Comparing and Contrasting Bradstreets’ and Taylors’ Works – APA

A. Lane Miles

Department of English Studies: Liberty University

English 201

Professor Christopher Robinson

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Bradstreet’s and Taylor’s poems are two works of colonial era poetry which share the

theme of marriage as well as other similarities, while also contrasting each other. In these works,

the shared beliefs of Puritanism, as well as the cultural norms of the time period are recorded

inadvertently through the word choice and descriptions present in these poems. These poems also

display contrasting views using these same literary tools, as well as through differing emotional

pretense and the fact that Anne Bradstreet is a woman, while Edward Taylor is a man. This essay

works to analyze these numerous similar and contrasting points throughout Anne Bradstreet’s

“To My Dear and Loving Husband,” and Edward Taylor’s “Huswifery,” in order to achieve a

greater understanding of Colonial Era America.

These poems both have a distinct relationship to the religious belief of Christian

Puritanism which Bradstreet and Taylor both share. Throughout her poem, Bradstreet writes

about her passionate love for her husband, and how she finds pride in her passion. This could be

seen as a contrasting view to that of the Puritan church of the time, which viewed passion

amongst women as sinful. (AL Khafaji, W., Al-Rashid, E. H., 2019) Being that all Puritan rules

and beliefs were first created by men, it can be seen how these beliefs would not consider the

feelings of a women, especially one as passionate as Anne Bradstreet. These contrasting beliefs

show how while being a passionate believer, Bradstreet still had her differences with the church

of her time. Taylor, on the other hand, has a very interesting connection to Puritanism because he

is a pastor. This is seen throughout his poem, in which he prays to be aided in developing

Christian virtues such as “Understanding, Will, Affections, Judgment, Conscience, (and)

Memory” which he strives towards, all while partaking in the activities of spinning and weaving.

(Taylor, 1931) While Taylor’s poem is written from the vantage of a woman, it does not consider

the realistic hardships which a woman undergoes throughout her life. (Huswifery | Ashbrook
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RAHP, n.d.) This is very reflective of the Puritan church at the time, for which Taylor was a

pastor.

While both being poems which relate to marriage and religion, “To My Dear and Loving

Husband,” and “Huswifery” are also quite different from one another. While both poems tackle

the topics of love and devotion, Bradstreet and Taylor approach them from very different

perspectives. Bradstreet wrote about her love and devotion towards her husband, a Biblical idea,

in a worldly way by portraying her feelings of passion: which were frowned upon by Puritans.

This willingness to pull at the constraints of past cultural norms displays Bradstreet’s passionate

spirit and contradict the works of Edward Taylor. (AL Khafaji, W., Al-Rashid, E. H., 2019)

Taylor wrote about his love and devotion towards the Lord, also a Biblical idea, in a way which

reflects the anti-world beliefs of Puritanism. Being that he was a pastor, Taylor was never

allowed to indulge in worldly things such as passion. Another difference between these works of

poetry is Bradstreet’s use of simplistic and straightforward verbiage, and creation of emphasis

through rhyme scheme. On the other hand, Taylor uses complex metaphors and unclear

comparisons to get his point across. These different styles reflect their different positions in the

world. Mrs. Bradstreet was a woman with very little literary education or experience, while Mr.

Taylor was a pastor with a plethora of knowledge from his training to be a priest.

“To My Dear and Loving Husband,” and “Huswifery,” while having their differences,

also contain similarities which show the commonalities of Colonial America. One commonplace

comparison throughout colonial literature is the that of a wife’s love and devotion for her

husband with the love and devotion believers are to feel for God. (Huswifery | Ashbrook RAHP,

n.d.) So, while these two poems are confronting different ideas, they can both relate through the

common comparison of these two types of relationships. Bradstreet’s poem is about a wife’s
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passion for her husband, which can be a metaphor for a believer’s passion for the Father. (AL

Khafaji, W., Al-Rashid, E. H., 2019) Taylor’s poem is about a wife’s strength and diligence for

her husband which she shows through weave-work, similarly to how believers show strength and

diligence for the Lord through our daily actions. Yet another similarity between these works,

besides the period in which they were written, is the fact that both writers are of the Christian

Puritan faith. Religious undertones and language which were everywhere in these times are used

in both poems, creating another commonality between Bradstreet’s and Taylor’s works.

In conclusion, while these works do engage differing topics in varying ways, the ever-

present religiosity that undoubtably affected both writers brings both poems together under the

banner of Puritan Literature which was so common throughout Colonial Era America. Both

authors display a love for Christ and a love for their significant others, while also showing their

differing views and the experiences they faced throughout their poetry. Anne Bradstreet’s “To

My Dear and Loving Husband,” and Edward Taylor’s “Huswifery,” while containing numerous

differences, also have many shared connections. Together, these two works of literature weave a

tapestry of the complicated world that was Colonial Era America.

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References

AL Khafaji, W., Al-Rashid, E. H. (2019). American Puritan Elegy: Biblical Sources in Anne

Bradstreet’s Poems. The Islamic College University Journal. 79-93.

https://www.iasj.net/iasj/download/3a325b4b42f396db

Bradstreet, A. (1981). To My Dear and Loving Husband. Poetry Foundation.

https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/43706/to-my-dear-and-loving-husband

Huswifery | Ashbrook RAHP. (n.d.). https://religioninamerica.org/rahp_objects/huswifery/

Taylor, E. (1931). Huswifery. Poetry Foundation.

https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/46133/huswifery