Beyond Stateliest Marble: The Passionate Femininity of Anne Bradstreet

Leaders in Action

by Douglas Wilson

Anne Bradstreet was born in 1612 to Thomas and Dorothy Dudley, a dedicated Puritan couple in Lincolnshire, England. She married Simon Bradstreet in 1628, and two years later the young family sailed for Massachusetts Bay. Her father and her husband subsequently served as governors of the new colony, but her enduring fame was to rest on her poetry, which she wrote regularly and circulated in her family for their private enjoyment. In 1647 the Reverend John Woodbridge, her brother-in-law, sailed for England with a manuscript of Anne's poetry, unbeknownst to her. While there, he arranged to have the book published under the title of The Tenth Muse Lately Sprung Up in America.

When the book was presented to her after publication, Anne was thoroughly embarrassed but also pleased. Eventually she owned up to the volume as her rambling brat." Subsequent generations have valued her gifts as a poet, and her poetry remains in print to this day.

Beyond Stateliest Marble is a look at the personal qualities of Anne Bradstreet, the vibrant poetry she created, and her contributions to the way of life of the Massachusetts Bay Colony.

Even to those who know something of her, Anne Bradstreet remains an enigmatic figure. For one thing, there is no surviving portrait of her. To the modern mind she seems an odd combination -- a dedicated Puritan and a gifted poet.

Genres: Biography, History, Nonfiction, Christian, Biography Memoir, Womens, American History

255 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2001

About the author

I write in order to make the little voices in my head go away. Thus far it hasn't worked.

Reviews

[Becky Pliego · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a blessing it was to read this book and learn form this wonderful woman.

This is a perfect book to read in a book group or with teenage daughters, because of how applicable are the lessons from the life of Anne Bradstreet that Pastor Wilson highlights in this book.

[Suzannah Rowntree · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the second time I've read this book, but this time round I particularly loved it - a wonderful study of just what it means to be a Christian, and a woman, and a writer, as demonstrated by one who was an exemplary Christian woman of letters.

Wilson, as always, writes well. Though small, this book functions as many things all at once. A defence of Puritanism. An explanation of truly virtuous and strong womanhood. A discussion of Christian art and culture. A message of hope.

As a Christian, a woman, and a writer, I found this book instructive and encouraging on a multitude of different levels. It was deeply refreshing to the soul, and a wonderful tribute to a woman who may be often spoken of but rarely understood. Five stars, because it was exactly the encouragement and perspective I needed.

[Emily Ann · Rating 2 out of 5]

Loved learning about this woman. Anne Bradstreet gets 5⭐️ and I can’t wait to go read more of her work. She was humble, intelligent, courageous, wise, loving… I loved learning about her story and getting some snippets of her writing. Only rating this book 2 stars because I really didn’t like the writing style.

Part 1 of the book is about her life. I wish this part of the book was written in a chronological order and gave more background to provide more context. Instead, it was broken up sort of by themes, so it was harder to follow. Some major events in her life were left out of this section and only referenced when talking about her character in part 2. I would have preferred him to outline her life in a more detailed and organized way, and comment on her character and virtue as he went along versus breaking it up the way he did.

In part 2, the author listed many qualities that Anne possessed but I wish there had been more examples to show her fruit, rather than just saying “Anne was ___.” Not because I doubt what the author says about her character, but because I would have liked more details about her life and her writings specifically. I think it would have helped to use more of her poems or anecdotes from her life in some of these chapters. Some chapters are full of specific references, some chapters had none.

This authors tone can be very sarcastic, and would keep me from recommending this one to an unbelieving friend. Although I’d totally recommend Anne’s own work to an unbelieving friend!

[Hattie Troutman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Entering my puritan literature era with a wonderful bio on femininity and godliness.

[ValeReads Kyriosity · Rating 5 out of 5]

I watched a genealogy show a while back on which one of the guests was descended from Anne Bradstreet. And he didn't know who she was. Meanwhile, I was seething with envy. (Erm...in a loving, Christian way, of course.) Anne is one of those people every woman should want to be when she grows up. Maybe a millennium or two into the resurrection I might make it to being half as good as she was on her worst day.

[Christina · Rating 3 out of 5]

As a reformed Christian woman, I appreciated this book. As a reader hoping for a biography on Anne Bradstreet, plus some literary analysis of her poetry as a cherry on top, I was disappointed. I think expectations are everything with this one. I simply misunderstood the aim of this book (and honestly, I do wish Mr. Wilson had been a bit more up-front about it for readers like me, instead of assuming it). So, allow me to help you, dear review reader:

This book aims for, generally, two things: 1) to give a defense of Puritans by way of Anne as an admirable example, and 2) to give a defense of Biblical womanhood by way of Anne as an admirable example. In addition, since you cannot (and should not, really) take the pastor out of Doug Wilson, this book also provides him an opportunity to preach about some of his favorite "soap box" topics such as the pitfalls of modernity, politics (historical and present), gender issues, the blessing of children, tips for a healthy marriage, etc. Finally, after all that, the reader may explore these issues while working their way through an overview of Anne's life as well as reading a select few snippets of her poetry.

In summary, these objectives are why I could enjoy this book as a Christian, yet I am definitely left wanting more about Anne, especially her poetry in detail. I suppose I'd better just buy a collection and try to work through it directly!

[Tiffany Wilson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a wonderful book on Anne Bradstreet’s life and poetry. It was a great reminder that Christian women can pursue excellence in intellectual and artistic realms without neglecting their husbands and children, as the feminists would like us to believe.

The author mentioned throughout the book that many modern readers view Bradstreet as a rebellious Puritan who pushed back against the “oppressive” ways of the church when in fact she seemed to do quite the opposite.

This book gave a glimpse of Anne’s brilliant poetry, her devout love and respect towards her husband, her tender care for her eight children, and ultimately her faithfulness to God.

[Allyson Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the best biographies I have read. I truly feel like I know and love Anne personally after reading it. Such an incredible woman. I love the angle Wilson took with disproving all of the modern critiques of Puritanism with the example of Anne. She breaks every modern notion that Puritans are bland, legalistic, unreasonably zealous, oppressive to women, etc.. Her life was inspiring in many ways, the most of which being that she was faithful to her God and her people in the roles that she was given. Now I need to read her poetry book!

[Timothy · Rating 3 out of 5]

A decent book on Anne Bradstreet. I thought Wilson lacked historical evidence for some of his claims about Anne and at other times was extrapolating upon the facts. In other words I came away wondering if he was trying to conform Anne to his views of Femininity. However, I didn't know much about Anne until I read this book, so my claims above could be totally unjustafiable. Nevertheless, there was a decent amount of history about Anne, and the Puritans, which I enjoyed.

[Christa Bartlett · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is a more of a discourse about Puritanism and against modern feminism than a biography of Anne Bradstreet.

[Joyce Haworth · Rating 2 out of 5]

The best biography of Anne Bradstreet is Elizabeth Wade White's "Anne Bradstreet: The Tenth Muse." "Beyond Stateliest Marble" is written by a pastor with the goal of demonstrating that "the Puritans" (monolith?) were not cold, dry and legalistic but warm, passionate and balanced, and that Anne Bradstreet was the perfect Christian woman. It is true that puritanism is not well understood by most people (Winship's "Hot Protestants" is an excellent place to learn about the movement from beginning to end, and on both sides of the ocean). But Douglas Wilson's attempt to salvage their reputation through Bradstreet's life only resulted, in my opinion, in making her into a "marble saint," or perhaps a perfectly balanced human being. The purpose of this biography is to inculcate Christian values and to improve the reputation of puritans. I'm a fan of the puritans, but I can see that much of their reputation, they deserve. Not all of it. They surprise. But it is not only historical blackballing that has given them their reputation.

The second half of the book is all short chapters, each based on a human or Christian virtue, and he argues that Bradstreet's life was the ultimate expression of each one. It seems more likely to me that she was like most practicing Christians -- excelling in certain areas of her faith and flubbing in others. We don't know her persistent sins, her character quirks, the things that drove her kids crazy; those can not be drawn out of her poetry or in the brief accounts of those who knew her. But surely they existed.

The way that Wilson draws his conclusions about her character is: "Bradstreet was a Christian, Christians believe/practice X, therefore Bradstreet perfectly practiced X, and here are a few lines of her poetry to support that." I'm being a bit mean here; I really do like Anne Bradstreet and I agree with Wilson that she was remarkably balanced and cultured. And also, Wilson's analysis is better than what I just suggested. But some of his conclusions are a big stretch. For instance, Wilson affirms she was "lovely" in appearance. But we don't know that. A friend of hers called her "comely," but maybe he was just being a friend. Wilson also affirms that she and Simon had a great sex life. But we don't know anything about their sex life, except that the attraction between them was strong even after years of marriage. I bristled at that one because Wilson seemed to suggest that if you understand the right things about God and about why God gave sex to humanity, you will have a great sex life, period. But one's ability to give and receive sexual love is rooted in other places of our minds and persons than what we "know" in our rational thinking brains.

I think that critique is fair for many of the chapters in Part II. Wilson assumes if you know the right things theologically, you will live them out well, and that Bradstreet must have lived them out well, perfectly even, because she was a practicing Christian. But life and Christian practice are much messier than that.

But this is still a useful biography, if it is understood that Wilson is in it to portray puritans as ideal Christians. Wilson did a good job of reading Bradstreet's poetry and prose, and also of carefully reading her other biographers -- though he relied on Cotton Mather's "Magnalia", which, I have noticed, all other modern scholars have not. The book's main strength is that it offers a brief biographical sketch of moderate factual (if not interpretive) depth, making it easier for the reader to get the essentials of Bradstreet's life and times.

[Devonne West · Rating 5 out of 5]

After reading this book, I have come to the conclusion that we have misunderstood the Puritans. The Puritans loved art and poetry, liked to have an occasional drink, and above all, the women were not "barefoot, pregnant, and kept in the kitchen." Anne Bradstreet was a poet that loved her country, her family, and her husband, and she wrote of these loves in her poetry. She was loved by her community and even royalty. She had staunch opinions about politics and all the things of which women were thought to not be involved. IF all of what we believe to be true about the Puritans, Anne Bradstreet would have been shunned and avoided, but she was the epitome of humility, femininity, and love.
Great book and some very good poetry.

[Hayley Grapenthin · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved the subject matter and the way Wilson defended Bradstreet's love of her faith, her people, and her place in society. I wasn't; however, entirely crazy about the way this biography was laid out. Perhaps I was expecting more of a chronological story and was a bit distracted by all the jumping around. A decent telling of a remarkable woman worth reading, though.

[Sarah Kewley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this story of Anne Bradstreet, a Puritan wife, mother, and poet! One of my favorite gems from the book was her praise of God’s sovereignty over everything, and how she lived as she believed this in her trust and contentment in Him through trials.

[Kirsten · Rating 4 out of 5]

This inspired me to start researching her poetry and perhaps cultivating some creativity in myself. It was a bit repetitive in parts, but overall a great introduction to her. What an inspiring woman.

[Rye Thomasdatter · Rating 5 out of 5]

A unique perspective of the times and society of this woman. An inspiring biography.

[Josiah Richardson · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good biography on an overlooked pious woman. Wilson is easy to read as usual and despite the brevity of the book, provides a good amount of information about her life and character.

[Lindsey Finton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really encouraging and insightful!

[Jewels Walter · Rating 5 out of 5]

Have read this multiple times: beautiful reminder of simple faithfulness! Would read again.

[Carrie · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great portrait of a faithful puritan woman. I need to track down her poetry now.

[Lindsey Stomberg · Rating 5 out of 5]

Anne Bradstreet: Passionate Femininity by Douglas Wilson is a biography of the life of Anne Bradstreet, the first published female Puritan Poet in America. This book flips everything you think you know about how the Puritans treated women on its head. The book I read last month by Joel Beeke does the same, “Following God Fully: An Introduction to the Puritans.” I highly recommend both. We need to have a proper understanding of the Puritans to understand both Church History and American History.

[Abbie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love biographies of Christians and this was a great one. Somehow Wilson inspired me to read poetry, and even that Christians should get back to writing poetry. Loved learning more about God’s providence too from Anne Bradstreet here. Time to go read some of her poetry!

[Rebecca · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is part of the Leaders in Action series, which means it is not a typical biography. These books are usually written in three parts, each one focusing on the life, the character, and the legacy of the subject, in this case, Anne Bradstreet.

The book does describe her life, but more importantly, her views on life. Anne was a Puritan, through and through, and she was a beautiful woman in whose footsteps the women of today would do well to follow. She knew her place, and delighted in her role as a woman. She lived with passion, and the book describes those things, people, and ideas about which she was passionate. I look to Anne as an ideal of a Godly woman, a woman whose many virtues I would like to mirror.

Wilson makes the point that Anne was a typical Puritan in her beliefs and views. She does not conform to the Puritan stereotype, which is not Puritan at all, but more like a grim Victorian outlook. The Puritans were sober but not grim. They valued their women, and their education. They were passionate about life.

I recommend the book to those who want a better understanding of Anne's character, and that of her times, and those who want to see the life of an exemplary Christian woman.

[ValeReads Kyriosity · Rating 4 out of 5]

I would call this a "devotional biography." Rather than a thoroughgoing chronological examination of Anne Bradstreet's life, the book delves most deeply into her character. And she proves an excellent subject for such an approach as her life provides ample illustration for a host of excellent attributes. Chapter after chapter I found myself convicted of my own shortcomings and called with clarity to greater virtue. It's remarkable how godly people can remain models of behavior across the centuries to people yet unborn. Anne Bradstreet continues to be an older woman (three hundred years older!) teaching us younger ones.

My ratings are almost entirely subjective, so in light of how the book blessed me, perhaps I shouldn't allow my one quibble with it to cause me to decline giving it a fifth star. But the editing drove me nuts. I've read several other books and many articles by Mr. Wilson, I read his blog almost daily, and I've listened to hundreds of his sermons. He just doesn't produce phrasing and punctuation clunkers at this rate, so I must assume that those were a product of the editing process.

Finally, I think it worth noting that the chapters are the perfect length for bathroom reading! ;-)

[Mystie Winckler · Rating 3 out of 5]

Own.

A good, but not great or thorough, biography as well as a look at real Puritanism. This is the first in this series I've read. The first half is chronological biography, the second half extrapolates various character traits. It was a little too non-cohesive for my taste. The chronological biography left out detail that was given in the second half, but those details were given so irregularly and briefly that it was hard to keep the track of events straight. It probably would have been better read straight through in a sitting or two (which is possible; it is a small book), but I picked it up here and there.

I had set myself to collect this series, but I'll read another one or two before continuing acquisitions. They are attractive books.

[Emma R. Pilcher · Rating 5 out of 5]

Second time through this wonderful little book. Pastor Wilson not only effectively captures the femininity of Anne Bradstreet displayed in life’s seemingly mundane tasks in this book, it serves also as an excellent defense of the Puritan people as a whole. I especially loved reading about Anne’s love and respect for her father. Pastor Wilson correctly argues that she lived an exemplary life and ought to extend her influence over young women today, as she influenced and won the respect of many previous generations. All that besides, he excellently addressed the many misconceptions about Anne. (Anne Bradstreet? A feminist?!?! Progressive? COME ON PEOPLE. You shouldn’t be writing about America’s greatest poet if you can’t tell the difference between a Presbyterian and a Lesbyterian.)

[Sharon Diedrich · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thoughtful, Insightful, and Maybe a Bit Too Hopeful

A book written about a Puritan, by a Reformer, is bound to give a new perspective. Wilson seems to draw out Calvinism as the sole cause for many aspects of Bradstreet's success, when the subject matter presented doesn't always prove such. Also, the book is written as something of a proof for a preference of Puritan, Covenantal, and Reformed theology, though thise "proofs" are not always Scripturally based. As always, though, there is much to glean from the thoughtful wisdom of this author, and I offer my criticisms as one who respectfully disagrees on a theological basis.

[Cassie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reading about Anne Bradstreet's life was wonderfully refreshing, especially right after the birth of my fifth child. To think that she found time to write beautiful poetry in the midst of caring for a large family is truly amazing! This book is divided into 2 parts: the first being a synopsis of her life and the latter being a close examination of her character. She is a woman to be admired!

[Gary · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love this series, and it and Wilson were made for each other.

If you want to see more of the attractive side of Puritanism (and the reality is way more attractive than the stereotypes) then this is for you. The Puritans understood the need for beauty in a way their would-be followers today don't often come up to.

Loved it.

[Jo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Anne Bradstreet was an amazing woman. One in the lines in the book states, " she was ahead of our time.." - it's really true, she was not only extraordinarily gifted but extremely wise. I read this after I'd discovered her poetry to get some more backgorund. Great book. Great life story.