The Prophetic Faith of Our Fathers, vol. 3

IV. First American Poet Employs Prophetic Symbolism

It is significant, as well as interesting, to find America’s first woman poet employing the prophetic symbolism of Daniel 2, 7, and 8, and Revelation 17, just as the preachers, educators, statesmen, judges, and physicians about her were doing. Such common usage implies common knowledge and understanding. PFF3 55.3

ANNE BRADSTREET (1612-1672), earliest professional poet of her sex in New England, was born in Northampton, England. Her father was Governor Thomas Dudley, a stern Puritan with military background. Strictly and religiously upreared, and possessed of a brilliant mind, Anne was married at sixteen to Simon Bradstreet, a Cambridge M.A. graduate, son of a nonconformist minister, and future governor of Massachusetts. A few years later, in 1630, they came to New England, where her husband was advanced from colonial secretary to judge, legislator, governor, ambassador, and royal councilor. PFF3 55.4

Anne had a scholar’s thirst for knowledge. With her husband she had settled at Ipswich, but they removed to North Andover about 1644. ¹²¹ She became the champion of her sex, protesting the traditional disparagement of womankind, and glorying in the career of Queen Elizabeth. Though the mother of eight children, she found time to write more than 7,000 lines of verse. ¹²² In fact, she produced the first book of poems ¹²³ by an English woman in America. Though sometimes crude in technique and form, they were the best of the time, and were rather remarkable when time, place, and circumstance are considered. She was a faithful student of history. And the longest of her poems, written about 1642, is significantly called “The Foure Monarchies,” ¹²⁴ patterned after Sir Walter Raleigh’s History of the World (1614). Into this general structure she wrought the prophetic element in an impressive way. PFF3 55.5

Picture 3: PIONEERS IN FOUR FIELDS EMPHASIZE PROPHECY
First colonial exposition, made by John Cotton (upper left); first colonial poems, by anne Bradstreet, employ prophetic ymbols (Upper Right); First Complete Commentary on Daniel,Composed by Ephraim Huit (Lower Left); and First New England History, by Edward Johnson, Uses graphic prophetic terms (lower right, with inset)
page 57

1. THE TRUMPETRIE OF FALLEN ROME

On the ecclesiastical side of politics, Anne was strongly anti-Romanist and anti-ritualistic, as the invective of the ringing lines that follow attest. And the terse prophetic symbolism employed is to be noted, running as it does with consistent pattern through much of the literature of the time. Penned in 1642, “A Dialogue between Old England and New,” concerns contrasting conditions and attitudes. Her strong phrases are characteristic of the time. Exclaiming- PFF3 57.1

“Blest be thy Preachers, who do chear thee on,
O cry: the sword of God, and Gideon” PFF3 57.2

she then declares: PFF3 57.3

“These are the dayes, the Churches foes to crush,
To root out Prelates, head, tail, branch, and rush.
Let’s bring Baals vestments out to make a fire,
Their Myters, Surplices, and all their tire,
Copes, Rochets, Crossiers, and such trash,
And let their names consume, but let the flash
Light Christendome, and all the world to see
We hate Romes Whore with all her trumperie.” ¹²⁵ PFF3 57.4

She closes with the note of triumph addressed to the church: PFF3 58.1

“For sure the day of your redemption’s nigh.” ¹²⁶ PFF3 58.2

2. THE KINGDOMS OF THE METALLIC MAN

But the ready pen of the expositor thrusts the prophetic symbols of Daniel 2 and 7 into the heart of her major poem, “The Foure Monarchies of the World.” ¹²⁷ The first of four parts is the “Assyrian,” including the later Babylonian, which she identifies explicitly. “This was of monarchies that head of gold.” ¹²⁸ Then comes “The Second Monarchy, being the Persian,” ¹²⁹ followed by the Grecian, third, with its four telltale divisions- PFF3 58.3

“Seleuchus, Ptolomy, Cassander joynes,
Lysimachus to make a fourth combines.” ¹³⁰ PFF3 58.4

Soon appear these truly remarkable lines of prophetic exposition in the familiar pattern: PFF3 58.5

“Here ends at last the Grecian Monarchy,
Which by the Romans had its destiny.
Thus Kings, and Kingdoms, have their times, and dates,
Their standings, over-turnings, bounds, and fates;
Now up, now down, now chief, and then brought under,
The Heavens thus rule, to fill the earth with wonder.
The Assyrian Monarchy long time did stand,
But yet the Persian got the upper hand;
The Grecian, them did utterly subdue,
And Millions were subjected unto few:
The Grecian longer then the Persian stood,
Then came the Romane, like a raging flood,
And with the torrent of his rapid course,
Their Crownes, their Titles, riches beares by force.
The first, was likened to a head of gold,
Next, armes and breast, of silver to behold;
The third, belly and thighs of brasse in sight,
And last was Iron, which breaketh all with might.
The Stone out of the Mountaine then did rise,
And smote those feet, those legs, those arms and thighs;
Then gold, silver, brasse, iron, and all that store
Became like chaffe upon the threshing-floor.” ¹³¹ PFF3 58.6

3. PROPHETIC BEASTS ARE PARALLELING SYMBOLS

Turning immediately to the symbolism of Daniel 7, she rehearses the standard view: PFF3 59.1

“The first a Lion, second was a Beare,
The third a Leopard, which four wings did rear;
The last more strong, and dreadfull, then the rest,
Whose iron teeth devoured every beast;
And when he had no appetite to eate,
The residue he stamped under’s feet:
But yet this Lion, Bear, this Leopard, Ram,
All trembling stand, before that powerfull Lambe.
With these three Monarchies, now have I done,
But how the fourth, their Kingdoms from them won;
And how from small beginnings it did grow, To fill the world with terrour, and with woe.” ¹³² PFF3 59.2

The boldness of her attempt seems to overwhelm her, and she adds, apologetically: PFF3 59.3

“My tired braine, leaves to a better pen,
This taske befits not women, like to men:
The Subject was too high, beyond my straine.” ¹³³ PFF3 59.4

The final part of the discussion, that of “the Roman Monarchy,” the fourth and last, is incomplete. When she later attempted to finish it, her manuscript was unfortunately destroyed by fire when her home was burned, and it was never rewritten. ¹³⁴ Such is Anne Bradstreet’s early contribution to our quest in 1642. PFF3 59.5