Comparative Essay: Baca vs. Bradstreet In Jimmy Santiago Baca's poem entitled I, and Anne Bradstreet's Verses Upon theBurning of Her House, both write about their dreadful experience of the burning of theirhomes. But the way in which each of the poets express this occurrence, with the use ofdifferent styles of imagery and the diction, can change the way the reader interprets thepoem. The tone used by each poet is critical because it indicates to the reader theiremotions. Therefore, by comparing these poems of Baca and Bradstreet, it will be evidentthat these elements of writing: tone, diction, and imagery; are crucial factors that willaffect the way a reader perceives a poem. By analyzing the tones of these poems, one can see that they are virtually opposite.In Baca's poem, it is evident from the very beginning that he's setting a tone of utterdisbelief and vulnerability. In the first stanza Baca states how he was "numbed" as heturned the corner to his home, and braced his body to prepare for the "shock" he wouldfeel. The very second Baca saw his flaming home, he's filled with horror and disbelief.Near the end, when he walks into his room he falls to his hands and knees and looksthrough the pile of ashes that once used to be his poems. This part of the poem symbolizeshis falling apart; when he falls to his hands and knees it shows the extent of his sorrow.While Baca is torn apart, Bradstreet's tone is ultimately one of acceptance. At first,Bradstreet's tone is one of grievance and lamenting, but in the middle of the poem itchanges in which she states that she shouldn't grieve over the loss of a home that didn'tbelong to her; a home that belonged to the almighty man "that gave and took". In thisquote, she's referring to God as being all-powerful and that the house has always belongedto him; and that he can give and take as he pleases. Therefore, she's willing to accept theburning of her home, if its Gods will. The imagery in both poem...
