Timothy Joseph Dillon
Professor Clay
ENG 360/01
3 February 2015
Anne Bradstreet “Great Bartas' sugar'd lines do but read o'er” (Bradstreet 1) penned by Bradstreet in her poem The Prologue. To me this quote embodies all of Bradstreet’s life’s work she tells the readers with this quote the delight she celebrates when writing. Bradstreet uses several themes that are evident throughout three of her more prominent poems The Prologue, To My Dear and Loving Husband and The Author of Her Book these themes include gender prejudice, love and death and finally feminism. Bradstreet for much of her life was a female poet struggling to make her voice heard in a world that was not yet accepting stating “Who says my hand a needle better fits” (Bradstreet…show more content… Bradstreet begins by stating “If ever two were one, then surely we” (Bradstreet 4) implying the speaker finds it hard to believe her and her husband are one doubting her marriage. The speaker devotes the majority of the poem coming up with various ways to pronounce her love for her husband. The speaker describes how much she values her husband's love stating “My love is such that Rivers cannot quench, Nor ought but love from thee, give recompense”(Bradstreet 4) describing how powerful their love is. The speaker says she will never be able to repay her husband for his affection saying “Thy love is such I can no way repay the heavens reward thee manifold I pray” (Bradstreet 4). Bradstreet’s end her poem in depressing fashion stating “Then while we live, in love let's so persevere, That when we live no more, we may live ever” (Bradstreet 4) meaning the speaker knows they can’t defy death they must be remembered after death. To My Dear and Loving Husband in itself is a testament between the love of the speaker and her husband. Even though the husband and wife will die this poem bestowing their love will live eternally as long as the poem is shared and…show more content… Bradstreet’s stats the theme of feminism in by stating “In better dress to trim thee was my mind, But nought save home-spun cloth, i' th' house I find” (Bradstreet 3). In this quote the speaker is reminded of the womanly duties they were presumed only suitable for them in the puritan era. Bradstreet’s poem The Author to Her Book compares the speaker’s manuscript of poetry to a mother’s young child that she must protect quoting “Thou ill-formed offspring of my feeble brain, who after birth did'st by my side remain” (Bradstreet 3). The speaker finds out that her poems have been published without her knowledge quoting “At thy return my blushing was not small, my rambling brat (in print) should mother call” (Bradstreet 3). This quote insinuates the speaker wished her work be would be hidden from public eyes and only seen by her. The speaker even goes as far as saying “I cast thee by as one unfit for light; the visage was so irksome in my sight” (Bradstreet 3) implying the speaker discards her work. After the speaker finds out her life’s work has been published the speaker tries to fix all the poems imperfections but she just manages to do more harm to the poems. The speaker then starts to agonize how her critics will treat her baby or book and wishes to take full blame of what’s to come “in this array, 'mongst vulgars may'st thou roam. In critic's hands, beware thou dost not come”