In the final couplet, Bradstreet also creates a play on words with the similar sounds of “love” and “live.” This clever wordplay reminds implies that a love like the one that she writes about can be the source of both earthly happiness and eternal life. Bradstreet suggests that love makes our time on earth truly special, and persists after our death.

Notice that the final couplet features alliteration, similar to that of the poem’s opening. The speaker uses the consonant sounds th, w, and l when she says “then while we live” and “that when we live.” The repetition of these sounds gives the poem a somewhat cyclical nature; the start of the poem mimics the structure of the ending. This suggests a kind of fluidity of time that brings us from the past, to the eternal future, and back again. Bradstreet’s careful use of alliteration here thus underscores the theme that love transcends the boundaries of time.

The final line offers another interpretation of the poem’s structure as a whole. Notice that the speaker’s metaphors move from the earthly realm into the spiritual in ascending order. The speaker moves from the “mines of gold” underground in line five to the “riches” and “rivers” above ground in line six and seven. She then alludes to the “heavens” and prayer in line ten and lastly to the eternal, spiritual afterlife in the final line. If we look at this structure in a religious context, Bradstreet may be suggesting that earthly love should be modeled after the kind of godly love that results in admission to heaven.

The speaker appeals to her husband in this line, telling him to help make certain that they “persever” (persevere) in love as long as they live. This line emphasizes the mutual work and support that marriage entails.

Notice that “my love” in line seven is reciprocated by “thy love” in this line, subtly emphasizing the idea that there must be mutual reciprocity and balance in marriage. Consider though, that the speaker here somewhat contradicts her previous line, by suggesting that actually, she cannot repay her husband for his incredible love for her, only God can.

“Recompense” means to “compensate,” which signals a return to the idea of love and marriage as a monetary transaction. Note however, that this exchange between the lovers implies their equality, because the line can be loosely paraphrased as “my love for you can only be compensated by your love for me.”

The speaker values her husband’s love above the most valuable things on earth, but note that the metaphors of thirst and water remind the reader that the speaker’s love for her husband cannot be measured or stopped in the way that gold and riches can. Her love for him thus transcends earthly confines, giving the poem a more divine and holy tone that suggests once again the Puritan influence on the poem.

The capitalization of “rivers” here is interesting, because it is unclear as to why Bradstreet might have done so. We might infer that it is capitalized for emphasis, much like “Mines” was in line five. This might suggest their great breadth and depth, making the speaker’s declaration that rivers cannot “quench” her love even more bold.

“Doth” is an archaic form of the word “does.” The word features prominently in Elizabethan literature, and although Bradstreet is writing after the reign of Queen Elizabeth, she was well known for her use of Elizabethan traditions in her writings, even after moving to the American colonies.

The “East” is a geographical term used to refer to the parts of Asia that lie to the east of Europe, such as, China, India, Syria, Asia Minor, etc. As “the East” encompasses a vast range of land and countries, the metaphor works on a literal level: “the East” literally can hold more riches because it refers to a larger area. However, during Bradstreet’s time, the world outside of Europe was just becoming accessible to Europeans, and Europeans saw Asia as a place of incredible wealth that colonizers saw as theirs for the taking.

Gold is rare and solid, which contrasts the broad, flowing rivers that she describes in line seven. Bradstreet’s use of conflicting imagery contributes to the theme of balance, further emphasizing the importance of maintaining harmony and balance in partnerships.

As a puritan herself, Anne Bradstreet’s poetry features many puritan elements, and “To My Dear and Loving Husband” is no exception. In puritan theology, the belief was that one should never prize material goods above God’s love or the love of one’s partner. This line thus echoes that puritan sentiment.

The possessive pronoun “thy” means “of or belonging to thee.” The speaker is addressing her husband here, suggesting that she values his love for her “more than whole Mines of gold.” Note the capitalization of “Mines.” Bradstreet may have capitalized the word to indicate the amount of riches in the mines, since during Bradstreet’s time, rules regarding capitalization were not as definitive as they are today.

This line might be read in a few different ways. In the previous line, the speaker says that if there were ever a wife truly happy with her husband, that wife would be the speaker. The next line thus could be read as “Women, compare your happiness in your marriage to mine,” or “Women, compare yourself to me if you can.” However, the line could also be read as addressing the speaker’s husband “Darling, compare me with other women, if you can.” Regardless of interpretation, the speaker makes a bold claim about how incomparable the love she shares with her husband is to anything else.

Although it may be tempting to translate the term “ye” into “you,” the term actually means “the.” The fourth line differs from the first three in that the speaker shifts the focus from herself and her husband to women in general.

The continuance of the anaphora “if ever” in this line underscores that this couple’s marriage is idyllic. Out of all romances to “ever” come, theirs represents the model romance that others should strive for.

Bradstreet’s word choice here is interesting. The previous line emphasized the speaker’s deep love for her husband, but this line emphasizes how “happy” he makes her. The fact that the speaker’s husband makes her happy suggests reciprocity but does not evidence it because his love is for her is not yet mentioned. This imbalance is short-lasting though, and the speaker tells us of her husband’s own love for her in line five.

While the word “thee” may seem formal to modern readers at first glance; however, in Bradstreet’s time, the word actually suggested intimacy and closeness. The speaker’s use of the word thus further underscores the deeper connection that the speaker has with her husband.

Note the speaker’s bold use of the word “surely,” which suggests that there is no room for arguments or alternatives. Consider too, that she uses the term “we” to speak for herself and her husband. Her confidence in the genuine compatibility and connection in this union is apparent.

Although the speaker starts off with the logical “if...then” structure, the speaker also says that because the two lovers share such a powerful connection, they are essentially one person. Bradstreet again contrasts the logical with the emotional to strike balance and to more wholly represent the love these partners share. RL.11-12.3

The rhyme scheme of the poem is AA BB CC DD EE FF with a few slant rhymes on lines six and seven and lines eleven and twelve. The entire poem is composed of rhyming couplets, which gives it a feeling of symmetry similar to what the iambic pentameter achieves. This detail foreshadows the theme of balance and equality that will pervade throughout the poem. Bradstreet describes a marriage of balance and mutual connection.

This poem is written entirely in iambic pentameter with the exception of the line eight, which, depending on the reading, could have an extra, unstressed syllable. Regardless, the iambic pentameter gives the poem an organic sound, because iambic pentameter creates a pace that is often thought to be very similar to “natural” speech. Further, the symmetrical structure of the meter gives the poem a steady sound, echoing the consistent, lasting quality of the romantic love that the poem describes.

Notice that the first three lines of the poem follow an “if...then” grammatical structure. Along with the use of somewhat formal language, this logical design gives the poem a kind of rational tone that contrasts with the poem’s emotional subject, love. The contrast between the logical and the emotional becomes an important theme throughout the poem, as the speaker struggles to describe highly sentimental, romantic feelings with language, something that is inherently limiting.

The repetition of the words “if ever” in the first three lines of the poem are an example of anaphora, a literary device in which a word or phrase is repeated at the beginning of successive clauses. The phrase “if ever” could read today as something like “if there ever was,” which alludes to the past. Thus, opening with this particular anaphora introduces one of the poem’s central themes: the passage of time and how love can be affected by it.