Session 02: Puritan Literature

1. The Early Colonial Era - Historical Context

2. How to Adress Religious and Domestic Bliss

Fact Sheet Anne Bradstreet (ca. 1612–1672)

• born in England to a well-connected family
• received a very good education
• married at the age of 16
  
• moved to New England at the age of 18 with her husband and father
  
• raised eight children in several homes that were gradually removed towards the remote frontier of the colony, while both her father and husband served as governors of Massachusetts
  
• first published poet in America (poetry collection The Tenth Muse, 1650)
  
• central themes: family, love, nature, sorrow, faith, daily life, and resignation
• Involuntary publicity: The book was published in England by her brother-in-law without her explicit consent. She later revised and republished it on her own.

3. The Puritan Captivity Tale

Fact Sheet Mary Rowlandson (ca. 1637-1711)

• born in England and moved to New England with her parents and nine siblings
  
• settled in Lancaster, Massachusetts
  
• married in 1656 at the age of 19
  
• was captured by Native Americans in 1676 during King Philip’s War and remained with them for eleven weeks, during which one of her three children died
  
• story is told in “20 Removes”, beginning with a scene of carnage when the Natives attack her village while her husband is away in Boston to raise aid for its defense
  
• was ultimately released on ransom, a few weeks before her children
  
• is the only woman author who wrote her captivity tale on her own
  
• central themes: hardship of captivity, motherhood and endurance, divine providence, daily life of her captors, and the feeling of alienation during and after her captivity
• Immediate success: The book was so popular when it was first published (1682) that it had to be reprinted four times in one year.
  

4. Comparing Bradstreet and Rowlandson

The following study questions are designed to guide your reading of the two texts. For this purpose, please do the following:

(1)  Read the questions carefully.

(2)  Then re-read the texts by Bradstreet and Rowlandson, while thinking of possible answers to the questions.

(3)  Finally, answer at least two questions per forum in brief bullet points. The instructor will also join the discussion and comment on the entries.

5. Homework: The Writings of Puritan Women Authors

After the previous brainstorming sessions, it is now time to have a closer look at both texts. For this purpose, open the pdf-file below and complete the worksheet.

Once you are finished, upload the file here. The instructor will then provide you with model answers.

6. Final Summary

Select the best answers to the following multiple choice questions. Attention: for several questions more than one choice (e.g. two or more) is correct and all the correct ones are required to be picked!

7. Evaluation

Please complete the following evaluation after you have finished all the readings and assignments of this session.