Contemplations Anne Bradstreet Analysis

Nothing in the world is black and white there is always a gray are. People want to make things simple and to the point but the world doesn’t work like that. There is always the gray where we view both sides, and both are right and wrong. Many writers try to tackle this problem of good and evil and our beliefs as humans. One such author herself struggles with this issue of black and white, and that is Anne Bradstreet. She is a Puritan housewife in the 1600s who believes in the Puritan values, but she also has a love for the beauty of nature which goes against what she wants to believe in. In "Contemplations," Anne Bradstreet reveals her complicated attitude toward her puritan values through her views of how humans are evil, the greatness of

Anne, throughout the poem talks about God and heaven describing them as the most incomprehensibly beautiful and powerful things. She starts by saying that He, being God, is amazing and that his works and power must make him almighty. “How excellent is he that dwells on high? Whose power and beauty by his works we know. Sure he is goodness, wisdom, glory, light,” (2). She says that God must be almighty because of his many great works. For God is the most powerful thing to Puritans “The Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away” (Job 1:21) so to a Puritan all that matters is God and the most beautiful things in your life come from Him. She then explains that if the sun is something so perfect, radiant, bright, golden, warm and it was made by God, then he must be amazingly powerful. “Art thou so full of glory that no Eye Hath strength thy shining Rays once to behold? And is thy splendid Throne erect so high? As, to approach it, can no earthly mould. How full of glory then must thy Creator be? Who gave this bright light luster unto thee: Admir’d, ador’d for ever be that Majesty.” (7). She speaks so fondly of the sun that when she speaks of God, it is that much more incredible if they cannot look at the sun and God created it how powerful must be God. Lastly, Anne expresses that there is nothing on earth but that what we seek is in heaven. “Here’s neither honor, wealth, nor safety; Only above is found all with security” (32). She says that only in heaven can you find honor, wealth, and safety as well as love and peace. She believes that nothing matters but heaven which directly proves her puritan values. Anne Bradstreet’s puritan values display themselves through her writing and her depiction of god and