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Literary analysis of anne bradstreets upon the burning of our house
Analysis of Upon the Burning of Our House by Anne Bradstreet
Analysis of Upon the Burning of Our House by Anne Bradstreet
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Anne Bradstreet’s tells us how she was woken by the sound of fire crackle, and how here home and belongings were destroyed. But as she watches her house burn, and realizing she can’t stop it. She reminds herself that as a puritan she is devoted to god, and that all things are his. The things we obtain on earth must not be put before God. She also reminds herself that her real place of rest will someday be in heaven. So in other words we must remind our self’s that all things belong to God, And when he decides to take them he will because he can and no one or nothing can stop him. By putting God first all other things will fall into place. Jonathan Edwards realizes that mankind has gone wicked and gotten away from God. He needed to make people
One of her earlier works is a poem Upon a Fit of Sickness “outlines the traditional concerns of the Puritans- the brevity of life, the certainty of death and hope for salvation.” (Martin 2013). It was written in the first person "artfully composed in a ballad meter; this poem presents a formulaic account of the transience of earthly experience which underscores the divine imperative to carry out God’s will” (Martin 2013). “My race is run, my thread is spun, lo here is fated death.” (Bradstreet "Upon a Fit of Sickness"). This line to me is talking about how her life has come to an end and no longer needs to be in the race called life. Also that her “thread” has already been made into something and now her time has come to die. During the time Upon a Fit of Sickness was written two major events were going on. The first was the Protestant Reformation and the second was the Mayflower landing in the New world, and more people were wanting and traveling to the New world for a better life. “For Adam’s sake, this word God spake when he so high provoked” (Bradstreet "Upon a Fit of Sickness"). That line can be interpreted as even Adam one of God’s first human creations could even provoke God then so could she and everyone else. Anne Bradstreet was also very religious, and many of her works had references to God or her religion in a
Anne Bradstreet’s inability to perfect her work before it was released frustrated her to the point where she internalizes the book’s imperfections as a reflection of herself. Bradstreet uses an extended metaphor of a mother and a child to compare the relationship between herself as the author and her book. Rather than investing her spirit in God, she repeatedly focuses on trying to improve the quality of her writing with no success, “I washed thy face, but more defects I saw” (Bradstreet 13). Like a mother protecting her child, Bradstreet’s attempts to prevent critics from negatively analyzing her work of art (20). Her continuous obsession about people’s opinions consumed in the Earthly world and essentially distracted her from developing a spiritual relationship with God. Bradstreet was enveloped by her dissatisfaction with her to the point of ridiculing herself, “Thou ill-formed offspring of my feeble mind” (1). It was obvious that her mind and spiritual
Anne Bradstreet was a Puritan and wrote her religious faith about God. When Bradstreet was used to the Puritan culture she felt like God didn’t guide her through her struggles and she started to questioned God existence and as a Puritan’s religious belief was to always accept God. The letter, “To My Dear Children” was from Bradstreet to her children about her relationship with God. The summary of the letter is Bradstreet accepted the Puritan culture when she was about sixteen years old coming to America. After she was married she started to observe God and questioned him because she felt sickness and pain and hoped God would lift her up the light on her. Bradstreet also questions her afterlife with a quote, “And could I have been in heaven without the love of God, it would had been hell to me, for in truth it is the absence and presence of God that makes heaven or hell.” This quote can be pertained in today’s world because it’s
“Among all my experiences of God’s gracious dealings with me I have constantly observed this, that He hath never suffered me long to sit loose from him...” (Bradstreet 68). Anne Bradstreet is showing her devotion to God and is focusing on his love and mercy. Bradstreet found inspiration in William Shakespeare but more importantly what drove her poetry was religious beliefs. Being born into a Puritan family, Bradstreet became accustomed to Puritan behavior and had a strong belief in God. Jonathan Edwards, another strong believer in God, had the same Puritan beliefs but thought if a person shall sin they would be destined to end up in hell. Edwards is an extreme pastor and this is shown in the sermon, “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God.” The two being the ideal Puritan religion have strong opinions on viewing God
In contrast, Edwards theme has to do with God's ability to strike you down, yet had such
Starting in his younger years, Edwards struggled with accepting the Calvinist sovereignty of God. Various circumstances throughout Edward’s own personal life led to him later believing in the sovereignty of God. Jonathan Edwards is known greatly as a key figure in what has come to be called the First Great Awakening of the 1730s and 1740s. Fleeing from his grandfather’s original perspective by not continuing his practice of open communion, there was a struggle to maintain that relationship. Edward’s believed that physical objects are only collections of sensible ideas, which gives good reasoning for his strong religious belief system.
One of the most prominent themes is the idea that the devil is responsible for sin. The imagery and symbols found throughout the essay build upon this theme. When Edwards says: “You are ten thousand times more abominable in His eyes than the most hateful serpent is in ours” (26), he wants the audience to understand that by sinning, you are doing the devils work. Another theme that is present in the sermon is God’s power and grace, which Edward uses to give the audience one glimpse of hope at the end of the sermon. By stating that “you have an extraordinary opportunity…Christ has thrown the door of mercy wide open” (33), he gives the audience more reason to convert back to God.
... and taught that mankind is not immortal but weak and in need of God’s sovereignty. Edwards wrote "the God that holds you over the pit of hell…” meaning God has the power to strike man down at any time. He stressed that mankind is small and God is much bigger. He thought that mankind must be submissive to God in order to please God.
Women have faced oppression in the literary community throughout history. Whether they are seen as hysterical or unreliable, women writers seem to be faulted no matter the topics of their literature. However, Anne Bradstreet and Margaret Fuller faced their critics head-on. Whether it was Bradstreet questioning her religion or Fuller discussing gender fluidity, these two women did not water down their opinions to please others. Through their writings, Bradstreet and Fuller made great strides for not just women writers, but all women.
The components of marriage, family and loss has played a big role in Anne Bradstreet’s writing of “Before the birth of One of Her Children”, “In Memory of Dear Grandchild Elizabeth Bradstreet”, and Edward Taylor’s “Upon Wedlock and the Death of Children.” In, these writings both authors Puritan culture and their faith plays a big role. In these poems one author starts questioning their God and the other to take honor in their God throughout their grieving process, while both showing different aspects of their everlasting union with their spouse, and the love for their children.
Anne Bradstreet and Edward Taylor are two of the most recognizable poets from early American History; they were also both American Puritans, who changed the world with their poetry. We can see many similarities in their poetry when it comes to the importance of religion and also on having children and losing children. There are however differences in the audience of their poetry and their personal views on marriage. Bradstreet and Taylor both came over to America in the 17th century and settled in New England. Though Taylor came years later we can see the similarities through their poetry.
Anne Bradstreet, whom most critics consider America’s first “authentic poet”, was born and raised as a Puritan. Bradstreet married her husband Simon at the tender age of eighteen. She wrote her poems while rearing eight children and performing other domestic duties. In her poem “Upon The Burning Of Our House, July 10th, 1666”, Bradstreet tells of three valuable lessons she learned from the fire that destroyed her home.
Jonathan Edwards was a brilliant man that lived a life that glorified God. He is considered one of the greatest thinkers in America. During his childhood, he was a very smart boy who used that to find out the wonders of God’s creation. Soon he went to Yale University where he got his bachelor and masters degree and started preaching. While preaching, he married a young woman, Sarah, and had 11 children. He was a great preacher to his church. When the great awakening started he was one of the most important figure in the great awakening. He influenced many people and he preached one of the most famous sermon, Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God, which made many people convert to Christ. After the great awakening he provided sound Gospel to the people. However, he also got persecuted because of preaching what was right. Though he was persecuted he went on missions to Indians and became the president of Princeton University. He died young
John Winthrop and Jonathan Edwards were two different authors, writing in two different time periods, but had a common goal. They were working bring people both to Christ and back to Christ. Winthrop was preaching his sermon called, “A Model of Christian Charity” on the ship to the “New World.” Winthrop preached about men giving gifts to other men so that God could give people who have gifts the satisfaction of helping someone in need. On the other hand, Edwards was writing, "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God" in a time period called the Great Awakening, in an attempt to bring “corrupted people” back to the church with scare tactics. Winthrop and Edwards were both exceptional authors and preachers, but lived in different times with different
Anne Bradstreet was the first American poetess of British origin. She was the first female writer whose poems were published in newly colonized America. Her father, Thomas Dudley, in England worked as steward of Earl of Lincoln. In 1628 Anne married Simon Bradstreet. In 1630 both families moved to America on the ship "Arabella". Voyage lasted for three months. In the New World, her father became governor of Massachusetts Colony, and was subsequently replaced by the husband of Anne.