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Isabella Sanchez

Ms. Storer

English 3 Honors American Literature

October 7, 2019

Bradstreet and Edwards: A Difference in Perspective

As Edmund Wilson once said, “No two persons ever read the same book”. This quote

correlates with Anne Bradstreet’s and Jonathan Edwards’ very different perceptions of God. In

Anne Bradstreet’s “Upon the Burning of Our House” the narrator sees God as an affectionate

and considerate being. On the other hand, in Jonathan Edwards’ “From Sinners in the Hands of

an Angry God” he portrays God as gruesome and evil. Even as contrasting these perspectives

are, both of the writers see God as a greater being and someone who has their lives in His hands.

Chris Pine once said, “The only thing you sometimes have control over is perspective.

You don’t have control over your situation. But you have a choice about how you view it”. As

Anne Bradstreet’s house burned down, she had a positive way of seeing it. For example, in

Bradstreet’s poem “Upon the Burning of Our House” she says, “I blest His name that gave and

took, that laid my goods now in the dust” (Bradstreet 14-15). She felt no anger towards God

while she watched as her house burned down. Bradstreet saw this as a way of God showing His

thoughtfulness by teaching her that materialistic things do not matter. If this would have

happened to Jonathan Edwards, he would have seen it as a way of God warning him about the

future and how he would hold him over the fires of hell. Another example of Bradstreet’s

positive overview would be when she thanks God for what has happened and acknowledges that

she has come to her senses and realized that the only thing that is important is reaching heaven,

“Yet by His gift, made thine own; There’s wealth enough, I need no more, farewell my pelf,
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farewell my store. The world no longer let me love, my hope and treasure lie above” (Bradstreet

50-55). Bradstreet saw this event as a way to realize what really was important. She associated

this event with God’s thoughtfulness towards her and how he brought her closer to him.

Something very specific in this quote that differentiates with Edwards’ perspective is that

Bradstreet said that her “hopes and treasures lie above” endorsing that reaching heaven and being

with God was her main goal. Contrarily, Edwards’ speaks publicly about God and how he will

send all sinners to hell and hold them over the fires of hell and make them suffer, adding to their

different perspectives of God.

In Jonathan Edwards’ “From Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God”, the reader can

acknowledge that he sees God as someone who is mean and gruesome. The narrator uses his

platform to scare others into believing and submitting themselves to God, for example, when he

said, “God is dreadfully provoked, his anger is as great towards them as to those that are actually

suffering the executions of the fierceness of his wrath in hell” (Edwards Lines 6-8). Many people

began to see God in a similar way due to Edwards’ characterizations of God as someone who

purposely wants to harm and hurt others. Anne would never imagine God as such an evil being,

she knows that he is loving and thoughtful and would never deliberately put someone through so

much pain. Adding on to Edwards’ horrid perspective of God in “From Sinners in the Hands of

an Angry God” he also said, “O sinner! Consider the fearful danger you are in; It is a great

furnace of wrath” (Edwards Line 1-2). Edwards’ is warning people of the horrendous future they

could have if they anger God. The narrator is scaring others into believing the same things as

him, that God is ghastly and hateful. The reader can acknowledge this by taking into

consideration all the times Jonathan Edwards said that God will hold all sinners over hell as one
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holds a spider. Anne Bradstreet sees her future and the future of those around her with God in

heaven, unlike Edwards.

Even though both of the writers have distinctive viewpoints on God, both agree on one

subject. They both acknowledge that God is indeed a greater being and has power over their

lives. To demonstrate this viewpoint, in Bradstreet’s “Upon the Burning of Our House” she says,

“Thou hast an house on high erect, framed by that might Architect, with glory richly furnished,

stands permanent though this be fled. It’s purchases and paid for too by him who hath enough to

do” (Bradstreet 43-46). Bradstreet believes God was the cause for the burning of her house, she

truthfully believes that God is in command in most of the things in her life especially during this

moment. Similarly in Edwards’ “From Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God” he shares the

same viewpoint as Bradstreet when it comes to who is in control of their lives, “But indeed these

things are nothing; if God should withdraw his hand, they would avail no more to keep you from

falling, than the thin air to hold up a person that is suspended in it” (Edwards, Paragraph 3, Lines

6-8). Edwards mindset is that God has full control of their lives, and that it is up to him if they

burn in hell. The reader can recognize that both Bradstreet and Edwards believed that their lives

are in the hands of God, and that he is a greater being that has immense power over them.

Anne Bradstreet and Jonathan Edwards contemplate God in very different ways.

Bradstreet recognizes God as someone who is loving and thoughtful, while Edwards perceives

God as someone who is horrid and heinous. Other than that, both of the writers agree that God is

an all-powerful, mighty being. It is clear that they both had very different relationships with God.

The reader can acknowledge that God has a unique relationship with everyone, and these are just

two of millions of different points of view towards God.

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Work Cited

Bradstreet, Anne. “Upon the Burning of Our House.” Glencoe American Literature, by Jeffrey

D. Wilhelm et al., Glencoe McGraw-Hill, 2009, pp. 91.

Edwards, Jonathan. “from Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God.” Glencoe American

Literature, by Jeffrey D. Wilhelm et al., Glencoe McGraw-Hill, 2009, pp. 97-99.