Here Follows Some Verses Upon the Burning of Our House, by Anne Bradstreet

The Puritan life, although simple, demanded diligence both mentally and spiritually which put stress on even the most faithful of followers. Although the common practice entailed brushing religious struggles under the rug, few writers bravely wrote of their religious doubts and endeavors to become better Puritans. Author Anne Bradstreet shows in her work “Here Follows Some Verse upon the Burning of Our House, July 10th, 1666” that religious struggles are often met by Puritans and it takes brave souls to admit their difficult time with their religion. This poem shows a woman dealing with a religious crisis and how even though she struggles her faith still holds strong in the end. Bradstreet’s poem displays a crisis of faith in her content and reflects her struggle with the Puritan beliefs, however, the form and structure of the poem reflect her internal religious solidarity.

The extreme crisis that Bradstreet goes through in losing her house and of her possessions would be detrimental to any human being. The content in this poem reflects the doubts, thought process, and battle Bradstreet had with her faith during this crisis. An example of Bradstreet showing her grief throughout the poem would be as followed: “Then, coming out, beheld a space/The flame consume my dwelling place/and when I could no longer look,/I blest His name that gave and took,” (Bradstreet 11-14). This quote exemplifies Bradstreet’s loss especially with the line “and when I could no longer look” (14). This quote indicates Bradstreet’s immense grief to the point where her eyes cannot bare to look at what causes her pain. Another example of the grief Bradstreet is going through is as followed: “Here stood that trunk, and there that chest,/There lay that store I...

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...f how the form of the poem reflects the author’s strong internal faith.

It is not uncommon in the writing world to use poetic form to reflect inner meaning. Bradstreet did an exemplary job at showing the reader poetic content that was doubtful and a form that solidified her faith. During the time this poem was written, having doubts in one’s faith was considered taboo to talk about. Bradstreet showed her courageous and brave attitude when she decided to write about questioning her own beliefs. Even though she wrote this poem for herself, the courageous act of acknowledging her own doubts spoke for those Puritans who did not have the courage to. Since she had the strong poetic form reflecting her faith, this enabled her to write about her doubts in a better light. The poem shows that even in times of external peril, internal strength is what helps a person prevail.