Anne Bradstreet was one of the best-known Puritan authors of her time. Anne Bradstreet dedicated herself to writing about whatever she wanted to show her personal thoughts, emotions, and experiences. This will be shown in relation to how she was raised in a home that supported women's literacy and how she grew up with her poems through colonial Puritan society. Anne Bradstreet's poetry challenges the traditional role of women in the 17th century while adhering to her puritanical beliefs. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay As a Puritan, Anne Bradstreet strove to live her life according to Calvinist doctrine while having to deal with the struggles of his human condition. When Bradstreet's house burned down, she was struck by the reality of life's difficulties and was offered the opportunity to do one of two things. If she were to give in to her humanity and allow herself to be overcome by the loss of her material wealth, then she might blame God and turn away from Him. If she let her soul prevail over this humanity, she might embrace the Puritan belief that God is always good and that she has a greater treasure waiting for her in heaven. In this, she could get closer to God, having learned to abandon her material possessions. Bradstreet struggles internally for a time, but in the end, she comes to terms with the loss of her material possessions and redirects her focus to what really matters: her relationship with God. When Bradstreet realized that Her house was on fire, her first reaction was to immediately cry out to God the moment she first saw the flames when she said, "As I started, the light spied, / And at my God my heart wept” (Bradstreet 11:7-8). The thought of blaming or being angry with God doesn't even seem to occur to him. She immediately recognizes God's sovereignty and the fact that she cannot survive this tragedy without His strength. She begs God to “strengthen [her] in [her] distress / And not leave [her] helpless” (“Burning” 9-10). Bradstreet is afraid, as any human being would be in this situation – whether puritanical or not – but the importance of this circumstance lies in how Bradstreet reacted to this fear. It is evident from the beginning that she is a faithful follower of God to the extent that she instinctively cries out to Him, even in the midst of this horrible and unexpected tragedy. Soon after her cry of fear and uncertainty, Bradstreet seems to calm down a bit and she even begins to praise God, saying, "I bless his name that gave and took" ("Burning" 14). Bradstreet demonstrates great trust in God from the moment she first saw the flames, and in this it is evident that she sincerely believes in Puritan doctrine. She was not angry at God at all, because she recognizes that everything she had “was his, it wasn’t [hers]” (“Burning” 17). In this, Bradstreet is even grateful because God didn't take everything, but left her with her family and enough to survive. She claims that He could have taken any amount of her possessions and she would still not be angry with Him, because it would be His right to take whatever he saw fit (“Burning” 19-20 ). After line 20, however, the tone changes again, from its staunch, hopeful optimism to a sense of strong lament. Bradstreet describes walking past her old home and remembering the pain of loss she felt in the fire ("Burning" 21-22). . Evenwhile she knows, as a believer in God, that these things should have little value, she admits that she still struggles daily with the sadness she feels at losing them. She seems much less convinced of God's goodness at this point, although she doesn't say this directly. The reasons she gave for continuing to praise God and be joyful in the beginning seem to make her much less comfortable now as she comes face to face with the physical loss she endured. Bradstreet shows the extreme difficulty she has in giving up her material possessions by describing with detailed pathos everything that she misses so dearly about this house (Mooney). She speaks of a wide range of earthly treasures that she regrets losing, from the emotional richness of laughter and entertaining guests, to her material wealth, or her "pleasant things" ("Burning" 23-36 ). In the midst of her sadness, however, she seems to come back to her senses and the reality of what she knows her view of life and the human condition should be as a Puritan. Bradstreet begins to berate himself for keeping his earthly possessions in such a high value. Her inner struggle manifests itself when she asks herself angrily: And has your wealth on earth remained? Have you set your hope on mold dust? Did the arm of flesh trust you? ("Burning" 38-40) She knows that she should consider no treasure greater than her own in heaven, and she seems frustrated with herself for having had such difficulty giving up what she lost in the fire. Then she begins to think about what really matters to her, telling herself to “raise [her] thoughts above the sky” (“Burning” 41). After this word of encouragement, Bradstreet seems to change her perspective as she returns to talking about God and what he has given her. Bradstreet is joyful again, refocusing on what she has in God: Thou hast a house on high, Framed by this mighty architect, with richly furnished glory, remains permanent though it flees. (“Burning” 43-46) It is evident at this point how much she believes her heavenly wealth to be greater than the material goods she lost in the fire. It seems that Bradstreet now realizes the value and purpose of this seemingly tragic incident – ​​that she is turning her attention away from the "mists of dung [that] can fly away" ("Burning" 42) and realigning her gaze to her heavenly treasure . It seems that at this point in her poem Bradstreet experiences a revelation that she did not need the things she lost in the fire, because her Lord, the "mighty Architect" ("Burning" 44 ), had prepared an infinite treasure for him. more valuable in paradise, and “there is wealth enough, [she] needs no more” (“Burning” 43-51). Bradstreet's poem depicts the stark contrast between earthly and heavenly treasures, while also illustrating the difficulty a depraved human being has in letting go of worldly riches. She admits that she had placed too much hope and invested too much time in her earthly wealth, and then disaster swept away everything. She knows she doesn't have to regret the loss of these things, because they were only meant to be temporary, and while it may be difficult to say goodbye to her "pelf...[and]...store" (“Burning” 52), she knows that this is what God wants her to learn to do. Bradstreet seems to recognize that the fire was ordained by the hand of God, but she does not consider herself unfairly treated and she does not feel angry or bitter with Him for it. In fact, it appears that Bradstreet viewed the fire as a blessed sign from God, warning her of the value she placed on her material possessions and preventing her from continuing to do so. Bradstreet is” 52-54)