<http://www.puritansermons.com/poetry/taylor14.htm>
Self-Reflection
The Poem Huswifery expresses the many household and domestic tasks that take place within the house of a family between a wife and a husband, and as a result the many tasks are shown to make up a greater entity. The reason I chose this passage, was due to its intensity as it appealed to a greater deity (god) through the use of symbolic language and connotation. After reading the poem, I came to find that it focused primarily upon the domesticities, “labors,” that took place in the house and how they made up the hands of god. It would seem that a sense of male superiority was depicted throughout the course of the poem and how men performed tasks of more importance than the “simplicity” of the domestic tasks performed by women. This same mentality was also presented during the Puritan Era in North America when women were considered inferior to men in that they could not perform tasks other than those performed in the house. I myself could not stand for a sense of male superiority within community, as it would be foolish for men to take on every physical role within the typical lifestyle of a family. It angered me to find that males believed that they could perform any task better than women. Many men to this day believe they can hold positions of leaderships better than women. An example portraying this can be seen in the record of presidency, as there have been no women holding the office as president. Overall, this piece of work depicts the lifestyle of a typical puritan family and how the male inherits a position of leadership within the house.
Dear Diary,
February 16, 1622
As I was walking back to the new settlement in Cape Cod a friend of mine handed me a poem that he claimed to have found on the Mayflower. The poem my friend has found, is apparently called “Huswifery” written by a man named Edward Taylor. The poem in which I have read encompasses a variety of metaphors in order to explain the many household and domestic tasks that all come to make up a spinning wheel which he compares to god. As I read the poem the spinning wheel within the poem really captured my attention as it was used as an extended metaphor by Taylor in order to make a plea towards god. I believe that such a notion was truly powerful as a man wished to only to perform activities that would be completed by the hands of women. Such a mindset would never be thought of in our community as men are known to perform physical tasks rather than the so thought “mundane,” activities performed by women. Similarly within the poem I was amazed to find that the author did not find any restrictions upon gender and the activities that were thought to be performed. Such a mindset is amazing to me as the typical male mindset within the white settlements is to perform only the hard work and leave women to care for children. The world that I have come to treats males as a predominant gender within community however the poem in which I have read truly expresses the importance of the job of women. In conclusion I am impressed to find that the author this poem truly appeals to god as he looks to perform similar tasks to that of a woman.
After reading the poem through depth I have found myself to be truly involved with the structure in which the poem is written. As the poem continues I have found that the author truly appeals to god in a manner in which he explains the tasks of women through the different working parts of the spinning wheel. As I read the poem I was truly amazed as Taylor expressed the yarn of the spinning wheel in such a rhythmic trance through the use of a metaphor. As I read the poem I understood that the yarn within the poem was compared to a conversation held with a supreme deity known as god. Similarly, my attention was drawn towards the poem as Taylor expressed the different fragments of the spinning will through an extended metaphor compared to god. I was interested to discover that each part of the spinning wheel was compared to a word or phrase that the author believed god to speak of. In conclusion I was truly impressed at this great piece of work written by Taylor, as it expressed household tasks and how they could also be performed by males.
3 comments:
Nikhil, interesting views you had on Taylor’s poem “Huswifery.” Your diary entry was intriguing and your self-reflection captivated my interest. While reading your self-reflection I would like to suggest that the poem was manly about a man’s devotion to god not particular a man who assumes the role of a woman. In general interesting topics were suggested and particular views were emphasized.
I thank you for your comments, and I do agree with you and believe I should have expressed a man's appeal to god. However, on my defense I should also state that the man assumes domestic roles. Overall, I must thank you again for your comments as I also believe that you did a great job with your self-reflection and diaries!
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