Anne Bradstreet & Edward Taylor Term Paper

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The Flesh attempts to tempt her sister, the Spirit, with physical wealth and beauty. She argues that meditation alone is not enough to live on, and that earth cannot be divorced from the spirit. Bradstreet however demonstrates that there is a basic imbalance in this view. Flesh does not argue for a balance between the Flesh and the Spirit, but rather suggests that the world of the Flesh is far more satisfying than the Spirit, and therefore should take precedence over the latter. Indeed, the Flesh suggests that the spirit is "fancy-sick" or even a "Sot" for believing in treasures beyond the fleshly world. The Spirit answers in equally strong terms, arguing equally vehemently for the importance of the Spirit world. The first words of the Spirit's stanza "Be still, thou unregenerate part," suggest that the Spirit and the Flesh are part of the same being. Anne Bradstreet therefore recognizes that Flesh and Spirit are part of the same being. Her premise is however that the Spirit, being eternal, is far more important than the Flesh. The Flesh, having at heart only its own earthly well-being, is the part of being human that must constantly be fought. To help with this, Bradstreet calls on the Spirit to recognize the help of the spiritual, based upon her religion. This knowledge transforms all struggle into beauty. Like Taylor, Bradstreet describes her spiritual beauty in earthly terms: her beauty lies not in the physical, but in the symbolic Royal Robes of her religion.

Taylor's poem, "The Joy of Church Fellowship Rightly Attended" places the focus on the joy of the spiritual when the entrapments of the flesh are forgotten.

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Here the focus is entirely on the potential beauty of church music. Like his "Huswifery" poem, this work also focuses on the relationship with divinity. In this poem, the poet seeks to connect directly with God by attending church and worshiping with the other attendees. The phrase "Rightly Attended" in the title suggests that it is possible to handle a worshiping session incorrectly. The focus of the poem is then the sincerity that will beautify the melodies offered to God by the people. The Flesh of Bradstreet's poem, for example, is unable to add sincerity to her voice, and this ultimately makes her the slave of the Spirit. In the same way, a lack of sincerity in Taylor's worshipers will defeat the purpose of their gathering, and identify them as no more than slaves to the flesh. Sincerity however spiritualizes the effort, and the music is beautified to the point of the supernatural.

Both poets discussed above show a sincere and all-encompassing devotion to their religion. Both also worship and live their lives according to what they sincerely believe is right. As such, their poems share at their root a melodious beauty that is almost unheard of in today's uncertain spiritual times. Although Puritanism is hardly at the order of the day anymore, these poets can still speak to the modern reader in terms of sincerity, beauty, and joy......

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