works such as "Before the Birth of One of Her Children"<ref name="ReferenceA"/> and "In Reference to Her Children",<ref>http://www.annebradstreet.com/in_reference_to_her_children.htm</ref> Bradstreet shows the love that she has for her children, both unborn and born. In Puritan society, children were also gifts from God, and she loved and cared for all of her children just as she loved and cared for her husband. She always believes they too are bound with her to make "one." | |||
{{poemquote| | |||
Her Victories in foreign Coasts resound? | |||
Ships more invincible than Spain's, her foe | |||
She rack't, she sack'd, she sunk his Armadoe. | |||
Her stately Troops advanc'd to Lisbon's wall, | |||
Don Anthony in's right for to install. | |||
She frankly help'd Franks' (brave) distressed King, | |||
The States united now her fame do sing. | |||
}} | |||
In 1647, Bradstreet's brother-in-law, Rev. ], sailed to England, carrying her manuscript of poetry. Although Anne later said that she did not know Woodbridge was going to publish her manuscript, in her self-deprecatory poem, ""The Author to Her Book"", she wrote Woodbridge a letter while he was in London, indicating her knowledge of the publication plan. Anne had little choice, however— as a woman poet, it was important for her to downplay her ambitions as an author. Otherwise, she would have faced criticism for being "unwomanly."<ref>Gordon, Charlotte. Mistress Bradstreet: The Untold Story of America's First Poet. New York: Little, Brown, 2005. 240-252</ref> Anne's first work was published in London as ''The Tenth Muse Lately Sprung Up in America'' "by a Gentlewoman of those Parts". | |||
==Reception== | |||
], 1650]] | |||
The purpose of the publication appears to have been an attempt by devout Puritan men (''i.e.'' Thomas Dudley, Simon Bradstreet, John Woodbridge) to show that a godly and educated woman could elevate her position as a wife and mother, without necessarily placing her in competition with men. In 1678, her self-revised was posthumously published in America, and included one of her most famous poems, "]".<ref>Ellis, J. H. (1867). ''The Works of Anne Bradstreet in Prose and Verse''.</ref> This volume is owned by the Stevens Memorial Library of North Andover and resides in the ] vault at Harvard. | |||
A quotation from Bradstreet can be found on a plaque at the Bradstreet Gate in ]: "I came into this Country, where I found a new World and new manners at which my heart rose."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.hno.harvard.edu/guide/to_do/to_do9.html |title=The Harvard Guide: Harvard Yard Gates |access-date=2009-01-19 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080907165258/http://www.hno.harvard.edu/guide/to_do/to_do9.html |archive-date=2008-09-07 }}</ref> Unfortunately the plaque seems to be based on a misinterpretation; the following sentence is "But after I was convinced it was the way of God, I submitted to it and joined to the church at Boston." This suggests her heart rose up in protest<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.vcu.edu/engweb/eng384/bradbio.htm |title=Biography of Anne Bradstreet |access-date=2009-01-19 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090123002950/http://www.vcu.edu/engweb/eng384/bradbio.htm |archive-date=2009-01-23 }}</ref> rather than in joy. | |||
Because writing was not considered to be an acceptable role for women at the time, Bradstreet was met with criticism. One of the most prominent figures of her time, ], criticized Ann Hopkins, wife of prominent Connecticut colony governor Edward Hopkins. He mentioned in his journal that Hopkins should have kept to being a housewife and left writing and reading for men, "whose minds are stronger." Despite heavy criticism of women during her time, Bradstreet continued to write which led to the belief that she was interested in rebelling against societal norms of the time. | |||
===Role of women=== | |||
A prominent minister of the time, ], was also against the idea of women writing and sent a letter to his own sister saying that publishing a book was outside of the realm of what women were supposed to do. No doubt he was opposed to the writing of Bradstreet as well. These negative views were likely augmented by the fact that Puritan ideologies stated that women were vastly inferior to men.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Stanford|first1=Ann|title=Anne Bradstreet: Dogmatist and Rebel|journal=The New England Quarterly|date=September 1966|volume=39|issue=3|page=374|doi=10.2307/363962|url=http://www.jstor.org.ezproxy.uis.edu:2048/stable/363962|accessdate=24 November 2014}}</ref> | |||
Marriage played a large role in the lives of Puritan women. In Bradstreet's poem, "To My Dear And Loving Husband,"<ref name="annebradstreet.com">{{cite web|url=http://www.annebradstreet.com/to_my_dear_and_loving_husband.htm |title=To My Dear and Loving Husband |access-date=2012-02-27 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120301023154/http://www.annebradstreet.com/to_my_dear_and_loving_husband.htm |archive-date=2012-03-01 }}</ref> she reveals that she is one with her husband. "If ever two were one, then surely we."<ref name="annebradstreet.com"/> The Puritans believed marriage to be a gift from God. In another of Bradstreet's works, "Before the Birth of One of Her Children",<ref name="ReferenceA">{{cite web|url=http://www.annebradstreet.com/before_the_birth_of_one_of_her_children.htm |title=Before the Birth of One of Her Children |access-date=2012-02-27 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110912053718/http://www.annebradstreet.com/before_the_birth_of_one_of_her_children.htm |archive-date=2011-09-12 }}</ref> Bradstreet acknowledges God's gift of marriage in the lines, "And if I see not half my days that's due, what nature would, God grant to yours, and you".<ref name="ReferenceA"/> Bradstreet could be referring to her husband remarrying after she dies. Another line shows that she believes that it is possible for her husband to remarry. By using the lines, "These O protect from stepdame's injury",<ref name="ReferenceA"/> Bradstreet is calling for her children to be protected from the abuse of a future stepmother. The fact that Bradstreet believes that God will grant her husband a new wife if she dies shows how much Puritan women believed in marriage.{{Citation needed|date=November 2022}} | |||
Throughout "Letter to Her Husband, Absent upon Public Employment," Bradstreet states how she feels lost when her husband is not around and that life is always better when he is around. In Bradstreet's poems, it can be assumed she truly loved her husband and missed him when he was away from her and the family. Bradstreet does not resent her husband for leaving her with the family and with all of the household needs; she just misses him and wants him back with her.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.scribd.com/doc/25317228/Women-s-History-Women-s-Role-in-Colonial-Society|title=Women's History: Women's Role in Colonial Society|website=Scribd|access-date=January 24, 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www3.gettysburg.edu/~tshannon/hist106web/site15/HOLLY/public_html/Intro.htm |title=(Intro) |access-date=2012-02-27 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120924042500/http://www3.gettysburg.edu/~tshannon/hist106web/site15/HOLLY/public_html/Intro.htm |archive-date=2012-09-24 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www3.gettysburg.edu/~tshannon/hist106web/site15/HOLLY/public_html/Women%20Chores.htm |title=Women?s Chores |access-date=2012-02-27 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130128093309/http://www3.gettysburg.edu/~tshannon/hist106web/site15/HOLLY/public_html/Women%20Chores.htm |archive-date=2013-01-28 }}</ref> | |||
==Literary style and themes== | |||
Various works of Bradstreet are dedicated to her children. In works such as "Before the Birth of One of Her Children"<ref name="ReferenceA"/> and "In Reference to Her Children",<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.annebradstreet.com/in_reference_to_her_children.htm |title=In Reference to Her Children |access-date=2012-02-27 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110912052923/http://www.annebradstreet.com/in_reference_to_her_children.htm |archive-date=2011-09-12 }}</ref> Bradstreet articulated the love that she has for her children, both unborn and born. In Puritan society, children were also gifts from God, and she loved and cared for all of her children just as she loved and cared for her husband. She always believes they too are bound with her to make "one."{{Citation needed|date=November 2022}} | |||
===Intended audience=== | |||
Anne Bradstreet's works tend to be directed to members of her family and are generally intimate. For instance, in Bradstreet's "]",<ref name="annebradstreet.com"/> the poem's intended audience is her husband, Simon Bradstreet. The focal point of this poem is the love that she has for her husband. "I prize thy love more than whole mines of gold"<ref name="annebradstreet.com"/> To Bradstreet, her husband's love is worth more than some of the best treasures that this earth has to offer. She also makes it a point to show to her husband that nothing can fill the love that she has for her husband. The lines, "My love is such that rivers cannot quench,"<ref name="annebradstreet.com"/> the rivers represent death, which she says the fire of her love is invulnerable to. The last line of the poem sums this up with the words, "Then when we live no more, we may live ever."<ref name="annebradstreet.com"/> | |||
===Reception=== | |||
In "A Letter to Her Husband Absent upon Public Employment"<ref name="allpoetry.com">http://allpoetry.com/poem/8457805-A_Letter_to_Her_Husband__Absent_upon_Public_Employment-by-Anne_Bradstreet</ref> Bradstreet writes a letter to her husband who is away from her working at his job. Bradstreet uses various metaphors to describe her husband. The most visible use of metaphor that Bradstreet uses is comparing her husband to the seasons. When summer is gone, winter soon arrives. Summer can be seen as a time of happiness and warmth. Winter on the other hand can be seen as being gloomy and cold. Bradstreet's husband is her Sun and when he is with her it is always summer. She is happy and warm from the love that her husband brings when he is around. When her husband is leaves home to work, everything then becomes winter. It is a sad, cold time for Bradstreet and she wishes for her husband to soon return. "Return, return, sweet Sol, from Capricorn."<ref name="allpoetry.com"/> She wants her husband to know that she needs him and without him everything feels gloomy. She is not concerned with what others think. It is not intended for anyone else accepts her husband. Bradstreet knows that the situation is inevitable though, summer can't be around always and soon winter will follow. Her husband's job is important and he can't be there always and he must also go away at times. "Till nature's sad decree shall call thee hence."<ref name="allpoetry.com"/> One thing that keeps her going is that even though they are far away from each other, they are both one with each other. | |||
As writing was not considered to be an acceptable role for women at the time, Bradstreet was met with criticism. One of the most prominent figures of her time, ], criticized Ann Hopkins, wife of prominent Connecticut colony governor Edward Hopkins. He mentioned in his journal that Hopkins should have kept to being a housewife and left writing and reading for men, "whose minds are stronger." Despite heavy criticism of women during her time, Bradstreet continued to write, which led to the belief {{by whom|date=October 2022}} that she was interested in rebelling against societal norms of the time. A prominent minister of the time, ], was also against the idea of women writing and sent a letter to his own sister saying that publishing a book was outside of the realm of what women were supposed to do. No doubt he was opposed to the writing of Bradstreet as well. These negative views were likely augmented by the fact that Puritan ideologies stated that women were vastly inferior to men.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Stanford|first1=Ann|title=Anne Bradstreet: Dogmatist and Rebel|journal=The New England Quarterly|date=September 1966|volume=39|issue=3|page=374|doi=10.2307/363962|jstor=363962}}</ref> | |||
==Literary style and themes== | |||
By reading Bradstreet's works and recognizing her intended audience, one can get an idea of how life was for Puritan women. According to U.S. History.org Puritan women were required to attend worship services, yet they could not to speak or offer prayer. Women were also not allowed to attend town meetings or be involved in the decisions that were discussed.<ref>http://www.ushistory.org/us/3d.asp</ref> If Puritan women were to be seen and not heard in public, then one can say that most of their works are not meant for public consumption. | |||
===Background=== | |||
In Puritan religion, a relationship between a man and a woman is to be kept behind closed doors. They are not to draw attention to their relationship and keep their feelings repressed, because they believed that their relationship to God is the most important relationship and their personal relationship would take away from their devotion to God. They believed through this devotion to God they would find redemption and salvation and kept a strict moral code, especially for women. Therefore, Anne Bradstreet's love poems to her husband are her way of expressing the emotions she kept repressed from the public. These poems are from the heart and could be viewed more as structured diary entries. This is why her works were not initially intended for public viewing. That is why some of her poems do not even have a true title, but instead are more of a description of the poem or why it was written such as "Before the Death of One of her Children", in which she warns her child of her own possible death and instructs him or her to watch over her other children if she does die, and "A Letter to Her Husband", "Absent upon Public Employment." Bradstreet intended for her work to only be seen by the eyes they were strictly intended to be met by; her husband and children. She used her writing a way to cope with her loneliness when her husband was away for political affairs and her struggles with adapting to her new life in the colonies. | |||
Bradstreet let her homesick imagination marshall her store of learning, for the glory of God and for the expression of an inquiring mind and sensitive, philosophical spirit.<ref>White, Elixabth Wade 'The Tenth Muse:An Appraisal of Anne Bradstreet' William & Mary Quarterly Review V111 July 1951</ref> | |||
Bradstreet was not responsible for her writing becoming public. Bradstreet's brother-in-law, John Woodbridge, sent her work off to be published. However soon after, there was concern for the family because Bradstreet did not want to elevate herself. Bradstreet was a righteous woman and her poetry was not meant to bring attention to herself.<ref>http://www.poetryfoundation.org/bio/anne-bradstreet</ref> Though Bradstreet's works are renowned in today's world, it still was a great risk to have had her work published during the time in which she lived because being a published author would have not been a typical role of the everyday Puritan woman. | |||
We see examples of this homesick imagination in her poem "Dialogue Between Old England and New" which emphasizes the relationship between the motherland and the colonies as parental; and gives assurance that the bond between the two countries will continue. It also implies that whatever happens to England will also affect America. The poem often refers to England as "mother" and America as "Daughter", which emphasizes the bond Bradstreet feels herself to her home country.{{Citation needed|date=November 2022}} | |||
===Use of metaphors=== | |||
{{poemquote| | |||
Anne Bradstreet uses a variety of metaphors throughout her poetic works. For instance, in Bradstreet's poem "To My Dear and Loving Husband" she uses several poetic features and one being the use of metaphors. In the middle quatrain of "To My Dear and Loving Husband" Bradstreet states: | |||
Alas, dear Mother, fairest Queen and best, | |||
With honour, wealth, and peace happy and blest, | |||
What ails thee hang thy head, and cross thine arms, | |||
And sit i' the dust to sigh these sad alarms? | |||
What deluge of new woes thus over-whelm | |||
The glories of thy ever famous Realm? | |||
What means this wailing tone, this mournful guise? | |||
Ah, tell thy Daughter; she may sympathize. | |||
}} | |||
===Intended audience=== | |||
''"I prize thy love more than whole Mines of gold, | |||
Anne Bradstreet's works tend to be directed to members of her family and are generally intimate. For instance, in Bradstreet's "]", the poem's intended audience is her husband, Simon Bradstreet. In "A Letter to Her Husband Absent upon Public Employment"<ref name="allpoetry.com">{{cite web|url=https://allpoetry.com/A-Letter-to-Her-Husband,-Absent-upon-Public-Employment|title=A Letter to Her Husband, Absent upon Public Employment by Anne Bradstreet|first1=A. Letter to Her|last1=Husb|first2=Absent upon Public|last2=Employment|website=allpoetry.com|access-date=24 January 2019}}</ref> Bradstreet writes a letter to her husband who is away from her working at his job. Bradstreet uses various metaphors to describe her husband. The most visible use of metaphor that Bradstreet uses is comparing her husband to the seasons. When summer is gone, winter soon arrives. Summer can be seen as a time of happiness and warmth. Winter on the other hand can be seen as being gloomy and cold. Bradstreet's husband is her Sun and when he is with her it is always summer. She is happy and warm from the love that her husband brings when he is around. When her husband leaves home for work, everything then becomes winter. It is a sad, cold time for Bradstreet and she wishes for her husband to soon return. "Return, return, sweet Sol, from Capricorn."<ref name="allpoetry.com" /> She wants her husband to know that she needs him and without him everything feels gloomy. She is not concerned with what others think. It is not intended for anyone else except her husband. Bradstreet knows that the situation is inevitable, summer can't be around always and soon winter will follow. Her husband's job is important. He can't be there always and he must go away at times. "Till nature's sad decree shall call thee hence."<ref name="allpoetry.com" /> | |||
''Or all the riches that the East doth hold.'' | |||
''My love is such that Rivers cannot quench,'' | |||
''Nor ought but love from thee, give recompense."'' | |||
This part of the poem above lets out the logical argument and starts to become truly heartfelt with the use of religious imagery and ]. The subject of this poem is her claimed love for her husband as she praises him and asks the heavens to repay him for his love. Bradstreet wrote this poem as a response to her husband's absence. | |||
Puritan women were required to attend worship services, yet they could not to speak or offer prayer. Women were also not allowed to attend town meetings or be involved in the decisions that were discussed.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ushistory.org/us/3d.asp |title=Puritan Life |access-date=2012-02-27 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120125132940/http://www.ushistory.org/us/3d.asp |archive-date=2012-01-25 }}</ref> | |||
"A Letter to Her Husband, Absent Upon Public Employment"<ref>http://theotherpages.org/poems/bradstr1.html</ref> is another one of Anne Bradstreet's poems written with several poetic devices, one being her use of metaphors. In this poem she addresses her husband by an arrangement of metaphors, and the main one being the sun. She states "I, like the earth this season, mourn in black." She likens herself to the earth in winter, as she expresses a death "in black" the receding light and feeling "chilled" without him to warm her when she states "My chilled limbs now numbed lie forlorn." She goes on to talk about her children as reminders and she quotes "those fruits which through thy heat I bore." With her husband "southward gone" she discovers the short winter days to be long and tedious. Bradstreet continues to express her sun metaphor into the future as to when he returns, the season will be summer as she quotes "I wish my Sun may never set, but burn/ Within the Cancer of my glowing breast." | |||
Bradstreet was not responsible for her writing becoming public. Bradstreet's brother-in-law, John Woodbridge, sent her work off to be published. Bradstreet was a righteous woman and her poetry was not meant to bring attention to herself.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/anne-bradstreet|title=Anne Bradstreet|first=Poetry|last=Foundation|date=January 24, 2019|website=Poetry Foundation|access-date=January 24, 2019}}</ref> | |||
Throughout much of Puritan writing, nature was often used as symbolism. Nature was a large part of the Puritan society and it was shown throughout the writing during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Nature was a large part of life during the Puritan era because the society relied on nature to provide for the people. Puritans felt that God gave them this beautiful untouched land that they were able to transform into a prosperous, plentiful land for the people to survive on. Much of the Puritan writing was based on the nature they lived in and how they interacted with nature. | |||
Throughout “Letter to Husband, Absent upon Public Employment,” Bradstreet uses the symbolism of nature by referring to her husband as the sun and the warmth of the sun being her happiness. Bradstreet states how when her husband is gone, the warmth in her life is gone until he returns.<ref>http://nationalhumanitiescenter.org/tserve/nattrans/ntwilderness/essays/puritan.htm</ref> | |||
===Themes=== | ===Themes=== | ||
The role of women is a common |
The role of women is a common subject found in Bradstreet's poems. Living in a ] society, Bradstreet did not approve of the | ||
stereotypical idea that women were inferior to men during the 1600s. Women were expected to spend all their time cooking, cleaning, taking care of their children, and attending to their husband's every need. In her poem "In Honour of that High and Mighty Princess Queen Elizabeth of Happy Memory," Bradstreet questions this belief.<ref> |
stereotypical idea that women were inferior to men during the 1600s. Women were expected to spend all their time cooking, cleaning, taking care of their children, and attending to their husband's every need. In her poem "In Honour of that High and Mighty Princess Queen Elizabeth of Happy Memory," Bradstreet questions this belief.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.academia.edu/6696156|title=Deborah's Ghost|first=Zach|last=Hutchins|access-date=24 January 2019|via=www.academia.edu}}</ref> | ||
"Now say, have women worth? or have they none? | "Now say, have women worth? or have they none? | ||
Line 128: | Line 168: | ||
But she, though dead, will vindicate our wrong, | But she, though dead, will vindicate our wrong, | ||
Let such as say our Sex is void of Reason, | Let such as say our Sex is void of Reason, | ||
Know tis a Slander now, but once was Treason." | Know tis a Slander now, but once was Treason."{{Citation needed|date=November 2022}} | ||
Another recurring subject in Bradstreet's work is mortality. In many of her works, she writes about her death and how it will affect her children and others in her life. The recurrence of this mortality theme can be viewed as autobiographical. Because her work was not intended for the public, she was referring to her own medical problems and her belief that she would die. In addition to her medical history (smallpox and partial paralysis), Bradstreet and her family dealt with a major house fire that left them homeless and devoid of all personal belongings. She hoped her children would think of her fondly and honor her memory in her poem, "Before the Birth of One of Her Children." | |||
"If any worth or virtue were in me, | "If any worth or virtue were in me, | ||
Let that live freshly in thy memory." | Let that live freshly in thy memory."{{Citation needed|date=November 2022}} | ||
Bradstreet is also known for using her poetry as a means to question her own Puritan beliefs; her doubt concerning God's mercy and her struggles to continue to place her faith in him are exemplified in such poems as "Verses upon the Burning of our House" and "In Memory of My Dear Grandchild". Her works demonstrate a conflict that many Puritans would not have felt comfortable discussing, let alone writing.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Foundation |first=Poetry |date=2024-07-27 |title=Anne Bradstreet |url=https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/anne-bradstreet |access-date=2024-07-27 |website=Poetry Foundation |language=en}}</ref> | |||
In "The Prologue," Bradstreet demonstrates how society criticized women's accomplishments and that she should be doing other things such as sewing rather than writing poetry. | |||
In "The Prologue," Bradstreet demonstrates how society trivialized the accomplishments of women. The popular belief that women should be doing other things like sewing, rather than writing poetry.{{Citation needed|date=November 2022}} | |||
"I am obnoxious to each carping tongue | "I am obnoxious to each carping tongue | ||
Line 141: | Line 183: | ||
For such despite they cast on female wits: | For such despite they cast on female wits: | ||
If what I do prove well, it won't advance, | If what I do prove well, it won't advance, | ||
They'll say it's stol'n, or else it was by chance."<ref>{{cite web|last=Lewis|first=Jone|title=About Anne Bradstreet's Poetry|url=http://womenshistory.about.com/od/bradstreetanne/a/anne_bradstreet.htm|publisher=About.com| |
They'll say it's stol'n, or else it was by chance."<ref>{{cite web|last=Lewis|first=Jone|title=About Anne Bradstreet's Poetry|url=http://womenshistory.about.com/od/bradstreetanne/a/anne_bradstreet.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050528073938/http://womenshistory.about.com/od/bradstreetanne/a/anne_bradstreet.htm|url-status=dead|archive-date=28 May 2005|publisher=About.com|access-date=27 February 2012}}</ref> | ||
In "To My Dear and Loving Husband," Bradstreet confesses her undying love for Simon saying "Thy love is such I can no way repay, The heavens reward thee manifold, I pray." Her deep passions can be found again in "A Letter to Her Husband, Absent upon Public Employment." Her overt affections for her husband help readers to understand Bradstreet's temerity.<ref>{{cite web|last=Gonzalez |first=Ramon |title=Anne Bradstreet, 1612–1672 |url=http://www.uncp.edu/home/canada/work/allam/16071783/lit/bradstre.htm |publisher=Mark Canada |access-date=27 February 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120215014532/http://www.uncp.edu/home/canada/work/allam/16071783/lit/bradstre.htm |archive-date=15 February 2012 }}</ref> | |||
Bradstreet also challenged Puritan beliefs by announcing her complete infatuation with her husband, Simon Bradstreet. In "To My Dear and Loving Husband," Bradstreet confesses her undying love for Simon saying "Thy love is such I can no way repay, The | |||
heavens reward thee manifold, I pray." She also proves her obsession in "A Letter to Her Husband, Absent upon Public Employment." This was dangerous during her time because Puritans believed that this kind of love would only stray someone further from God.<ref>{{cite web|last=Gonzalez|first=Ramon|title=Anne Bradstreet, 1612-1672|url=http://www.uncp.edu/home/canada/work/allam/16071783/lit/bradstre.htm|publisher=Mark Canada|accessdate=27 February 2012}}</ref> | |||
Anne Bradstreet |
Anne Bradstreet wrote in a different format than other writers of her time. This mainly is due to the fact that she wrote her feelings in a book not knowing someone would read them. In her poem "A letter to my Husband" she speaks about the loss of her husband when he is gone. | ||
"I like the earth this season morn in black, my sun is gone" |
"I like the earth this season morn in black, my sun is gone." Here Anne is expressing her feelings of missing her husband when he is away.{{Citation needed|date=November 2022}} | ||
"To my faults that well you know I have let be interred in my oblivious grave; if any worth of virtue were in me, let that live freshly in they memory". Anne expresses the feeling she has of wanting her children to remember her in a good light not in a bad light. | "To my faults that well you know I have let be interred in my oblivious grave; if any worth of virtue were in me, let that live freshly in they memory". Anne expresses the feeling she has of wanting her children to remember her in a good light not in a bad light.{{Citation needed|date=November 2022}} | ||
===Tone=== | ===Tone=== | ||
Bradstreet often used a sarcastic tone in her poetry. In the first | |||
Bradstreet often uses a sarcastic tone in her poetry. In the first | |||
stanza of "The Prologue" she claims "for my mean pen are too | stanza of "The Prologue" she claims "for my mean pen are too | ||
superior things" referring to society's belief that she is unfit to | superior things" referring to society's belief that she is unfit to | ||
Line 161: | Line 201: | ||
my hand a needle better fits". This is another example of her | my hand a needle better fits". This is another example of her | ||
sarcastic voice because society during this time expected women to | sarcastic voice because society during this time expected women to | ||
perform household chores rather than write poetry.<ref>{{cite web|title=Feminist Themes in the Works of Anne Bradstreet|url=http://world.intellectualprops.com/summaries/feminist-themes-in-the-works-of-anne-bradstreet/| |
perform household chores rather than write poetry.<ref>{{cite web|title=Feminist Themes in the Works of Anne Bradstreet|url=http://world.intellectualprops.com/summaries/feminist-themes-in-the-works-of-anne-bradstreet/|access-date=27 February 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130619131146/http://world.intellectualprops.com/summaries/feminist-themes-in-the-works-of-anne-bradstreet/|archive-date=19 June 2013|url-status=dead}}</ref> | ||
Although Anne Bradstreet endured many hardships in her life, her poems | Although Anne Bradstreet endured many hardships in her life, her poems | ||
Line 167: | Line 207: | ||
poem In "Memory of My Dear Grandchild Simon Bradstreet," she mentions | poem In "Memory of My Dear Grandchild Simon Bradstreet," she mentions | ||
that even though she has lost her grandson in this world, she | that even though she has lost her grandson in this world, she | ||
will one day be reunited with him in Heaven.<ref>{{cite web|last=Atwood|first=Kathryn|title=The Works of Anne Bradstreet, Review by Kathryn Atwood|url=http://www.womensindependentpress.com/wordpress/?p=834|publisher=John Harvard Library| |
will one day be reunited with him in Heaven.<ref>{{cite web|last=Atwood|first=Kathryn|title=The Works of Anne Bradstreet, Review by Kathryn Atwood|url=http://www.womensindependentpress.com/wordpress/?p=834|publisher=John Harvard Library|access-date=27 February 2012}}</ref> In "Upon the | ||
Burning of Our House," Bradstreet describes her house in flames but | Burning of Our House," Bradstreet describes her house in flames but | ||
selflessly declares "there's wealth enough, I need no more." Although | selflessly declares "there's wealth enough, I need no more." Although | ||
Bradstreet lost many of her material items she kept a positive | Bradstreet lost many of her material items she kept a positive | ||
attitude and |
attitude and found strength through her belief in God.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://itech.fgcu.edu/&/issues/vol1/issue1/bradstreet.htm|last=Howe-Pinsker|first=Rebecca|title=Confession, Exploration and Comfort In Anne Bradstreet's "Upon the Burning of Our House July 10th, 1666"|publisher=Florida Gulf Coast University|access-date=27 February 2012}}</ref> | ||
== |
===Quaternions=== | ||
Bradstreet wrote four ]s, "Seasons," "Elements," "Humours," and "Ages," which made possible her "development as a poet in terms of technical craftsmanship as she learned to fashion the form artistically."{{Citation needed|date=November 2022}} | |||
Bradstreet's first two quaternions were her most successful.<ref>Eberwein, Jane Donahue 'Early American Literature' vol 9 no 1 University of North Carolina Press Spring 1974</ref> The central tension in her work is that between delight in the world and belief of its vanity.{{Citation needed|date=November 2022}} | |||
==Selected works== | |||
{{Div col|colwidth=30em}} | |||
*'']'' | *'']'' | ||
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*''Upon Some Distemper of Body'' | *''Upon Some Distemper of Body'' | ||
*'']'' | *'']'' | ||
*''] (1650) and, from the Manuscripts. Meditations Divine and Morall, Letters, and ]'', Facsimile ed., 1965, Scholars' Facsimiles & Reprints, ISBN |
*''] (1650) and, from the Manuscripts. Meditations Divine and Morall, Letters, and ]'', Facsimile ed., 1965, Scholars' Facsimiles & Reprints, {{ISBN|978-0-8201-1006-6}}. | ||
*''An Exact Epitome of the Three First Monarchies'' (1650) (a.k.a. ''Exact Epitome of the Four Monarchies'') | *''An Exact Epitome of the Three First Monarchies'' (1650) (a.k.a. ''Exact Epitome of the Four Monarchies'') | ||
{{div col end}} | |||
*In Memory of My Dear Grandchild Elizabeth Bradstreet, Who Deceased August, 1665, Being a Year and Half Old | |||
==Legacy== | |||
To honour Mistress Bradstreet, North Andover MA celebrated her 400th birthday during 2012.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://annebradstreet.org/|title=Anne Bradstreet ~ Celebrating 400 years and beyond!}}</ref> | |||
==References== | ==References== | ||
{{reflist}}''Homage to Mistress Bradstreet'', John Berryman, Faber and Faber, 1959 | |||
{{Reflist}} | |||
==Further reading== | ==Further reading== | ||
* Cook, Faith, ''Anne Bradstreet Pilgrim and Poet'', EP Books, Darlington 2010 ISBN |
* Cook, Faith, ''Anne Bradstreet Pilgrim and Poet'', EP Books, Darlington 2010 {{ISBN|978-0-85234-714-0}} | ||
* Dykeman, Therese Boos (ed.). ''American Women Philosophers, 1650-1930: Six Exemplary Thinkers''. Lewiston/Queenston/Lampeter: The Edwin Meilen Press, 1993. | |||
*], ''Mistress Bradstreet: The Untold Life of America's First Poet'', Little, Brown, New York 2005 ISBN 0-316-16904-8 | |||
*], ''Mistress Bradstreet: The Untold Life of America's First Poet'', Little, Brown, New York 2005 {{ISBN|0-316-16904-8}} | |||
*Engberg, Kathrynn Seidler, ''The Right to Write: The Literary Politics of Anne Bradstreet and Phillis Wheatley.'' University Press of America, Washington D.C., 2009. ISBN 978-0761846093 | |||
*Engberg, Kathrynn Seidler, ''The Right to Write: The Literary Politics of Anne Bradstreet and Phillis Wheatley.'' University Press of America, Washington D.C., 2009. {{ISBN|978-0761846093}} | |||
*Nichol, Heidi, Anne Bradstreet,A Guided Tour of the Life and Thought of a Puritan Poet, P&R Publishing, New Jersey 2006 | |||
*Nichol, Heidi, Anne Bradstreet, A Guided Tour of the Life and Thought of a Puritan Poet, P&R Publishing, New Jersey 2006 | |||
* Williams, Katie Munday, ''Poet, Pilgraim, Rebel: The Story of Anne Bradstreet, America's First Published Poet'', Beaming Books, Minneapolis 2021 {{ISBN|978-1-5064-6887-7}} | |||
==External links== | ==External links== | ||
{{Library resources box|by=yes|onlinebooks=yes|viaf=34473490}} | {{Library resources box|by=yes|onlinebooks=yes|viaf=34473490}} | ||
{{Wikisource author}} | {{Wikisource author}} | ||
{{ |
{{Wikiquote}} | ||
* {{Internet Archive author |sname=Anne Bradstreet}} | *{{Commons category-inline}} | ||
*{{Internet Archive author |sname=Anne Bradstreet}} | |||
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*{{Librivox author |id=459}} | ||
* |
* hypertext from American Studies at the University of Virginia. | ||
* |
* by Anne Dudley Bradstreet, Boston: Printed by John Foster, 1678, at | ||
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* from the William Dean Howell Society | ||
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*Audio: by Anne Bradstreet (via ) | ||
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* ] discusses the life of Anne Bradstreet. | ||
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*A trust for the Bradstreet homesite: | |||
{{Metaphysical poetry}} | {{Metaphysical poetry}} | ||
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{{Persondata | |||
| NAME =Bradstreet, Anne | |||
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES = | |||
| SHORT DESCRIPTION = British poet | |||
| DATE OF BIRTH = March 20, 1612 | |||
| PLACE OF BIRTH = ], England | |||
| DATE OF DEATH = September 16, 1672 | |||
| PLACE OF DEATH = North Andover, MA (formerly Andover Parish) | |||
}} | |||
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bradstreet, Anne}} | {{DEFAULTSORT:Bradstreet, Anne}} | ||
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Latest revision as of 10:42, 27 December 2024
Anglo-American poet For the alleged witch, see Anne Bradstreet (Salem witch trials).This article has multiple issues. Please help improve it or discuss these issues on the talk page. (Learn how and when to remove these messages)
|
Anne Bradstreet | |
---|---|
Nineteenth century depiction of Anne Bradstreet by Edmund H. Garrett. No portrait made during her lifetime exists. | |
Born | Anne Dudley (1612-03-08)March 8, 1612 Northampton, England |
Died | September 16, 1672(1672-09-16) (aged 60) North Andover, Massachusetts |
Occupation | Poet |
Language | English |
Nationality | British |
Spouse |
Simon Bradstreet (m. 1628) |
Children | 8: Samuel, Dorothy, Sarah, Simon, Hannah, Mercy, Dudley, John. |
Relatives | John Woodbridge(brother-in-law) |
Anne Bradstreet (née Dudley; March 8, 1612 – September 16, 1672) was among the most prominent of early English poets of North America and first writer in England's North American colonies to be published. She is the first Puritan figure in American Literature and notable for her large corpus of poetry, as well as personal writings published posthumously.
Born to a wealthy Puritan family in Northampton, England, Bradstreet was a well-read scholar especially affected by the works of Du Bartas. She was married at sixteen, and her parents and young family migrated at the time of the founding of Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1630. A mother of eight children and the wife and daughter of public officials in New England, Bradstreet wrote poetry in addition to her other duties.
Her early works are broadly considered derivative, but her later writings developed into her unique style of poetry which centers on her role as a mother, her struggles with the sufferings of life, and her Puritan faith. While her works were initially considered primarily of historical significance, she reached posthumous acclaim in the 20th century. Her first collection, The Tenth Muse Lately Sprung Up in America, was widely read in America and England.
Background
In a portrait that was painted by her later poems, Bradstreet is described as "an educated English woman, a kind, loving wife, devoted mother, Empress Consort of Massachusetts, a questing Puritan and a sensitive poet."
Bradstreet's first volume of poetry was The Tenth Muse Lately Sprung Up in America, published in 1650. It was met with a positive reception in both the Old World and the New World.
Life
Anne was born in Northampton, England in 1612, the daughter of Thomas Dudley, a steward of the Earl of Lincoln, and Dorothy Yorke.
Due to her family's position, she grew up in cultured circumstances and was a well-educated woman for her time, being tutored in history, several languages, and literature. At the age of sixteen she married Simon Bradstreet. Both Anne's father and husband were later to serve as governors of the Massachusetts Bay Colony. Anne and Simon, along with Anne's parents, emigrated to America aboard the Arbella as part of the Winthrop Fleet of Puritan emigrants in 1630.
She first came to the Americas on June 14, 1630, at what is now Pioneer Village in Salem, Massachusetts, with Simon, her parents, and other voyagers as part of the Puritan migration to New England. Upon their arrival, they found that many of the colonists had died from illness or starvation the previous winter. Her family shared a one-room house with very little furniture or supplies.
The Bradstreet family soon moved again, this time to what is now Cambridge, Massachusetts. In 1632, Anne had her first child, Samuel, in "Newe Towne," as it was then called. Despite poor health, she had eight children and achieved a comfortable social standing. Having previously been afflicted with smallpox as a teenager in England, Anne would once again fall prey to illness as paralysis overtook her joints in later years. In the early 1640s, Simon once again pressed his wife, pregnant with her sixth child, to move for the sixth time, from Ipswich, Massachusetts, to Andover Parish. North Andover is that original town founded in 1646 by the Stevens, Osgood, Johnson, Farnum, Barker, and Bradstreet families, among others. Anne and her family resided in the Old Center of what is now North Andover, Massachusetts.
Both Anne's father and her husband were instrumental in the founding of Harvard University in 1636; her father was a founder, and her husband an overseer. Two of her sons, Samuel (class of 1653) and Simon (c/o 1660), were graduates. In October 1997, the Harvard community dedicated a gate in memory of her as America's first published poet. The gate was dedicated on the 25th anniversary of women being allowed in the Harvard Yard dorms. The Bradstreet Gate is located next to Canaday Hall in Harvard Yard.
In 1650, Rev. John Woodbridge had The Tenth Muse Lately Sprung Up in America composed by "A Gentlewoman from Those Parts" published in London, making Anne the first female poet ever published in both England and the New World. On July 10, 1666, their North Andover family home burned (see "Works" below) in a fire that left the Bradstreets homeless and with few personal belongings. Recent archaeological excavation may have located the site of this homestead, which had been the subject of uncertainty over the centuries. By then, Anne's health was slowly failing. She suffered from tuberculosis and had to deal with the loss of cherished relatives. But her will remained strong and as a reflection of her religious devotion and knowledge of the Bible, she found peace in the firm belief that her daughter-in-law Mercy and her grandchildren were in heaven.
Anne Bradstreet died on September 16, 1672, in North Andover, Massachusetts, at the age of 60. The precise location of her grave is uncertain but many historians believe her body is in the Old Burying Ground at Academy Road and Osgood Street in North Andover. In 1676, four years after the death of Anne, Simon Bradstreet married for a second time to a woman also named Anne (Gardiner). In 1697, Simon died and was buried in Salem. This area of the Merrimack Valley is today described as "The Valley of the Poets."
A marker in the North Andover cemetery commemorates the 350th anniversary (2000) of the publishing of The Tenth Muse in London in 1650. That site and the Bradstreet Gate at Harvard, the memorial and pamphlets inside the Ipswich Public Library in Ipswich, MA, as well as the Bradstreet Kindergarten in North Andover may be the only places in America honoring her memory.
As of 2015, the Bradstreet Kindergarten was torn down in North Andover. In the fall of 2018, The Anne Bradstreet Early Childhood Center was opened near Massachusetts Avenue in North Andover. Housing both preschool and kindergarten, the Anne Bradstreet ECC replaced the aged building named for her that had been on Main Street.
Writing
Background
Anne Bradstreet's education gave her advantages that allowed her to write with authority about politics, history, medicine, and theology. Her personal library of books was said to have numbered over 800, although many were destroyed when her home burned down. This event itself inspired a poem titled "Upon the Burning of Our House July 10th, 1666". At first, she rejects the anger and grief that this worldly tragedy has caused her; she looks toward God and the assurance of heaven as consolation, saying:
And when I could no longer look,
I blest His grace that gave and took,
That laid my goods now in the dust.
Yea, so it was, and so 'twas just.
It was his own; it was not mine.
Far be it that I should repine.
However, in opposition to her Puritan ways, she also shows her human side, expressing the pain this event had caused her, that is, until the poem comes to its end:
Farewell my pelf; farewell my store.
The world no longer let me love
My hope, and treasure lies above.
As a younger poet, Bradstreet wrote five quaternions, epic poems of four parts each (see works below) that explore the diverse yet complementary natures of their subject. Much of Bradstreet's poetry is based on observation of the world around her, focusing heavily on domestic and religious themes, and was considered by Cotton Mather "a monument to her memory beyond the stateliest marble". Long considered primarily of historical interest, she won critical acceptance in the 20th century as a writer of enduring verse, particularly for her sequence of religious poems "Contemplations", which was written for her family and not published until the mid-19th century.
Nearly a century later, Martha Wadsworth Brewster, a notable 18th-century American poet and writer, in her principal work, Poems on Diverse Subjects, was influenced and pays homage to Bradstreet's verse.
Despite the traditional attitude toward women of the time, she clearly valued knowledge and intellect; she was a free thinker and some consider her an early feminist; unlike the more radical Anne Hutchinson, however, Bradstreet's feminism does not reflect heterodox, antinomian views.
Her Victories in foreign Coasts resound?
Ships more invincible than Spain's, her foe
She rack't, she sack'd, she sunk his Armadoe.
Her stately Troops advanc'd to Lisbon's wall,
Don Anthony in's right for to install.
She frankly help'd Franks' (brave) distressed King,
The States united now her fame do sing.
In 1647, Bradstreet's brother-in-law, Rev. John Woodbridge, sailed to England, carrying her manuscript of poetry. Although Anne later said that she did not know Woodbridge was going to publish her manuscript, in her self-deprecatory poem, ""The Author to Her Book"", she wrote Woodbridge a letter while he was in London, indicating her knowledge of the publication plan. Anne had little choice, however— as a woman poet, it was important for her to downplay her ambitions as an author. Otherwise, she would have faced criticism for being "unwomanly." Anne's first work was published in London as The Tenth Muse Lately Sprung Up in America "by a Gentlewoman of those Parts".
The purpose of the publication appears to have been an attempt by devout Puritan men (i.e. Thomas Dudley, Simon Bradstreet, John Woodbridge) to show that a godly and educated woman could elevate her position as a wife and mother, without necessarily placing her in competition with men. In 1678, her self-revised Several Poems Compiled with Great Variety of Wit and Learning was posthumously published in America, and included one of her most famous poems, "To My Dear and Loving Husband". This volume is owned by the Stevens Memorial Library of North Andover and resides in the Houghton Library vault at Harvard.
A quotation from Bradstreet can be found on a plaque at the Bradstreet Gate in Harvard Yard: "I came into this Country, where I found a new World and new manners at which my heart rose." Unfortunately the plaque seems to be based on a misinterpretation; the following sentence is "But after I was convinced it was the way of God, I submitted to it and joined to the church at Boston." This suggests her heart rose up in protest rather than in joy.
Role of women
Marriage played a large role in the lives of Puritan women. In Bradstreet's poem, "To My Dear And Loving Husband," she reveals that she is one with her husband. "If ever two were one, then surely we." The Puritans believed marriage to be a gift from God. In another of Bradstreet's works, "Before the Birth of One of Her Children", Bradstreet acknowledges God's gift of marriage in the lines, "And if I see not half my days that's due, what nature would, God grant to yours, and you". Bradstreet could be referring to her husband remarrying after she dies. Another line shows that she believes that it is possible for her husband to remarry. By using the lines, "These O protect from stepdame's injury", Bradstreet is calling for her children to be protected from the abuse of a future stepmother. The fact that Bradstreet believes that God will grant her husband a new wife if she dies shows how much Puritan women believed in marriage.
Throughout "Letter to Her Husband, Absent upon Public Employment," Bradstreet states how she feels lost when her husband is not around and that life is always better when he is around. In Bradstreet's poems, it can be assumed she truly loved her husband and missed him when he was away from her and the family. Bradstreet does not resent her husband for leaving her with the family and with all of the household needs; she just misses him and wants him back with her.
Various works of Bradstreet are dedicated to her children. In works such as "Before the Birth of One of Her Children" and "In Reference to Her Children", Bradstreet articulated the love that she has for her children, both unborn and born. In Puritan society, children were also gifts from God, and she loved and cared for all of her children just as she loved and cared for her husband. She always believes they too are bound with her to make "one."
Reception
As writing was not considered to be an acceptable role for women at the time, Bradstreet was met with criticism. One of the most prominent figures of her time, John Winthrop, criticized Ann Hopkins, wife of prominent Connecticut colony governor Edward Hopkins. He mentioned in his journal that Hopkins should have kept to being a housewife and left writing and reading for men, "whose minds are stronger." Despite heavy criticism of women during her time, Bradstreet continued to write, which led to the belief that she was interested in rebelling against societal norms of the time. A prominent minister of the time, Thomas Parker, was also against the idea of women writing and sent a letter to his own sister saying that publishing a book was outside of the realm of what women were supposed to do. No doubt he was opposed to the writing of Bradstreet as well. These negative views were likely augmented by the fact that Puritan ideologies stated that women were vastly inferior to men.
Literary style and themes
Background
Bradstreet let her homesick imagination marshall her store of learning, for the glory of God and for the expression of an inquiring mind and sensitive, philosophical spirit.
We see examples of this homesick imagination in her poem "Dialogue Between Old England and New" which emphasizes the relationship between the motherland and the colonies as parental; and gives assurance that the bond between the two countries will continue. It also implies that whatever happens to England will also affect America. The poem often refers to England as "mother" and America as "Daughter", which emphasizes the bond Bradstreet feels herself to her home country.
Alas, dear Mother, fairest Queen and best,
With honour, wealth, and peace happy and blest,
What ails thee hang thy head, and cross thine arms,
And sit i' the dust to sigh these sad alarms?
What deluge of new woes thus over-whelm
The glories of thy ever famous Realm?
What means this wailing tone, this mournful guise?
Ah, tell thy Daughter; she may sympathize.
Intended audience
Anne Bradstreet's works tend to be directed to members of her family and are generally intimate. For instance, in Bradstreet's "To My Dear and Loving Husband", the poem's intended audience is her husband, Simon Bradstreet. In "A Letter to Her Husband Absent upon Public Employment" Bradstreet writes a letter to her husband who is away from her working at his job. Bradstreet uses various metaphors to describe her husband. The most visible use of metaphor that Bradstreet uses is comparing her husband to the seasons. When summer is gone, winter soon arrives. Summer can be seen as a time of happiness and warmth. Winter on the other hand can be seen as being gloomy and cold. Bradstreet's husband is her Sun and when he is with her it is always summer. She is happy and warm from the love that her husband brings when he is around. When her husband leaves home for work, everything then becomes winter. It is a sad, cold time for Bradstreet and she wishes for her husband to soon return. "Return, return, sweet Sol, from Capricorn." She wants her husband to know that she needs him and without him everything feels gloomy. She is not concerned with what others think. It is not intended for anyone else except her husband. Bradstreet knows that the situation is inevitable, summer can't be around always and soon winter will follow. Her husband's job is important. He can't be there always and he must go away at times. "Till nature's sad decree shall call thee hence."
Puritan women were required to attend worship services, yet they could not to speak or offer prayer. Women were also not allowed to attend town meetings or be involved in the decisions that were discussed.
Bradstreet was not responsible for her writing becoming public. Bradstreet's brother-in-law, John Woodbridge, sent her work off to be published. Bradstreet was a righteous woman and her poetry was not meant to bring attention to herself.
Themes
The role of women is a common subject found in Bradstreet's poems. Living in a Puritan society, Bradstreet did not approve of the stereotypical idea that women were inferior to men during the 1600s. Women were expected to spend all their time cooking, cleaning, taking care of their children, and attending to their husband's every need. In her poem "In Honour of that High and Mighty Princess Queen Elizabeth of Happy Memory," Bradstreet questions this belief.
"Now say, have women worth? or have they none? Or had they some, but with our queen is't gone? Nay Masculines, you have thus taxt us long, But she, though dead, will vindicate our wrong, Let such as say our Sex is void of Reason, Know tis a Slander now, but once was Treason."
Another recurring subject in Bradstreet's work is mortality. In many of her works, she writes about her death and how it will affect her children and others in her life. The recurrence of this mortality theme can be viewed as autobiographical. Because her work was not intended for the public, she was referring to her own medical problems and her belief that she would die. In addition to her medical history (smallpox and partial paralysis), Bradstreet and her family dealt with a major house fire that left them homeless and devoid of all personal belongings. She hoped her children would think of her fondly and honor her memory in her poem, "Before the Birth of One of Her Children." "If any worth or virtue were in me, Let that live freshly in thy memory."
Bradstreet is also known for using her poetry as a means to question her own Puritan beliefs; her doubt concerning God's mercy and her struggles to continue to place her faith in him are exemplified in such poems as "Verses upon the Burning of our House" and "In Memory of My Dear Grandchild". Her works demonstrate a conflict that many Puritans would not have felt comfortable discussing, let alone writing.
In "The Prologue," Bradstreet demonstrates how society trivialized the accomplishments of women. The popular belief that women should be doing other things like sewing, rather than writing poetry.
"I am obnoxious to each carping tongue Who says my hand a needle better fits, A poet's pen all scorn I should thus wrong. For such despite they cast on female wits: If what I do prove well, it won't advance, They'll say it's stol'n, or else it was by chance."
In "To My Dear and Loving Husband," Bradstreet confesses her undying love for Simon saying "Thy love is such I can no way repay, The heavens reward thee manifold, I pray." Her deep passions can be found again in "A Letter to Her Husband, Absent upon Public Employment." Her overt affections for her husband help readers to understand Bradstreet's temerity.
Anne Bradstreet wrote in a different format than other writers of her time. This mainly is due to the fact that she wrote her feelings in a book not knowing someone would read them. In her poem "A letter to my Husband" she speaks about the loss of her husband when he is gone.
"I like the earth this season morn in black, my sun is gone." Here Anne is expressing her feelings of missing her husband when he is away.
"To my faults that well you know I have let be interred in my oblivious grave; if any worth of virtue were in me, let that live freshly in they memory". Anne expresses the feeling she has of wanting her children to remember her in a good light not in a bad light.
Tone
Bradstreet often used a sarcastic tone in her poetry. In the first stanza of "The Prologue" she claims "for my mean pen are too superior things" referring to society's belief that she is unfit to write about wars and the founding of cities because she is a woman. In stanza five Bradstreet continues to display irony by stating "who says my hand a needle better fits". This is another example of her sarcastic voice because society during this time expected women to perform household chores rather than write poetry.
Although Anne Bradstreet endured many hardships in her life, her poems are usually written in a hopeful and positive tone. Throughout her poem In "Memory of My Dear Grandchild Simon Bradstreet," she mentions that even though she has lost her grandson in this world, she will one day be reunited with him in Heaven. In "Upon the Burning of Our House," Bradstreet describes her house in flames but selflessly declares "there's wealth enough, I need no more." Although Bradstreet lost many of her material items she kept a positive attitude and found strength through her belief in God.
Quaternions
Bradstreet wrote four quaternions, "Seasons," "Elements," "Humours," and "Ages," which made possible her "development as a poet in terms of technical craftsmanship as she learned to fashion the form artistically."
Bradstreet's first two quaternions were her most successful. The central tension in her work is that between delight in the world and belief of its vanity.
Selected works
- Before the Birth of One of Her Children
- A Dialogue between Old England and New
- A Letter to Her Husband, Absent upon Public Employment
- Another
- Another (II)
- For Deliverance From A Fever
- Deliverance from Another Sore Fit
- Contemplations (poem)
- In Honour of that High and Mighty Princess, Queen Elizabeth
- In Reference to her Children, 23 June 1659
- The Author to Her Book
- The Flesh and the Spirit
- The Four Ages of Man (quaternion)
- Four Seasons of the Year (quaternion)
- Four Elements (quaternion)
- Of The Four Ages of Man (quaternion)
- The Four Monarchies (quaternion)
- The Prologue
- To Her Father with Some Verses
- To My Dear and Loving Husband
- Upon a Fit of Sickness, Anno 1632 Aetatis Suae, 19
- Upon My Son Samuel His Going For England, November 6, 1657
- Upon Some Distemper of Body
- Verses upon the Burning of our House
- The Tenth Muse Lately Sprung Up in America (1650) and, from the Manuscripts. Meditations Divine and Morall, Letters, and Occasional Poems, Facsimile ed., 1965, Scholars' Facsimiles & Reprints, ISBN 978-0-8201-1006-6.
- An Exact Epitome of the Three First Monarchies (1650) (a.k.a. Exact Epitome of the Four Monarchies)
- In Memory of My Dear Grandchild Elizabeth Bradstreet, Who Deceased August, 1665, Being a Year and Half Old
References
- Pender, Patricia (2015). "Constructing a Canonical Colonial Poet: Abram E. Cutter's Bradstreetiana and the 1867 Works". The Papers of the Bibliographical Society of America. 109 (2): 223–246. doi:10.1086/681959. ISSN 0006-128X. JSTOR 10.1086/681959. S2CID 190658208.
- Poets, Academy of American. "Anne Bradstreet". Poets.org. Retrieved 28 July 2024.
- Langlin, Rosemary M. "Anne Bradstreet: Poet in search of a Form", American Literature vol 42 no. 1, Duke University Press (1970)
- De Grave, Kathleen. "Anne Bradstreet". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 31 May 2006 accessed 29 April 2012.
- Nichols, Heidi, Anne Bradstreet P&R Publishing, Philipsburg, 2006 ISBN 978-0-87552-610-2
- "Anne Bradstreet biography". annebradstreet.com. Archived from the original on 27 January 2007. Retrieved 25 January 2007.
- Woodlief, A. (n.d.). Biography of Anne Bradstreet. Retrieved September 1, 2006.
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- "American Passages: A Literary Survey: Anne Bradstreet (c. 1612-1672)". Annenberg Leaner. Retrieved 28 July 2024.
- "Anne Bradstreet | Puritan Poet, Colonial America | Britannica". www.britannica.com. Retrieved 28 July 2024.
- "1997: Anne Bradstreet". lewis.seas.harvard.edu. Retrieved 28 July 2024.
- Mitchell, Stephanie (29 August 2017). "The gates that frame Harvard Yard". Harvard Gazette. Retrieved 28 July 2024.
- "Finding Anne Bradstreet". Partnership of Historic Bostons. 11 March 2024. Retrieved 20 March 2024.
- Nichols, Heidi Anne Bradstreet, P&R Publishing, Phillipsburg,2006 ISNBN 978-0-87552-610-2
- Cotton Mather,The Great Works of Christ in America, Banner of Truth (reprinted ) 1979
- Anne (Dudley) Bradstreet, The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia (2000). Retrieved September 1, 2006.
- Hutchins, Zach. "The Wisdom of Anne Bradstreet: Eschewing Eve and Emulating Elizabeth". Retrieved 24 January 2019 – via academia.edu.
- Gordon, Charlotte. Mistress Bradstreet: The Untold Story of America's First Poet. New York: Little, Brown, 2005. 240-252
- Ellis, J. H. (1867). The Works of Anne Bradstreet in Prose and Verse.
- "The Harvard Guide: Harvard Yard Gates". Archived from the original on 7 September 2008. Retrieved 19 January 2009.
- "Biography of Anne Bradstreet". Archived from the original on 23 January 2009. Retrieved 19 January 2009.
- ^ "To My Dear and Loving Husband". Archived from the original on 1 March 2012. Retrieved 27 February 2012.
- ^ "Before the Birth of One of Her Children". Archived from the original on 12 September 2011. Retrieved 27 February 2012.
- "Women's History: Women's Role in Colonial Society". Scribd. Retrieved 24 January 2019.
- "(Intro)". Archived from the original on 24 September 2012. Retrieved 27 February 2012.
- "Women?s Chores". Archived from the original on 28 January 2013. Retrieved 27 February 2012.
- "In Reference to Her Children". Archived from the original on 12 September 2011. Retrieved 27 February 2012.
- Stanford, Ann (September 1966). "Anne Bradstreet: Dogmatist and Rebel". The New England Quarterly. 39 (3): 374. doi:10.2307/363962. JSTOR 363962.
- White, Elixabth Wade 'The Tenth Muse:An Appraisal of Anne Bradstreet' William & Mary Quarterly Review V111 July 1951
- ^ Husb, A. Letter to Her; Employment, Absent upon Public. "A Letter to Her Husband, Absent upon Public Employment by Anne Bradstreet". allpoetry.com. Retrieved 24 January 2019.
- "Puritan Life". Archived from the original on 25 January 2012. Retrieved 27 February 2012.
- Foundation, Poetry (24 January 2019). "Anne Bradstreet". Poetry Foundation. Retrieved 24 January 2019.
- Hutchins, Zach. "Deborah's Ghost". Retrieved 24 January 2019 – via www.academia.edu.
- Foundation, Poetry (27 July 2024). "Anne Bradstreet". Poetry Foundation. Retrieved 27 July 2024.
- Lewis, Jone. "About Anne Bradstreet's Poetry". About.com. Archived from the original on 28 May 2005. Retrieved 27 February 2012.
- Gonzalez, Ramon. "Anne Bradstreet, 1612–1672". Mark Canada. Archived from the original on 15 February 2012. Retrieved 27 February 2012.
- "Feminist Themes in the Works of Anne Bradstreet". Archived from the original on 19 June 2013. Retrieved 27 February 2012.
- Atwood, Kathryn. "The Works of Anne Bradstreet, Review by Kathryn Atwood". John Harvard Library. Retrieved 27 February 2012.
- Howe-Pinsker, Rebecca. "Confession, Exploration and Comfort In Anne Bradstreet's "Upon the Burning of Our House July 10th, 1666"". Florida Gulf Coast University. Retrieved 27 February 2012.
- Eberwein, Jane Donahue 'Early American Literature' vol 9 no 1 University of North Carolina Press Spring 1974
Homage to Mistress Bradstreet, John Berryman, Faber and Faber, 1959
Further reading
- Cook, Faith, Anne Bradstreet Pilgrim and Poet, EP Books, Darlington 2010 ISBN 978-0-85234-714-0
- Dykeman, Therese Boos (ed.). American Women Philosophers, 1650-1930: Six Exemplary Thinkers. Lewiston/Queenston/Lampeter: The Edwin Meilen Press, 1993.
- Gordon, Charlotte, Mistress Bradstreet: The Untold Life of America's First Poet, Little, Brown, New York 2005 ISBN 0-316-16904-8
- Engberg, Kathrynn Seidler, The Right to Write: The Literary Politics of Anne Bradstreet and Phillis Wheatley. University Press of America, Washington D.C., 2009. ISBN 978-0761846093
- Nichol, Heidi, Anne Bradstreet, A Guided Tour of the Life and Thought of a Puritan Poet, P&R Publishing, New Jersey 2006
- Williams, Katie Munday, Poet, Pilgraim, Rebel: The Story of Anne Bradstreet, America's First Published Poet, Beaming Books, Minneapolis 2021 ISBN 978-1-5064-6887-7
External links
Library resources aboutAnne Bradstreet
By Anne Bradstreet
- Media related to Anne Bradstreet at Wikimedia Commons
- Works by or about Anne Bradstreet at the Internet Archive
- Works by Anne Bradstreet at LibriVox (public domain audiobooks)
- Selected Works of Anne Bradstreet hypertext from American Studies at the University of Virginia.
- Several Poems Compiled with Great Variety of Wit and Learning by Anne Dudley Bradstreet, Boston: Printed by John Foster, 1678, at A Celebration of Women Writers
- Full Text Links from the William Dean Howell Society
- Genealogical Record
- Audio: Robert Pinsky reads "To My Dear and Loving Husband" by Anne Bradstreet (via poemsoutloud.net)
- Audio: Charlotte Gordon discusses the life of Anne Bradstreet.
- Examples of Anne Bradstreet's quaternions
- A site celebrating Anne Bradstreet's 400th birth anniversary
- A trust for the Bradstreet homesite: Bradstreet-Phillips Historic Preservation Trust
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Notes |
- 1612 births
- 1672 deaths
- 17th-century American poets
- 17th-century American women writers
- British evangelicals
- Calvinist and Reformed poets
- Calvinist and Reformed writers
- Christian poets
- Writers from Northampton
- English evangelicals
- English women poets
- Feminism and history
- English feminist writers
- American evangelicals
- American women poets
- American Puritans
- Writers from Massachusetts
- English emigrants to Massachusetts Bay Colony
- People from colonial Massachusetts