In his introduction to the chapter 12 of Puritans in the New World, David Hall explains that Anne Bradstreet used her writing as a form of religious meditation. The religiously toned content reflects this purpose for her writing. In the legacy notes for her son she combines Puritan values with household and maternal values. Bradstreet describes the notes that she writes to her son, “I have avoided encroaching upon others’ conceptions, because I would leave you nothing by mine own” (Hall 136). She claims ownership over the ideas, but they remain generally consistent with the Puritan worldview as I understand it. She emphasizes the ideal of hard work in saying, “Downey beds make a drowsy person, but hard lodging keeps the eyes open. A prosperous state make s a secure Christian, but adversity makes him consider” (137). Bradstreet explains that the harder life they have as American colonist makes them hard workers and more virtuous. At the same time, she suggest that prosperity makes you perhaps complacent but also secure in your salvation. In the same vein, adversity such as sickness makes a person reconsider their life and maybe even their election. We saw in other narratives that many who fell sick expressed harsh self evaluation during those times. She also speaks about the idea of parenthood as it relates to election. She clearly considers the importance of parenthood in election, but she strays from the idea that having pious parents is the best and perhaps most likely path to election. She notes that seeing that children do not always follow their parents path should make us more in awe of God’s sovereignty and also “it should teach the children of godly parents to walk with fear and trembling, lest they, through unbelief, fall short of a promise: it may also be a support to such as have or had wicked parents, that, if they abide not in unbelief, God is able to graft them in” (138). Bradstreet believes that one must always be careful to seek God and perhaps fear that they may not be elect in spite of their parents. While her other statements fall in line with Puritan values, this last note to her son strays away from that set of beliefs.
This section of Hall’s book also includes a poem, “As Weary Pilgrim.” The poem expresses a longing for the paradise of heaven as the pilgrim trudges through and perseveres through their earthly life. I find this also to fit with the Puritan worldview as it demonstrates a motivation behind enduring hard labor and although it suggests Bradstreet’s confidence in her election, she never directly states that she is saved.
Unlike some of the other texts we are considering, the note to Simon Bradstreet is direct and personalized. I think that the notes and the preface to them especially seem to come from a place of motherly affection. The more emotional preface is refreshing to read in the Puritan writings, and yet she remains true to her Puritan values. This idea of a legacy of written documents and notes for teaching seem particularly consistent with the value for education and literacy that dominated in Puritan culture. I found this section particularly interesting and I enjoyed seeing a poem because it stood out from some of the other writings. Furthermore, I found the idea of meditation interesting as it was a Puritan practice we have not yet mentioned.
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