Gender Stereotypes In Anne Bradstreet's Poetry

Does gender explain the importance of a poet? Gender is just the state of being male or female. When it comes to gender no gender is superior than the other. Some individuals would imagine a poet becoming important by them excelling intellectually, being able to write about the things one could relate to, and sometimes being that voice for those who cannot be heard. Anne Bradstreet, an early American poet, takes on the gender stereotypes of women not being better poets than men in her poem “The Prologue”. Bradstreet was born in Northampton, England, in 1612, and was living during a period when women could not voice an opinion. If they opposed the punishment was death or in some cases banishment. She was the first women to be recognized as

Some of her most popular works are, “The Prologue”, “To My Dear and Loving Husband,” “A Letter to Her Husband, Absent Upon Public Employment,” and “The Author to Her Book”. Anne Bradstreet’s “The Prologue” is basically Bradstreet’s apology for her book of poems She wants to apologize that her poems are not so great as the those of the other poets, men. She also includes that she does not want to be this famous poet, she just wants some acknowledgement of her work; with hopes her work will not be judged so harshly. Finally Bradstreet takes a turn and begins to defend her art. She grants the fact that men expect women to practice feminine arts such as needlework, and refuses to recognize any value in a woman’s poem. Bradstreet then concludes her poem by admitting to the superiority of male poets and she asks the men to give some recognition to women’s efforts. In the poem Bradstreet states, “Men have precedency and still excel; It is but vain unjustly to wage war Men can do best, and women know it well.” Bradstreet feels there is no need for the men to feel

Your culture is what influences the way in which individuals view society. Today television shows, social media, family, and peers influences gender stereotypes. For example, in a household on television it will show a family with a mom, dad, sister, and brother. The dad works and comes home at the end of the day to a clean house and a freshly cooked meal, that his wife prepared. Seeing this would allow an individual to assume that is what a normal household looks like and functions. Which keeps gender stereotypes running of the man being the provider of the household and the woman being the stay at home mom. However, there are individuals in society who breaks gender stereotypes. Sometimes women are single parents and the only providers in a household. There are even stay at home dads who cook, clean, and take care of the children, while their wives work. There are families that are separated due to divorce. Although those families may not be the “normal” household it holds no lesser value than what society calls a regular