To My Dear and Loving Husband

600 Words3 Pages
Anne Bradstreet’s “TO MY DEAR AND LOVING HUSBAND” is a poem of a wife’s intense love, marital commitment, and devotion to her husband. It reveals the life of a puritan woman who is suppose to be more reserve, but broke all barriers to make it her obligation to enlighten her husband of her devotion. This poem offer insights into her love, marriage and God, the use of metaphors and similes, and the gender claim of equality between a husband and wife. Her commitment to love, marriage and God throughout the poem begins as she uses the anaphora “IF EVER….” (l. 1-3) to confirm her marital union (man-wife) and her spiritual union (two-one). Is it for consistency that she made such a declaration, or is it for the emphasis? Whatever the reason, the idea she conveys is that she values their love more than earthly riches and hopes that their physical union on earth continues to their spiritual union in heaven (l.12). This line ends in that biblical context which she speaks more powerfully to love each other so that they may live forever when they die. To die and live forever is the Christian’s greatest hope, but as she sees it all earthly unions dissolve at death. She views her earthly love as one of a spiritual union through salvation as she gratefully acknowledges the love from her husband. She prays his rewards are in such a way where others will admire and remember throughout eternity (l.10). This is an extraordinary way of professing a wife’s love, appreciation and affection for her husband; this poem demonstrates her earthly physical passion in this world and the competing tensions between “the flesh” and “the spirit.” Another prominent aspect of this literary piece is the use of metaphors and similes throughout the poem. The beginning words, “I Prize” (l.5) describe their love as sexy in that she gleefully rewards him with her unconditional love. In addition, these
Open Document