EARLY ENCOUNTERS, 1492-1734 English Colonies Resource: Mourning Poetry of Anne Bradstreet Background The poetry of Anne Dudley Bradstreet shows readers what it was like to live in colonial New England. Anne was born in England in 1612, the daughter of the steward of the Earl of Lincoln. Her father’s position meant she had better access to books and education than most other women in her time, and by the time she reached adulthood, she had developed the hobby of writing poetry. In 1628, Anne married her father’s apprentice, Simon Bradstreet. In 1630, a big change came to Anne’s life. She and her family were Puritans, a type of Christians who were persecuted by the English government, and her husband and her father decided to leave England forever and move to the Puritan colony Massachusetts. As a Puritan woman, Anne was expected to obey the men in her life, so on April 8 she set sail with them for the New World. Anne’s father and husband were both named assistant governors of the new colony, and she moved among the colony’s elite for the rest of her life. Even so, her life was very difficult, especially compared with her luxurious childhood. Anne and her husband moved four times in their first fifteen years in the colony, and they had to build their life from the ground up with the limited resources available to them. Life in Puritan society was also very strict—one of their moves was prompted by complaints that Anne’s father’s home was too fancy. Throughout all of this, she bore and raised eight children. Her privileged position meant she could afford to have servants to help her care for her household, which gave her time to write. © Women and the American Story 2021 Page 1 of 3 EARLY ENCOUNTERS, 1492-1734 English Colonies In 1650, Anne’s brother-in-law brought a collection of her poems to London and got them published. The book, called The Tenth Muse lately Sprung Up in America, made Anne the first published female poet of the New World. About the Document Life expectancy in the early colonies was short, and the death of a loved one was a common occurrence. War, disease, accident, lack of medical care, and malnutrition were all common causes of death for men, women, and children. Collected here are four poems Puritan housewife Anne Bradstreet wrote in 1665 and 1669, mourning the deaths of four grandchildren and her daughter-in-law Mercy. Mercy and the children were part of her son Samuel’s family, so these poems also show how much loss could happen in just one nuclear family. Through these poems we feel the heartbreak Anne experienced after each loss and her struggle to reconcile her religious faith with the harsh reality of life in the colonies. They are a poignant window into the agonies of life in early colonial America. Vocabulary • apprentice: A person who learns a trade from a more skilled employer. • below: On earth. • bewail: Mourn. • blown: Blossomed. • content: Joy. • deceased: Died. • eradicate: Destroyed. • e’re: Before. • ‘fore: Before. © Women and the American Story 2021 Page 2 of 3 EARLY ENCOUNTERS, 1492-1734 English Colonies • malnutrition: Sickness from lack of proper food. • ne’re: Never. • nigh: Close. • Puritans: A group of English Protestants who left England for the New World to start their own settlements where religion would govern daily life. • steward: A person who looks after another person’s property. • terminate: Ended. • tydings: News. • twain: Two. • woe: Sadness. • withal: Also. • withering: Dying. Discussion Questions • What do these poems reveal about life in the early English colonies? • How does Anne reconcile her anger and grief with her Puritan faith? © Women and the American Story 2021 Page 3 of 3.