Essay - Anne Bradstreet & Edward Taylor Anne Bradstreet and Edward Taylor...

Anne Bradstreet & Edward Taylor

Anne Bradstreet and Edward Taylor are both poets who wrote from the Puritan orientation. Both poets display in their poetry the fundamental values of deep faith ***** spirituality. An important difference is ********** gender. Bradstreet writes during a time where it was unheard of for women to engage in such activ*****ies. Furthermore, her poetry focuses not only on the purely religious, but also on ***** domestic life with her husband and children. ***** on ***** other h*****, tends ***** focus his poetry purely on the spiritual and the pious life, whereas Bradstreet relates normal human liv*****g with her spirituality. In doing this, however, she adheres very strongly to her own Puritan values, ***** marry these perfectly with ***** feelings regarding her husband, ***** children, and her art.

Bradstreet's poem, "To my Dear ***** Loving Husband" is an example of how she viewed her life ***** ***** family as it ***** to her spir*****uality. The focus of the poem is the love she receives ***** her husb*****d. The poet relates the idea of this all-encompassing ***** with biblical ideals, such as the "two" becoming "one" in the first l*****e. After the ***** line, Bradstreet continues to describe the happiness she found with her husband in almost ***** terms. She ***** the emotion ***** the spiritual, and juxtaposes it w*****h e*****hly wealth such as "Mines of gold" in line 5, or ***** riches of the East in ***** follow*****g line. She draws the poem to a conclusion that is again more directly related to her religion; ***** mutual love between herself ***** her husband is spiritualized to the proportions of eternal life. It is so perfect and ***** deep that it can ***** lead to ***** life, like fa*****h does.

***** ***** poem therefore demonstrates Bradstreet's devotion ***** her husband, it also does so in relation to ***** devotion to religion; neither is ***** important than the o*****r; her faith complements her love, and vice versa. She sees her ***** as a gift from God that far surp*****ses earthly value, and that ***** projected to surpass even ***** *****.

Taylor's poetry is much more ********** upon issues of worship and spirituality than Bradstreet's. Indeed, it appears that religion encompasses all his experiences ***** life much more than Bradstreet's. Whereas *****ne Bradstreet balances her domestic "earthly" life w*****h her faith, Taylor assigns primary importance ***** his ***** almost to the exclusion of all else. However, he ***** also use everyday symbolism to demonstrate ***** depth of ***** relationship with *****. "Huswifery" is such a *****. Taylor uses domestic symbols such as t***** spinning *****eel, clo*****h and weaving ***** demonstrate h***** willingness to be an instrument in t*****e hands ***** God. Like Bradstreet uses love ***** demonstrate the eternal value of her faith, Taylor uses the symbolism ***** cloth*****g to ***** the effect of ***** on the soul. Taylor offers his soul to God to be clo*****d "in Holy robes for glory." ********** ***** is symbolic of her love