Women In Anne Bradstreet's The Dear And Ever Honored Mother

Imagine living in a society where one’s rights were restricted. The legal rights for Puritan women were very limited. Women were not able to accomplish many things that the women of America can today. They were not able to be the income producers of their homes. Women were mainly responsible for taking care of their homes, husbands, children, and farms. Women were considered to be weak and they were second to their husbands. During this time, the men were leaders and they made all the decisions. Anne Bradstreet overcame the strict requirements of the Puritan beliefs and was able to speak out about her life, which was displayed in many of her works; “The Author To Her Book,” “The Prologue,” and “An Epitaph On My Dear And Ever Honoured Mother”.

In the first stanza, she clarifies that she will not be writing about war, captain, and kings and that those topics should be addressed by “poets and historians” (Belasco p.153). Bradstreet wants to her writing capabilities to be known, she can only write about common situations. She then display her humbleness, “ but simple I according to my skill” (Belasco p.153). Bradstreet states the tone of her writing in the fifth stanza, “I am obnoxious to each carping tongue..” (Belasco p.153). Anne Bradstreet’s use of language and literary techniques helps her to be able to express her feelings towards her writing. In the first stanza she writes, “For my mean Pen are too superior things or how they all, or each their dates have run.” she uses an irony (Belasco p.153). In this stanza, Bradstreet is displaying her simple creative thinking but in an ironic way comparing it to her inability of writing about certain historic topics. In line thirty-seven, “Let Greeks be Greeks, and women what they are” (Belasco p. 154), she uses alliteration and diction to create a calm effect to lessen the stress of her tone. Anne Bradstreet uses literary techniques to express her thoughts and feelings towards her writings and famous

Dorothy was a beautiful poem dedicated to the mother of Anne Bradstreet in 1650. Anne Bradstreet shared the positive characteristics of her mother with her her readers. She opened her poem with a warm description of her mother, “A loving mother and obedient wife” (Belasco p.155). Anne Bradstreet uses diction to describe her mother in line five, “whom oft she fed and clothes with her store” (Belasco p.155). Bradstreet wrote about an ideal Puritan woman, a good religious wife and mother. Around this time, this is the characteristics Puritan women should have. She appeals to her reader’s emotion by describing her mother. When reading, most individuals would be able to relate to their own mother. Even though she was not able to speak out during this time, her style of writing portrays how her mother inspires