THE FLESH AND THE SPIRIT

MY DEAR ELT FRIENDS INSHALLAH WE WILL READ THE FLESH AND THE SPIRIT WEDNESDAY IN OUR BRITISH LITERATURE CLASS SO BEFORE TO READ IN MY SCHOOL I WANNA SHARE WITH YOU:))

In secret place where once I stood
Close by the Banks of Lacrim flood,
I heard two sisters reason on
Things that are past and things to come.
One Flesh was call'd, who had her eye
On worldly wealth and vanity;
The other Spirit, who did rear
Her thoughts unto a higher sphere.
'Sister,' quoth Flesh, 'what liv'st thou on
Nothing but Meditation?
Doth Contemplation feed thee so
Regardlessly to let earth go?
Can Speculation satisfy
Notion without Reality?
Dost dream of things beyond the Moon
And dost thou hope to dwell there soon?
Hast treasures there laid up in store
That all in th' world thou count'st but poor?
Art fancy-sick or turn'd a Sot
To catch at shadows which are not?
Come, come. I'll show unto thy sense,
Industry hath its recompence.
What canst desire, but thou maist see
True substance in variety?
Dost honour like? Acquire the same,
As some to their immortal fame;
And trophies to thy name erect
Which wearing time shall ne'er deject.
For riches dost thou long full sore?
Behold enough of precious store.
Earth hath more silver, pearls, and gold
Than eyes can see or hands can hold.
Affects thou pleasure? Take thy fill.
Earth hath enough of what you will.
Then let not go what thou maist find
For things unknown only in mind.'
pirit.
'Be still, thou unregenerate part,
Disturb no more my settled heart,
For I have vow'd (and so will do)
Thee as a foe still to pursue,
And combat with thee will and must
Until I see thee laid in th' dust.
Sister we are, yea twins we be,
Yet deadly feud 'twixt thee and me,
For from one father are we not.
Thou by old Adam wast begot,
But my arise is from above,
Whence my dear father I do love.
Thou speak'st me fair but hat'st me sore.
Thy flatt'ring shews I'll trust no more.
How oft thy slave hast thou me made
When I believ'd what thou hast said
And never had more cause of woe
Than when I did what thou bad'st do.
I'll stop mine ears at these thy charms
And count them for my deadly harms.
Thy sinful pleasures I do hate,
Thy riches are to me no bait.
Thine honours do, nor will I love,
For my ambition lies above.
My greatest honour it shall be
When I am victor over thee,
And Triumph shall, with laurel head,
When thou my Captive shalt be led.
How I do live, thou need'st not scoff,
For I have meat thou know'st not of.
The hidden Manna I do eat;
The word of life, it is my meat.
My thoughts do yield me more content
Than can thy hours in pleasure spent.
Nor are they shadows which I catch,
Nor fancies vain at which I snatch
But reach at things that are so high,
Beyond thy dull Capacity.
Eternal substance I do see
With which inriched I would be.
Mine eye doth pierce the heav'ns and see
What is Invisible to thee.
My garments are not silk nor gold,
Nor such like trash which Earth doth hold,
But Royal Robes I shall have on,
More glorious than the glist'ring Sun.
My Crown not Diamonds, Pearls, and gold,
But such as Angels' heads infold.
The City where I hope to dwell,
There's none on Earth can parallel.
The stately Walls both high and trong
Are made of precious Jasper stone,
The Gates of Pearl, both rich and clear,
And Angels are for Porters there.
The Streets thereof transparent gold
Such as no Eye did e're behold.
A Crystal River there doth run
Which doth proceed from the Lamb's Throne.
Of Life, there are the waters sure
Which shall remain forever pure.
Nor Sun nor Moon they have no need
For glory doth from God proceed.
No Candle there, nor yet Torch light,
For there shall be no darksome night.
From sickness and infirmity
Forevermore they shall be free.
Nor withering age shall e're come there,
But beauty shall be bright and clear.
This City pure is not for thee,
For things unclean there shall not be.
If I of Heav'n may have my fill,
Take thou the world, and all that will.' 

Anne Bradstreet

Anne Bradstreet: Poems Summary and Analysis of "The Flesh and the Spirit"

Summary:

The poet describes walking by the secret place on the banks of the Lacrim and overhearing a conversation between two sisters; one called "Flesh" and the other named "Spirit."

Flesh asks her sister why she prefers to survive on meditation alone, and how quiet contemplation can be satisfying. She wonders if her sister ever dreams of anything beyond the moon and asks if she is "fancy-sick." Flesh wants to try to show Spirit some sense and let her see that substance lies in variety. Earth is full of riches like silver, gold, and pearls, which can all give a person pleasure. Here on Earth, she tells her sister, "is enough of what you will."

Spirit calls her sister a foe and implores her not to disturb her lifestyle. Spirit will fight Flesh and lay her out in dust if she has to in this "deadly feud." The two sisters have different fathers – Flesh is born of Adam and Spirit is born of God. Spirit is not swayed by Flesh's flattery and is tired of being enslaved by her words. She says she will stop up her ears against beguilement, for she hates "sinful pleasures" and explains that her "ambition lies above."

Spirit continues to say that sustenance is in the "word of life" and her thoughts give her unparalleled contentment and fulfillment. Flesh, however, will never reach those things. Spirit does not wear robes of silver and gold, but her clothes are made of the royal fabric of Heaven. She claims that the city above, with its stately walls, pearly gates and crystal river, is finer than anything on Earth. There is no need for a candle or torchlight, because there is never darkness. Sickness cannot hold sway there either. Spirit's city will not welcome Flesh, though, for she is "unclean."

Analysis:

"The Flesh and the Spirit" was published in 1650. The poem is a conversation between Flesh and Spirit, which Bradstreet personifies as two arguing sisters. There is tension between these two aspects of human nature, and in the poem, Bradstreet explores some of the most important and ubiquitous questions within the Puritan faith.

The poem begins with Bradstreet wandering along the banks of Lacrim (a variation on the Latin word for tears, suggesting grief or mourning) and coming across the two sisters in heated conversation. Based on Puritan ideology, it is clear which one of the sisters will "win," or have the figurative last word, but the conversation between the two brings up some realistic quandaries surrounding faith. Flesh begins by asking her sister how she can subsist on contemplation and meditation alone.

Flesh wonders if the lack of immediate results is crippling. She also tries to engage Spirit's attention by pointing out varied and wondrous material goods. She extols the joy in honor, riches, precious stones – "enough of what you will." Flesh, as critic Robert J. Richardson writes, "is not gross, detestable sensual, or mindless." Instead, her questions are probing and valuable, as she is trying to mediate between the sinful self and the redeemed self - which are, as Bradstreet implies, close siblings.

Spirit speaks next, and her words are far stronger. It is clear that the conflict between the two will never be reconciled. Spirit lashes out against her sister: "For I have vow'd (and so will do) / thee as a foe still to pursue, / And combat with thee will and must / Until I see thee laid into dust." Spirit does not take time to refute Flesh's arguments, but instead simply insists that her sister is wrong and worthy of denouncement. Spirit claims to spend her time thinking of things that lie beyond Flesh's mental capacity, and smugly declares that she will be the victor.

Richardson notes "the crowning irony" in the second half of Spirit's monologue, which is that "Spirit describes Heaven in the very material terms she has just scorned." She speaks of her royal robes, precious stones, royal walls, and sparkling rivers. Spirit asserts that the pursuit these things is not inherently wrong, but that she prefers the eternal versions. The City where Spirit will eventually dwell for eternity is free from "sickness and infirmity" and "darksome night," but Flesh cannot go there.

Spirit predictably "gets the last word" in the conversation between the two sisters, as it would have been unlikely that Bradstreet would have given the victory to Flesh. However, as with many of Bradstreet's poems, the questions surrounding religion are not necessarily straightforward. "The Flesh and the Spirit" alludes to the internal conflicts that many Puritans faced. Dr. Jim Wohlpart writes:

Like many Puritan texts, [the poem] describes the internal, psychological struggle that existed because of the Puritan belief in total depravity. The conflict between the sinful self and the redeemed self originated from the condition that, according to Puritans, humans, who are stricken with original sin because of Adam’s fall, must always keep an awareness of their depraved status in the forefront of their thoughts.