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2.9.7: Reading and Review Questions

  • Page ID
    63182
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    1. In “Prologue,” when referring to himself as a poet, why does Taylor describe himself as a crumb of dust? How does this self-representation compare to those of Bradstreet’s and Wigglesworth’s?
    2. In “Preface to God’s Determination,” why and to what effect does Taylor present God’s creation in terms of craftsmanship and domesticity?
    3. What metaphors, or metaphysical conceits, does Taylor use in “Meditation 32” and “Meditation 8”? How does Taylor make their dissimilar elements similar? To what end?
    4. In “A Fig for Thee, O Death,” why does Taylor refer to his body as a strumpet? In what other ways does he refer to his body? What do these metaphors, or metaphysical conceits, have in common?
    5. In “Upon Wedlock, and Death of Children,” how does Taylor console himself for the loss of his child Elizabeth? How does his consolation compare with those of Bradstreet’s for her losses?

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