Anne Bradstreet

To my Dear and Loving Husband

If ever two were one, then surely we.
If ever man were lov'd by wife, then thee.
If ever wife was happy in a man,
Compare with me, ye women, if you can.
I prize thy love more than whole Mines of gold
Or all the riches that the East doth hold.
My love is such that Rivers cannot quench,
Nor ought but love from thee give recompetence.
Thy love is such I can no way repay.
The heavens reward thee manifold, I pray.
Then while we live, in love let's so persever
That when we live no more, we may live ever

Reflection/Chart:

Name and type:
To my Dear and Loving Husband; it is a lyric poem

Mood:
I feel peaceful and serene thinking of such a love that the wife has for her husband

Tone:
She feels in love at the time when the poem was written

Speaker:
The speaker is a wife missing her husband

Repetition:
She repeats “if ever” to show the many examples of her love

Imagery:
One good image in this poem is “mines of gold” because it shows how much she prizes her husbands love

Style:
She writes in plain style because she refers to common day items

Rhyme:
Every two lines rhyme

Verses Upon the Burning of Our House

In silent night when rest I took,
For sorrow near I did not look,
I waken'd was with thund'ring noise
And piteous shrieks of dreadful voice.
That fearful sound of "fire" and "fire,"
Let no man know is my Desire.
I starting up, the light did spy,
And to my God my heart did cry
To straighten me in my Distress
And not to leave me succourless.
Then coming out, behold a space
The flame consume my dwelling place.
And when I could no longer look,
I blest his grace that gave and took,
That laid my goods now in the dust.
Yea, so it was, and so 'twas just.
It was his own; it was not mine.
Far be it that I should repine,
He might of all justly bereft
But yet sufficient for us left.
When by the Ruins oft I past
My sorrowing eyes aside did cast
And here and there the places spy
Where oft I sate and long did lie.
Here stood that Trunk, and there that chest,
There lay that store I counted best,
My pleasant things in ashes lie
And them behold no more shall I.
Under the roof no guest shall sit,
Nor at thy Table eat a bit.
No pleasant talk shall 'ere be told
Nor things recounted done of old.
No Candle 'ere shall shine in Thee,
Nor bridegroom's voice ere heard shall bee.
In silence ever shalt thou lie.
Adieu, Adieu, All's Vanity.
Then straight I 'gin my heart to chide:
And did thy wealth on earth abide,
Didst fix thy hope on mouldring dust,
The arm of flesh didst make thy trust?
Raise up thy thoughts above the sky
That dunghill mists away may fly.
Thou hast a house on high erect
Fram'd by that mighty Architect,
With glory richly furnished
Stands permanent, though this be fled.
It's purchased and paid for too
By him who hath enough to do.
A price so vast as is unknown,
Yet by his gift is made thine own.
There's wealth enough; I need no more.
Farewell, my pelf; farewell, my store.
The world no longer let me love;
My hope and Treasure lies above.

Reflection/Chart:

Name and type:
Verses upon the burning of our house; narrative

Mood:
When reading this poem I feel sad because any person’s house burning down is sad because they have pretty much lost everything

Tone:
First she is suffering and feels like she has lost everything but then she realizes that she is being vain and feels comforted by God

Speaker:
The speaker is a puritan woman whose house burned down.

Repetition:
She repeats fire to show how scared she is

Imagery:
She creates vivid images in her writing

Style:
She writes in plain style because she refers to common day items

Rhyme:
Every other line rhymes


Upon Some Distemper of Body

In anguish of my heart replete with woes,
And wasting pains, which best my body knows,
In tossing slumbers on my wakeful bed,
Bedrenched with tears that flowed from mournful head,
Till nature had exhausted all her store,
Then eyes lay dry, disabled to weep more;
And looking up unto his throne on high,
Who sendeth help to those in misery;
He chased away those clouds and let me see
My anchor cast i' th' vale with safety.
He eased my soul of woe, my flesh of pain,
and brought me to the shore from troubled main.

Reflection/chart:

Name and type:
Upon Some Distemper of Body; it is a narrative poem

Mood:
I feel sad because I don’t like it when any other people are in pain.

Tone:
She feels sick mournful and anguished because she is sick and in those days they really didn’t have any medicine and doctors and she could die.

Speaker:
The speaker is person who is sick

Repetition:
There is no repetition

Imagery:
Eyes lay dry, looking up unto his throne on high, He chased away those clouds

Style:
She writes in plain style because she refers to common day items

Rhyme:
Every two lines rhyme

Anne Bradstreet
http://www.annebradstreet.com/



Dear Diary,

This past week has been very hard for me because my home burned down and my husband had to leave for a little while. Though it has been hard getting through the tragedy of my house, I know that god will always be there and he is the all time author of my life. Though I know that he is the author I do wish that he had taken better care of me and not had my house burned to the ground, in it all of my memories gone. But alas I should not be saying these things because it is not the puritain way. Well I will write again soon

A.B.