Anne Bradstreet's Puritan Faith and Colonial Literary Legacy

Introduction: Faith as the Foundation of Bradstreet's Life

The resolute nature of Puritanism and the extreme manner in which people believed in their cause is clearly demonstrated by Anne Bradstreet. It is clear that the constant questioning of faith — rather than having faith handed down through the seemingly corrupt traditions of the Roman Catholic Church — drove much of Anne's life as well as her hardships. The commitment to faith that drove the extreme acts of her family, including relocating from England to America with all its attendant hardships while birthing and raising eight children, was likely the key to Bradstreet's ability to bear all that colonial life demanded. In short, Bradstreet's faith created the drive for the hardship of immigration and sustained her through it. (Martin 4)

The proof of Bradstreet's commitment can be seen throughout her works, and yet some pieces are more telling of the Puritan sentiment than others. One example was written during the English Civil War, more than ten years after her family's immigration to America:

These are the dayes the Churches foes to crush,
To root out Popelings head, tail, branch and rush;
Let's bring Baals vestments forth to make a fire,
Their Mytires, Surplices, and all their Tire,
Copes, Rotchets, Crossiers, and such empty trash,
And let their Names consume, but let the flash
Light Christendome, and all the world to see
We hate Romes whore, with all her trumpery. (Works, 340–41)

Puritan Rejection of the Church of England

The Puritan collective formed by Bradstreet's family, and further demonstrated by the mass migration to America, represented a collective rejection of traditional English values and, more importantly, the values of the Church of England. This rejection was not merely theological abstraction; it manifested in the physical uprooting of entire communities and their willingness to face the dangers of the New World in pursuit of a purer expression of Christian faith.

The hardships of colonial life were great and often potentially life-threatening. Bradstreet's life and the lives of her children were constantly threatened by the unknowns of the "wilderness." Her husband's position as a Puritan governor provided no relief from toil and, in fact, likely increased the demands on the family, as they had to not only provide for themselves but also share in the burden of the collective. Despite these hardships, she still managed to publish the first volume of poetry written by a woman in the New World. This volume of poetry marked a milestone and reflected her faith — as did her other works — in the goals of her Puritan conviction, and it is not without skepticism. (Martin 4)

Colonial Hardships and the Role of Faith

Her own prose speaks directly to this inner struggle with suffering and divine purpose:

. . . God doth not afflict willingly, nor take delight in grieving the children of men: he hath no benefitt by my adversity, nor is he the better for my prosperity; but he doth it for my Advantage, and that I may bee a Gainer by it. And if he knowes that weaknes and a frail body is the best to make me a vessell fitt for his use, why should I not bare it, not only willingly but joyfully? (Works, 20)

Conclusion: From Artistic Ambition to Resolute Piety

Bradstreet's life was not a life of leisure, as was consistent with the lives of many literary giants of her day, and yet she managed a career of prolific expression founded on the ideals of her faith. The core of Bradstreet's ideals were Puritan and, most importantly, they were demonstrative of independent thought and expression. This independent thought spurred immigration and allowed her to evolve and endure the hardships that immigration created.