Analysis Of Anne Bradstreet's The Tenth Muse

Stiff white collars, harsh black clothes, and rigid beliefs characterize descriptions of early-American Puritans in present-day literature and movies. However, stereotypes such as this rarely hold up under scrutiny of historical accounts and works of these early Puritans, such as the poems of Anne Bradstreet, showcase the complex, true nature of Puritan settlers. Published without her knowledge in 1650, Bradstreet’s The Tenth Muse paints a picture of a complex woman with conflicting values. In her poems, Bradstreet struggles with her conflicting views on gender roles, sexuality, and religion. For example, while Puritan men were the heads of the households, women were not simply standing meekly behind them, but succeeding in their own right. In fact, Bradstreet’s husband was often away from the household, leaving all

In every trying moment, Bradstreet captures how she turns to God for help in several poems. This includes the death of her grandchildren and in the poem In Memory of My Dear Grandchild Anne Bradstreet, Bradstreet comforts herself, writing “Meantime my throbbing heart’s cheered up with this:/Thou with thy Savior art in endless bliss” (ll. 17-18). While she is distraught by the death of her young grandchild, Bradstreet turns to God and is cheered by the thought that she is with God in heaven. Furthermore, even when Bradstreet’s home burns down, she writes Here Follows Some Verses upon the Burning of Our House and claims “ Yet by His gift is made thine own;/ There’s wealth enough, I need no more,/ Farewell, my pelf, farewell my store” (ll. 50-52). In this passage, Bradstreet claims that the physical possessions she lost are worthless and that only the wealth gained by a relationship with God is worth anything. Therefore, despite Bradstreet’s nonconformity with the standards of subservience to men and purity, she is still deeply rooted in