To My Loving Husband

Posted: March 26th, 2020

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To My Loving Husband

Introduction

To My Loving Husband by Anne Bradstreet is a short personalized poem, which delivers the view of marriage between the author and her spouse. Anne Bradstreet belonged to the famed group of early North American English poets during the time of the British colonies. In the American literature, she was considered a prominent contributor to the depiction of society’s norms and thoughts. The poem describes the love between Anne Bradstreet and her husband according to her analysis as ordained through marriage. She prophesies of her undying love while hoping for its eternal retention over the ages to her husband. Having been born in Northampton, England, her characteristic literary mastery shows the level of cultured upbringing that shaped her life. She was tutored accordingly in history, literature, and several languages, as compared to some of the people at the time. Her advantages helped forge the opinionated writings on politics, theology, history, and medicine among others. Anne Bradstreet’s depiction of the religion and romance themes is conservative due to the puritan heritage.      

Discussion

Role of Women

In To My Loving Husband by Anne Bradstreet, the role of women features heavily on the backdrop of the marriage. It is delivered by her constant of requiring the approval of her place as the spouse in the marriage (Wilcox 26). In the poem, she used the literary skill of symbolism to show the extent of her role within the couple’s marriage. She states that she prizes the love more than gold and tells the women to compare with hers if they can. It is effective in signifying the importance of her dignity and place within the union of the marriage. To a lesser extent, one can mystify the conservative approach within her tone, as it gives the sense of submission to the man, who is superior. In addition, the direct reference of the comparison can be viewed as a taunt to the others, depending on their states of marriages.

            It is critical to note that according to the Puritan belief, women were inferior to the men at all costs. Their roles were defined by the domestic requirements with activities such as taking care of the children, cooking, cleaning, and making sure that the husband’s needs were met. On one hand, Anne Bradstreet shows a level of opposition towards this belief, terming that her equal role within the union should not be underestimated. American literature at the time points to the societal expectation of the role of women. The difference between masculinity and femininity shown equates to her description of the marriage and being happy. Smith (17) supports the idea that the comparison should instead focus on the resolve to make the marriage stronger. She delivers an impressive aspect of her beliefs towards marriage, despite the obvious conservative approach she uses especially due to her Puritan background.

Mortality

The reference to death in To My Loving Husband by Anne Bradstreet shows her autobiographical nature. In the poem, she states that if the love within the marriage with her husband perseveres, only death can nullify it with the call for living forever after. She gives mortality the point of reference as their lives unfold, under the watchful eye of the heavens. The literal description of the mortality cause comes as a reward after her prayer. The line is significant in the lacing of the poem as it occurs towards the end of the literature piece. She affirms that only then, after the death of her and the husband, would they live again forever. It is seen as a personification of her foresight. She embraces mortality as she is human, but with a tone of hope towards the afterlife.

            The Puritan influence on the poet’s derivation shows the critical nature of her view towards life. The poem can be judged as a personal memoir from the tone she uses. She addresses the husband through rewarding of the manifold after her prayer. She calls for perseverance for them to live forever afterwards. With the influence of puritan culture and beliefs, there is an element of fear in mortality. Death is not an encouraging sign to any person. Anne Bradstreet seems to conform to the same school of thought, although it is in conservative tone. She minds the effect it will have on her relations, her children, and the present nature of her marriage (Schlotterbeck 9). With the historical case of her illnesses, it shows that her personal fears were being realized through the embrace of mortality.

Religion

The theme of religion is an ever-present aspect of Anne Bradstreet’s literature writing. In the To My Loving Husband, constant reference to the marriage and religious denotations are common. For example, in the manifold section of her prayer, she states that the heavens are tasked with the rewarding. Secondly, she hopes for an after-life prolonging of life after the death of either of the spouse. With the literal use of imagery in her poetry, the reader helps develop the thought through inference. It succeeds in acquiring the attention throughout the short poem, as its significance shows the base of the message. It is clear that immortality is associated with the belief of salvation. She is conservative without embracing it. She does not speak about t openly and categorically. Anne Bradstreet becomes discreet on the issue with her expression as well as being careful all together.

            Religion is significant with the cultural and societal upbringing. At the time of the literature delivery, Anne Bradstreet showed a significant embrace of the Puritan influence in her life and beliefs. However, there is a critical note in the manner she decides to embrace religion with her expression of the marriage. In the poem, she does not refer to any of the believed supernatural existence of a higher being. The union of marriage under Puritan influence was sacred and very religious. Therefore, Anne associated with the belief but did not conform to the religious demands and aspects of Puritan influence (Chapman, Welton, and Negron 32). For example, the outright expression of her love for her husband does not conform to the conservative nature of the society. In addition, romantic undertones were also not encouraged at the time due to the norms of society.

Romance

In To My Loving Husband by Anne Bradstreet, a common recurrence of romance is delivered. Anne uses imagery to show the extent of romance in her marriage between her and the spouse. For example, she uses imagery of the mines of gold to decipher the value held between the two spouses. The precious love shared can only be used in a figurative gesture. In addition, she compares the flow and extent of rivers to enhance the depth of the romance. She states that even rivers cannot quench the love she ahs for her husband. Hall (7) notes that in this content, Anne abandons the conservative approach that she uses throughout the poem to show the level of conviction in her union. The reader is drawn effectively into the reassurance developed from understanding what the romantic theme means for the couple.

            Unlike the Puritan influence at the time, Anne does not engage in imitative delivery. The Puritans were considered very conservative in terms of their expression on subjects like romance, and sexuality. She addresses the complex forms of these topics with imagery and figurative language. She does not oppose the cultural influence directly, but with a subtle intent. It is critical to note that such a step only affirms that she did not conform to various standards with the society. The focus should be on the appropriate reason. Baym, Levine, and Krupat (12) argue that Maybe she required certain changes within the communities and decided to use her mastery of American literature to affect the transition. One can only embrace the tactic, as the poem was sure to cause various discussions among the people at the time. In addition, Anne must have been ready to face a backlash of some sort from even the female members.

Conclusion

Anne Bradstreet’s depiction of the religion and romance themes is conservative due to the Puritan heritage with the analysis of To My Loving Husband. She embraces various aspects of religion and romance while using literary skills to deliver the message. On the other hand, she showed her non-conformity to Puritan influence and culture with a conservative approach and enabled understanding of the opposition. It provides for an interesting analysis of her character and upbringing at the time. It also ensures the reader is captivated.

Works Cited:

Baym, Nina, Robert S. Levine, and Arnold Krupat. The Norton Anthology of American Literature: Volume B. New York: W. W. Norton & Co, 2007. Print.

Chapman, Margaret, Kathleen Welton, and Reuben Negrón. Poetry for Beginners. Newburyport: For Beginners, 2010. Print.

Hall, Luke. “Understanding Puritan womanhood in feminist America.” Lagrange College Publications, 1.2 (2007): 1-14. Print.

Schlotterbeck, Michael. “Anne Bradstreet, Phillis Wheatley and the literary sphere.” Oberlin Journals, 2.1 (2010): 1-17. Print.

Smith, Nigel. Literature and Revolution in England, 1640-1660. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2005. Print.

Wilcox, Helen. Women and Literature in Britain, 1500-1700. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2006. Print.