Mary Rowlandson

The idea of salvation inhabits an important part of American cultural history, especially in regards to America’s Puritan heritage. The foundation of Puritan culture was religion. The Puritan philosophies that stressed the choice between a life of sin or salvation. These ideas can be seen in early American literature such as that of Anne Bradstreet’s “The Author to her book” and Johnathan Edwards’s “ Sinners in the among others. American literature eventually evolved into a secular art. Later movements such as Modernism and Post-structuralism references very little of the “fire and brimstone” approach that formed a vital element of Puritan literature(The Literature Network, par. 1). The idea of salvation eventually changed to the notion of …show more content…
Her father became a wealthy landowner. She married Joseph Rowlandson, a Puritan Minister. She led a very busy life as a mother and minster’s wife until she was taken from her home and was held captive by the Indians for eleven weeks. Rowlandson is probably the most famous victim of those attacks, as well as one of the first Authors to write about what is know as the “ Indian Captives.” Her piece combined high adventure, heroism, and exemplary piety. A Narrative of the Captivity and Restoration of Mrs. Mary Rowlandson became one of the most popular works of the seventeenth century, both in this country and England. This piece was created to show her experiences and dealings with the Indians and show how powerful and mighty God is. Throughout her narrative, she implies that God caused everything that has happened to her or any of the other victims and has an implicit meaning. She believes that God is in control of all things and decides the outcome. Rowlandson’s narrative shows many qualities of Puritanism, such as when she talks about having six stout dogs belonging to our garrison, but none of them would stir, though another time, if any Indian had come to the door, they were ready to fly upon them and tear them down. She takes this as an intervention from God to not fret and accept whatever the outcome is. When her baby died in her lap instead of being angry with God she thanked him for preserving her …show more content…
Bryant was thought of as a genius and marked character. His talent had been overlooked because he refused to promote himself. He would quietly publish his works without making a big deal about their importance. Bryant enjoyed writing poetry, but after his father had informed him he could no longer afford his college expenses, he started preparing for a career in the legal field by working in the law office of a family friend. He continued to write poetry while working in the legal field. After being admitted to the bar Bryant wrote “To a Waterfowl” and a shorter version of “Thanatopsis”. Poets like Bryant began writing more non-religious works and began to identify with self-actualization ideas, rather than about the fate on people's eternal soul. For Bryant, nature was a symbolic landscape that revealed spiritual realities. In Bryant’s “To A Waterfowl”, he writes about a bird that symbolizes the human soul. Bryant is reminded of God’s guidance in his own life, and how God shows grace even when we are not perfect as sin is simply a progression of nature. Bryan writes: “All day they wings have fann’d, At that far height, the cold thin atmosphere: Yet stoop not, weary, to the welcome land, Though the dark night is near.” Bryant’s substituting