The Author To Her Book Essay, Research Paper

The Author to Her Book

In The Author to Her Book by Anne Bradstreet, the author connects the strife of raising a child and creating self-satisfying writing. Bradstreet s tone is filled with contempt and criticism towards her offspring . She scorns her writing for its incapability to be faultless. However, Bradstreet still takes pride in her work and desires to mend the faults found within her creation. Bradstreet does not just give up entirely; she tries to solve her problem. Anne Bradstreet is displeased with her subject s defects but feels a strong urge to correct these faults.

Bradstreet s feels contempt and disregard towards her writing. She casts thee by as one unfit for light (line 9). Bradstreet finds her writing appalling and unfit to be looked upon. She wishes to toss it away into the darkness where no one will see her ill-formed creation. Much like a mother is embarrassed by her child s behavior or faults, Bradstreet is embarrassed by her writings mistakes and flaws. In fact, even it s visage was irksome in [her] sight (line10). Bradstreet finds the entire face of her writing irritating. It s complete appearance appalls her. She can not even bear to look at the imperfect ill-formed creation of hers. Just as a mother is annoyed by her child, Bradstreet is annoyed by her writing. She is unable to accept what her writing has become.

Though her subject disgusts and displeases her, Bradstreet realizes it is her own and she takes pride and responsibility for improving her writing; she refuses to just give up. One of Bradstreet s many attempts to redeem her writing includes [washing it s] face, but [seeing more defects], rubbing off a spot still made a flaw (line 13-14). Bradstreet tried to clean up her writing, much like how a mother would try to alter her child s appearance or behavior. She tried to rewrite or erase a part of her work but these futile attempts just led her to find more faults. No matter how hard Bradstreet works she is not able to make her writing flawless. Bradstreet tries to better dress to trim [ her writing] but nought save home-spun cloth, I th house [could she find] find (line 17,18). Bradstreet is unable to continue her revisions. Even though Bradstreet desires to continue revising, she has nothing left to add or contribute her writing. She has given her writing all she has and this leads her to send thee out the door (line 24). All of Bradstreet s efforts and attempts for perfection prove useless and she must end her writing off with all its flaws intact. She sets free her writing; Bradstreet no longer deems it as unfit for light ; she has let it go off into the world. Bradstreet is finally accepting her writing for what it is and not what she feels it should be. She has done all she can, and now like a mother she must let go of her creation. Bradstreet has sent off the best writing she could manage and she is able to accept this.

At first, Bradstreet searched too hard for something that didn t exist. Bradstreet couldn t accept the flaws in her writing and this caused her to cast it away. She sought out perfection in an imperfect world. In the end, we see Bradstreet struggle to improve her writing. Just like a mother to her child, she wanted her writing to be all it could be. Eventually, Bradstreet set it free, with all it s mistakes; she truly accepted what it had become.