I cannot be satisfied, my Dearest Friend! blest as I am in the matrimonial state. unless I pour into your friendly bosom, which has ever been in unison with mine, the various deep sensations which swell with the liveliest emotions of pleasure
my almost bursting heart. I tell you my dear husband is one of the most amiable of men, I have been married seven weeks, and
have never found the least reason to
repent that day that joined us, my husband is
in person and manners far from resembling
ugly, crass, old, disagreeable, and jealous monsters, who think by confining to secure;
a wife, it is his maxim to treat as a
bosom-friend and confidant, and not as a plaything or menial slave, the woman
chosen to be his companion. Neither party
he says ought to obey implicitly;—
but each yield to the other by turns—
An ancient maiden aunt, near seventy,
a cheerful, venerable, and pleasant old lady,
lives in the house with us—she is the de-
light of both young and old—she is ci-
vil to all the neighborhood round,
generous and charitable to the poor—
I know my husband loves nothing more
than he does me; he flatters me more
than the glass, and his intoxication
(for so I must call the excess of his love)
often makes me blush for the unworthiness
of its object, and I wish I could be more deserving of the man whose name I bear. To
say all in one word, my dear, and to
crown the whole, my former gallant lover
is now my indulgent husband, my fondness
is returned, and I might have had
a Prince, without the felicity I find with
him. Adieu! May you be as blest as I am un-
able to wish that I could be more
happy.
Personally, I loved this piece. At first when I read it, I felt that it was forced – the language she uses and the repetitive praise of her husband feels disingenuous. It wasn’t until after reading (and being given the footnote saying so) that I discovered it wasn’t a misunderstanding of what the poem was about that caused me to miss its true purpose, but rather, it was my lack of knowledge in how to read the poem that hindered my understanding. The poem was meant to read as such:
I cannot be satisfied, my Dearest Friend!
unless I pour into your friendly bosom,
the various deep sensations which swell
my almost bursting heart. I tell you my dear
I have been married seven weeks, and
repent that day that joined us, my husband is
ugly, cross, old, disagreeable, and jealous
a wife, it is his maxim to treat as a
plaything or menial slave, the woman
he says ought to obey implicitly; –
An ancient maiden aunt, near seventy,
lives in the house with us – she is the de-
vil to all the neighborhood round,
I know my husband loves nothing more
than the glass, and his intoxication
often makes me blush for the unworthiness
of the man whose name I bear. To
crown the whole, my former gallant lover
is returned, and I might have had
him. Adieu! May you be as blest as I am un-
happy.
This reading didn’t necessarily change my thoughts or feelings on the poem, but it did change my perspective on the piece. In the first reading, the work exhibits the “training” and “expectation” of women to praise their husbands above all else, and to show respect and care for them (no matter how terrible). The first poem (in my opinion) was filled with a tone of oppression and fear – she over-praises her husband in order to appease him and to fill the role of the “doting wife” that society had defined for her. However, the second reading changed my interpretation slightly: rather than seeing the piece as a structural oppression, I was able to connect the hidden “woman” – the “female writer” that is hidden within obedient wives. This text is hidden within the text, just as the female writer is hidden within the female; it is only after pushing through the surface of what we are supposed to see, or what society expects of us, that we are able to strip bare the meaning of the piece, and we are able to truly make a connection with the author, narrator, character(s), etc. – in this case, it makes the poem more relatable to the reader due to the “everyday” nature of the topic at hand.
Feminist Literary Theory 