Is Anne Bradstreet rebelling against traditional Puritan/Pilgrim values?
Anne Bradstreet was a premiere poet in young America and paved the way for both past and
modern day poets to express themselves with limited fear of the consequences. Despite living in a
community that was not too tolerant of anything outside the social norms, she composed elegant
poetry that often challenged the minds, and sometimes broke taboo. Her versatility and ability to
produce elegant and relatable poetry are what truly made her a respectable writer worth reading.
Within her work, she creates literary questions that leave the reader pondering, and some may even
argue that her tendency to go against tradition violated the Puritan religion and was …show more content…
Even with this considered, her deep hurt earlier in the poem is
very strong and over shadows the last verse. In other words, although she says that there must be
something better out there for her, she likely cannot comprehend why God would punish her this way if
he is such a good God. Even fathoming this thought would normally be a violation in the religion, but
Bradstreet words her poetry in such a way that it does not offend the general public by making it a
debate. By throwing positive religious statements behind her complaints about this event, she makes
her taboo violation socially acceptable.
This is further exemplified through her writing style. Even though she is one writer, Bradstreet
seems to have two personalities in her poetry: Anne and Mistress Bradstreet. While Mistress Bradstreet
conforms to society and the principles of TULIP, Anne expresses her real sentiments and dares to defy
the religion. In Here Follows Some Verses upon the Burning of Our House, Anne is prevalent throughout
the bulk of the poem and Mistress Bradstreet only reappears at the end. This leaves the belief that
Anne Bradstreet was a premiere poet in young America and paved the way for both past and
modern day poets to express themselves with limited fear of the consequences. Despite living in a
community that was not too tolerant of anything outside the social norms, she composed elegant
poetry that often challenged the minds, and sometimes broke taboo. Her versatility and ability to
produce elegant and relatable poetry are what truly made her a respectable writer worth reading.
Within her work, she creates literary questions that leave the reader pondering, and some may even
argue that her tendency to go against tradition violated the Puritan religion and was …show more content…
Even with this considered, her deep hurt earlier in the poem is
very strong and over shadows the last verse. In other words, although she says that there must be
something better out there for her, she likely cannot comprehend why God would punish her this way if
he is such a good God. Even fathoming this thought would normally be a violation in the religion, but
Bradstreet words her poetry in such a way that it does not offend the general public by making it a
debate. By throwing positive religious statements behind her complaints about this event, she makes
her taboo violation socially acceptable.
This is further exemplified through her writing style. Even though she is one writer, Bradstreet
seems to have two personalities in her poetry: Anne and Mistress Bradstreet. While Mistress Bradstreet
conforms to society and the principles of TULIP, Anne expresses her real sentiments and dares to defy
the religion. In Here Follows Some Verses upon the Burning of Our House, Anne is prevalent throughout
the bulk of the poem and Mistress Bradstreet only reappears at the end. This leaves the belief that