Feminism Issue in “The Prologue” By Anne Bradstreet
In the early writing of Anne Bradstreet called The Prologue, she tells about how hard life can be. Throughout her writing, she expresses sorrow, loss, death and the hard times of life. There are many other works of hers that consist of happiness and good life events, but in this specific writing, she focuses on the negative aspects of life and things going on in life. Just like other people in the world, Anne Bradstreet didn’t have a very easy life; however, she tried to make light of the life she lived and the different paths she is on.
This writing by Anne Bradstreet, “The Prologue”, is focused on the narrator of the poem, and what they think about a woman writing poems the way she does. When talking about the way she writes, she explains how she leaves the bigger, more important subjects of history to the professional writers, or the men. The speaker says this because she feels as if the world hasn’t given her as a woman, the intelligence or the ability to make great works of art like poems with more elaborate subjects.
Living during the earlier times in the writing world, the speaker, being the writer of the poem, causes her to look at herself the way women used to back then. During her time period, women were looked at as less intelligent than men and in no way, could do anything that men could do. In result of this mindset during the early writings and 1700’s, Anne Bradstreet looked at herself in her own writings with that same thought.
Anne Bradstreet’s, “The Prologue”, is a great representation of the time period it was written. Since the author looked at herself as having “fewer brains” than men and not being able to create great art, it provides the readers with proof of how the women in that time period thought of themselves. She mentions in this reading that even if she were to write a good set of poems or writings she would be accused of stealing them from a male writer.
This writing is a perfect example of what it was like for not only Anne Bradstreet but other female writers during her time. By Bradstreet explaining her feelings of being second to men, she put it out into the world that she wants to be acknowledged for the work she has been doing and wants to put an end to not being recognized for her brilliance. This work of art, “The Prologue” could be used in many feminisms talks and debates as an example of how even back in the early days of writing, women were always put second to men.
