I
didn't notice a lot of wilderness is Anne Bradstreet's poems. Most of her
poetry has to do with her relationship with God and the important people in her
life. There was only one poem that I noticed wilderness being mentioned. That
poem is "Contemplations." She uses wilderness to relate
back to God. She’s amazed at the entire wilderness she sees in her life because
it is all God’s work. Take the oak tree she sees for example. “Then on a
stately oak I cast mine eye, / Whose ruffling top the clouds seemed to aspire;
/ How long since thou wast in thine infancy? / Thy strength, and stature, more
thy years admire, / Hath hundred winters past since thou wast born?” (lines
15-19).
This is different than how the other writers we have read
looked at wilderness. With Cabeza de
Vaca, Rowlandson, and Jewett wilderness shaped their view. Bradstreet uses
wilderness to reinforce her beliefs though. God created all these wonderful
things that Bradstreet sees like “ [the] leaves and fruits seemed painted, but
was true, / Of green, of red, of yellow, mixed hue” (lines 5-6). Everything
around her is so beautiful. She even talks about how amazing that wilderness
goes on living and growing even when humans are dying. A year for humans is
basically just a couple of days for wilderness. She thinks that’s amazing. “Shall
I then praise the heavens, the trees, the earth / Because their beauty and
their strength last longer?” (lines 134-135). While some people would be bitter
because wilderness gets a so much longer life, Bradstreet is amazed. All of the
things around her Is God’s work and it’s all truly amazing and beautiful how it
all lives in different ways.
