Anne Bradstreet
1612-1672
I was intrigued by
Anne Bradstreet’s poem “Before the Birth of One of Her Children” because she
blended the concepts of new life and death. In the poem, Anne is about to give
birth to one of her children and as she thinks about the bond between mother
and child she contemplates the idea of her children’s lives when she is no
longer alive. Anne is true when she says in lines 3-4 “No ties so strong, no
friends so dear and sweet, But with death’s parting blow is sure to meet”
implying that there is no bond like that of a mother and her child and
impending death makes losing such loved ones difficult, if not impossible to
bear. For mother and child are so close they are one, in line 11 Anne says,
“That when that knot’s untied that made us one, I may seem thine, who in effect
am none”. This line referring to the knot’s untied made us one, I picture the
umbilical cord that connects mother to child in the womb and how with that life
support connection they are in fact one.
Anne goes on to say that she wants to have her faults buried
with her in her grave and her worth and virtue to be solely remembered. I agree
with Anne for when we die, it is important to focus on our good qualities and
the admirable qualities that we possessed as opposed to focusing on our
negative attributes and our faults. Other lines that really struck me were
lines 21-22, “And when thy loss shall be repaid with gains Look to my little
babes, my dear remains.” When she passes, there will be grief over her loss but
what she leaves behind (her children) is beloved and cherished. Perhaps giving
the world the gift of her children is the most admirable and respected thing
she has done in her life.
·
Why do you think Anne chose the time during her
pregnancy to contemplate her children’s life if she were to die?
·
What is it about the circle of life that makes
life and death seem like on in the same? There cannot be new life if there is
not death.
It is evident in
Anne Bradstreet’s writings that she is a woman of faith and spirit. In her
letter “To My Dear Children” she seems to be writing a farewell letter to her
children for when she is gone and no longer able to teach them the word and the
ways of God. On pg. 111 she states her purpose for writing to her children, “I
have not studied in this you read to show my skill, but to declare the truth,
not to set forth myself, but the glory of God.” She is not writing to her kids
to show her skill but to give them the word of God and to show them how God has
influenced her life in everyway. Anne continues to discuss how God helped her
through times of sickness. Her writing proves her ideas that God is in ultimate
control and power when she states “It pleased God to keep me a long time without
a child, which was a great grief to me and cost me many prayers and tears
before I obtained one,” (p.111). She believes it is God that kept her without
child for so long and that our plan for our lives and for ourselves may not
always match up with his plan and his timing for us.
Anne seems to
believe that everything happens for a reason and God is always testing us and
trying our faith. For example, on pg. 112 she states “ sometimes He hath smote
a child with sickness, sometimes chastened by losses in estate, and these times
(through His great mercy) have been the times of my greatest getting and
advantage; yea, I have found them the times when the Lord hath manifested the
most love to me.” There are times in God’s plan that bring sadness or stress or
disappointment, and it is in these times that one must further seek Him and his
word for God will cast his love on you and help you through. It is the
challenges that life brings through God’s plans that shape us into who we are
or who we want to become.
·
Do you believe Anne when she says she is writing
this just to speak the truth and not to show off her talents in writing? Why or
Why not?
·
Do you agree with her beliefs in God and that
everything in life is set in his hands and according to his plans? Explain.
