Before the Birth of One of Her Children Summary & Analysis
by Anne Bradstreet

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Anne Bradstreet's "Before the Birth of One of Her Children" is actually about death—specifically, death in childbirth, an all-too-common fate when this poem appeared in 1678. The first published writer from England's North American colonies, Bradstreet was also the mother of eight children. She writes from a pregnant woman's perspective, capturing the inner life of the speaker as she grapples with her vulnerability as an expectant mother. This poem is at once a confrontation with mortality and a celebration of the rewards of motherhood.

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