Reflection Blog: Mary Rowlandson and Anne Bradstreet

Mary Rowlandson shows her Puritan views in this passage in many ways.  Puritan's basically followed religious morals and kept faith in their god although they were going through hard times.   Rowlandson wrote about her time in captivity due to the Native Americans.  She was not treated very well during this time.  The Native Americans did not provide her food or shelter. A page would not go by without mention of God or some religion related mention.  A quote that revealed that Rowlandson stuck to her Puritan views very well:

"And my poor girl, I knew not where she was, nor whether she was sick or well, alive or dead. I repaired under these thoughts to my Bible (my great comforter in that time) and that scripture came to my hand." (Rowlandson 85).

She said that her bible was "my great comforter in that time" which shows that she shows so much love for the bible and the story within (Rowlandson 85).  This is a good example of Puritan  writing because it shows that her faith was the most comforting thing she had in her life at one time.  Although her life was awful at this time, she still believed in her god and that her god would help her. She also showed that she was polite which can be a Puritan value.  She never though of how unfair her life was, she just kept looking forward to her life getting better.  She was never ungrateful for what life had thrown at her, which seems like a Puritan value to me. Another quote that explains her thankfulness for her lord is:

"I have since thought of the wonderful goodness of God to me, in preserving me so in the use of my reason and my senses in that tough time, that I did not use wicked and violent means to end my own miserable life."(Rowlandson 83).

This quote was so important to point out because it basically sums up the Puritan values very well.  Rowlandson was at the end of her rope, so to say, after the death of her "babe" or child (Rowlandson 83).  She thanked God for keeping her sane and keeping her from giving up on her life.  Puritan's were so faithful to God that they think that he is the reason that they live and breath for every second they spend on Earth.  

Bradstreet was also a very Puritan writer.  She wrote about how religion and God was so important to her during the burning down of her house.  She did not reveal her love for God as much as Rowlandson, but she still showed her Puritan values in her poem.  A certain passage from her writing stuck our as an important mention of God:

And to my God did my heart cry, to strengthen me in my distress, and not to leave me succorless (Bradstreet 91).

This shows that she turned to God in her time of need.  Bradstreet showed her love for God and her faith by showing that she wanted to cry to God for strength to get her through this event.  While she did not show as much evidence of her need for God and her thankfulness for God as Rowlandson, she still showed her Puritan values.  

Bradstreet, Anne. "Upon the Burning of Our House." Comp. Jeffrey D. Wilhelm, Ph.D. and Douglas Fisher, Ph.D. Glencoe Literature. American Literature ed. Columbus: McGraw-Hill Companies, 2009. 89-91. Print.

Rowlandson, Mary. "A Narrative of the Captivity and Restoration of Ms. Mary Rowlandson." Comp. Jeffrey D. Wilhelm, Ph.D. and Douglas Fisher, Ph.D. Glencoe Literature. American Literature ed. Columbus: McGraw-Hill Companies, 2009. 80-86. Print.