Anne Bradstreet
Background:
She was born in England in 1612 into a well-educated, noble family. At age 16, Anne married Simon Bradstreet, who
was 25 and an assistant in the Massachusetts Bay Company. He had lived with Anne’s family since his parents passed away.
They moved to the New World in 1630 on one of the first ships of Puritans. The journey was rough, and Anne’s life of privilege
had not prepared her for the passage or for life in a very new colony. Many people died, and Anne caught smallpox for the
second time. It was much worse the second time, and it left her in poor health for the rest of her life. Still, she had eight
children, and they all lived to be adults. Life in New England was not great, and it took a long time for the Bradstreets to
become prosperous. Simon’s work had him traveling a lot of the time, so Anne spent a good deal of time reading, writing, and
educating their children. Her poetry was taken to England by her brother-in-law, where it was published in her name but
without her permission.
“To My Dear and Loving Husband” Questions
1.
Which line from “To My Dear and Loving Husband” helps you identify the speaker? Explain in 2 sentences.
a. “If ever two were one, then surely we”
b. “If ever man were lov’d by wife then thee”
c. “I prize thy love more than whole mines of gold”
d. “My love is such that rivers cannot quench”
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2. Which statement best presents the main idea of “To My Dear and Loving Husband”? Explain why – in a brief
paragraph – using a quotation from the poem.
a. A husband loves his wife.
b. A wife wants her husband to be rewarded.
c. A husband and wife may both die soon.
d. A wife is expressing the depth of her love for her husband.
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3. Find an example (a direct quote) of Puritan Plain Style writing – the use of short words, direct statements, or
references to everyday items – in “To My Dear and Loving Husband”. Explain why the example you chose fits
the definition of Puritan Plain Style in at least 3 sentences.
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4. Paraphrase – restate in your own words – the following lines from Bradstreet’s “To My Dear and Loving
Husband”:
Then while we live, in love let’s so persevere,
That when we live no more, we may live ever.
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“Upon the Burning of Our House” Questions
5. What significance does Bradstreet’s breaking of capitalization guidelines have? What is her purpose in
capitalizing words throughout the poem? Give a specific example. _____________________________________
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6. Bradshaw shows the Puritan belief that God truly owns everything she possesses. Which lines show that belief?
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7. Although Bradstreet wants to accept God’s right to give and take, she does feel an emotion when she walks by
her burned down house. What emotion does she feel? ______________________________________________
8. Bradstreet chides (scolds) herself. She is having trouble accepting the loss of her house. She asks herself where
true wealth abides (lives). If true wealth is not on earth, according to Puritans, where is it? _________________
9. Who is the “mighty Architect”? _________________________________________________________________
10. “Pelf” is a word no longer used that meant “worldly goods.” Bradstreet tells herself not to love things. Instead
of possessions, what did Bradstreet and Puritans teach people to value? What does this lesson teach modern
people about their place in the universe? _________________________________________________________
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Comparing “Upon the Burning of Our House” to Chapter 8 of To Kill a Mockingbird
11. What is a similarity between these two accounts of houses burning? Give textual evidence from BOTH sources.
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12. Why would having one’s house burn down be traumatic in Puritan times? _______________________________
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13. How would that trauma compare to having it happen in the 1920s (TKAM time)? _________________________
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14. How would that trauma compare to having it happen in modern time? _________________________________
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15. Based on questions 12, 13, and 14, what is an inference we can make about why we read this poem today?
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