PRIMERA PRUEBA DE EVALUACIÓN CONTINUA
LITERATURA NORTEAMERICANA I
DECIEMBRE 2020
ADRIANA MEMMO GALLEGO
Centro Asociado María Zambrano
INDEX
Activity 1: “Writing about metaphorical language” ………………………..….page 2
Activity 2: “Answering comparison and contrast questions” ………...………..page 3
Work Cited………………………………………………………..………………page 5
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1. First, read the Activity “Writing about metaphorical language” in A Study Guide
for American Literature to 1900 (pages 47-50). Then, explain and discuss the
following lines, using a maximum of 100 words for each one and considering them
in their context.
a) “My rambling brat (in print) should mother call” (line 8): When Bradstreet
mentions the vehicle “rambling brat (in print)”, according to Gibert, the author is
talking about “a wandering spoilt child” (47). The vehicle “mother” refers to the
writer herself, the parent of her production, the book. In this way, she compares a
vagabond child who was metaphorically lost and full of printing errors and now
is calling his mother to be redirected and corrected. Due to feeling responsible
for anything that can happen to it, in this line, Bradstreet becomes a protective
mother who recognizes that the book needs her help.
b) “If for thy father asked, say, thou had'st none” (line 22): The fact that
Bradstreet was a literary woman writing in a patriarchal society firmly gave her
some fears and insecurities; she wants to make sure readers understand that no
man was involved in this production. In this line, she conveys that her poem is
coming just from her, and her alone. No man helped her to write. She was the only
parent in her work. We can perceive a type of scrutiny about her abilities as an
author, so she had ambivalent emotions as a result of being a woman writer in a
time when writing was a man´s job.
c) “Three flowers, two scarcely blown, the last i' th' bud” (line 3): In this brief
and mournful poem, Bradstreet writes about the death of her grandson which
made her feel disturbingly doubtful about her faith and religious beliefs. Despite
the unexplained infant mortality that afflicted her family, she highlights that
humans should still be humble and see the almighty with admiration and gratitude,
and mainly trust in his benevolence, fairness, and will. She sees her grandson as
a “bud” and his two sisters, who passed before him, as flowers, that were picked
out sooner than expected because he was only a month old, but to be under the
Grace of God.
d) “Suppress the deadly serpent in its egg.” (line 26): This poem is a wake-up call
for Harvard students who were privileged enough to study at this prestigious
university in contrast with the author who had no access to formal education. In
this line, Wheatley refers to the serpent as a representation of the devil, and as a
depiction of sin. By suppressing something in its egg, it will never come alive,
suggesting that they might get rid of evil before it ever arises. She warns these
young people to be always on alert and to avoid, as much as possible, the sin this
evil might bring.
e) “Ye blooming plants of human race divine” (line 27): Since Wheatley is
addressing a group of youngsters, and she knows that they are highly likely to not
having been corrupted by the world´s sins yet, in this line, she refers to the vitality
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and capability they had to reach anything they wanted as they got fresh knowledge
and an open mind. The author feels pretty confident that these young minds are
what America needed at that time to change and look forward human´s equality.
As stated by Gibert, “She is always persuasively telling the young Harvard men
to avoid sin and sloth, and to make the most of their fortunate positions” (132).
2. First, read the Activity “Answering comparison and contrast questions” in A
Study Guide for American Literature to 1900 (pages 21-23). Then, write an essay
comparing and contrasting the emotions and feelings displayed by John Smith,
William Bradford and Mary Rowlandson, focusing on the texts selected in units 1, 2
and 4.
The diminishing language the three authors used to characterize the Native
Americans makes us aware of very overwhelming negative emotions towards otherness.
The pride and determination to achieve commercial goals were the main source of Smith´s
sentiments; conversely, Bradford and Rowlandson´s were founded on a Puritan way of
thinking, where everything depends on God´s Providence.
Firstly, Rowlandson and Bradford show themselves as faithful believers
whose destiny depended only on the God that helped them survive along a continuum
with a very specific ending. Rowlandson describes a wide range of emotional changes,
such as depression, anxiety, disorientation, guilt, grief, and so on: in “The Fifth Remove”
(from 1st to 5th line). Furthermore, Bradford describes in detail his hardship: “[…] they
had now no friends to welcome them […]”( lines 49-50),and the feelings that he and his
people developed during their voyage : “[…] they were not a little joyful […]”(line 25),
and the arrival to the promised land, going from resentment to gratitude, or fear to joy,
always highlighting the Divine Providence that was repeatedly looking down upon them:
“[…]and delivered them from all the perils and miseries thereof […]”(line 38). Whereas,
in order to emphasize his role as a hero, Smith focused on showing his self-confidence
by revealing his apparent fierce pride: “[…] He, demanding for their captain […].” (line
11).
Secondly, even though Bradford and Rowlandson share Puritan feelings,
Rowlandson had a humbler vision of her spiritual trail. She describes her deepest
emotions: “[…] I cannot but take notice of the strange providence of God […].”( line 7)
And as a remarkable point, she exclusively emphasizes the strengths her God made her
feel, in “The Third Remove”: “[…] I had fainted, unless I had believed, etc. (Psalm 27:13)
[…]” (lines 12-13), or her disappointment towards her own people, in “The Fifth
Remove”: “[…] God did not give them courage […]”. Instead, Bradford´s feelings were,
most of the time, together with the pilgrims´: “[…] with a prosperous wind […], some
encouragement unto them […]” (line 3). Besides, he also expresses how thankful and
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merry he was: “And no marvel if they were thus joyful” (Book I, lines 40-44), for having
arrived after so many drawbacks. While reading Captain Smith, we can distinguish
feelings of uncertainty, concern and fear: “[…] they entertained him with most strange
and fearful conjurations […]” (line 48), even cowardice, in line 6: “[…] used the savage
that was his guide as a shield […].”, or relief, when he was being fed.
To conclude, Mary Rowlandson, John Smith and William Bradford all had harsh
encounters when they arrived in what they knew as “The New World”. The captivity
impacted Rowlandson´s emotions, who was relieved by God, hurdles with nature and the
native´s attacks were the main source of Bradford´s feelings, and finally, Smith who tried
to compel his readers of such strong emotions like pride and courage to address his role
as a hero; nevertheless, were Pocahontas and her father alive, would Captain Smith have
attempted that?
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Works Cited
 Gibert, Teresa. American Literature To 1900. 2nd ed., 8th reprint, Editorial
Universitaria Ramón Areces, 2020, Madrid, Spain.
 Gibert, Teresa. A Study Guide for American Literature to 1900. 1st ed., 6th
reprint, Editorial Universitaria Ramón Areces, 2019, Madrid, Spain.
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