Known as the best writer of the Puritan times, Taylor's works were not published until 1939. A minister for sixty years, Taylor's poetry captures the attitudes of the second generation Puritans in its emphasis on self-examination, particularly in an individual's relations to God. His poetry is said to have been influenced by John Donne and other Metaphysical Poets. A good edition of Taylor's poetry is The Poems of Edward Taylor edited by Donald E. Stanford, 1960.

Primary Works

The Poetical Works of Edward Taylor, edited by Thomas H. Johnson (New York: Rockland Editions.1939);
The Poems of Edward Taylor, edited by Donald E. Stanford (New Haven: Yale University Press, 1960: abridged, 1963);
Edward Taylor's Christographia, edited by Norman S. Grabo (New Haven & London: Yale University Press. 1962;
A Transcript of Edward Taylor's Metrical History of Christianity, edited by Stanford ( Cleveland: Micro Photo. 1962);
The Diary of Edward Taylor, edited by Francis Murphy (Springfield, Mass.: Connecticut Valley Museum, 1964);
Edward Taylor's Treatise Concerning the Lord's Supper, edited by Grabo (East Lansing: Michigan State University Press, 1966);
The Unpublished Writings of Edward Taylor: volume 1, Edward Taylor's "Church Records" and Related Sermons; volume 2, Edward Taylor vs. Solomon Stoddard: The Nature of the Lord's Supper; volume 3 Edward Taylor's Minor Poetry, edited by Thomas M. and Virginia L. Davis (Boston: Teayne, 1981).

| Top | Selected Bibliography: Books

Davis, Thomas & Virginia, eds. Edward Taylor's "Church Records," and Related Sermons. Boston: Twayne, 1981. BX7255 .W488 W477

---. Edward Taylor vs. Solomon Stoddard: The Nature of the Lord's Supper. Boston: Twayne, 1981. BV824 .T39

Grabo, Norman S. Edward Taylor. Boston: Twayne, 1988. PS850 .T2 Z67

Munk, Linda. "Edward Taylor: Typology and Puritanism." History of European Ideas 17.1 (Jan 1993): 85-94.

Scheick, William J. The Will And The Word: The Poetry of Edward Taylor. Athens: U of Georgia P, 1974. PS850 .T2 Z773

Schuldiner, Michael. ed. The Tayloring Shop: Essays on the Poetry of Edward Taylor in Honor of Thomas M. and Virginia L. Davis. Newark: U of Delaware P, 1997.

| Top | Selected Bibliography: Articles

Ashley, Renee. An Aesthetic of Anomaly: Edward Taylor's 'Preface' to His 'Gods Deterninations'. Studies in American Humor 3.4 (1997): 15-46.

Bensick, Carol. "Preaching to the choir: Some Achievements and Shortcomings of Taylor's God's Determinatiuons." Early American Literature 28:2 (August 1993): 133-47.

Clark, Micheal. "The Subject of the Text in Early American Literature." Early american literature 20:2 (Dec. 1985): 120-30.

Denuccio, J.D. "Taylor's 'Preparatory Meditation 1.22'." Explicator 46:2 (winter 1988): 9-11.

Fithian, Rosemary. "'Words of My Mouth, Meditations of My Heart': Edward Taylors Preparatory Meditations and the Book of Psalms." Early American Literature 20:2 (Dec. 1985): 89-119.

Gordon-Grube, Karen. "Evidence of Medicinal Cannibalism in Puritan New England." Early American Literature 28:3 (March 1988): 185-221.

Hammond, J.A. "Who is Edward Taylor?: Voice and Reader in the Preparatory Meiditations." American Poetry 7:3 (Spring 1990): 2-19.

McDaniel, Rhonda. "Tying His World Together in 'Upon Wedlock, and Death of Children.'" Tennessee Philological Bulletin 34 (1997): 34-42.

New, Elisa. "'Both Great and Small': Adult Proportion and Divine Scale in Edward Taylor's 'Preface' and the New England Primer." Early American Literature 28:2 (August 1993); 120-32.

Patterson, J.D. "God's Determinations: The Occasion, the Audience, and Taylor's Hope for New England." Early American Literature 22:1 (July 1987): 63-81.

Polette, Keith. "Taylor's 'The Preface' and Borge's 'John 1:14'." Explicator 51:3 (Spring 1993): 151-53.

Shawcross, John. "Some Colonial american Poetry and George Herbert." Early American literature 23:1 (March 1988): 28-51.

Schuldiner, Michael. ed. The Tayloring Shop: Essays on the Poetry of Edward Taylor in Honor of Thomas M. and Virginia L. Davis. Newark, DE: University of Delaware Press, 1997.

| Top | Study Questions

1. Write a close analysis of any of the poems from Preparatory Meditations. Identify the central metaphor or series of related metaphors and describe the process by which Taylor converts the terms of each metaphor into an assurance of his own salvation.

2. Discuss the title of Taylor's group of poems Preparatory Meditations. How does the title reflect his sense of the purpose of poetry?

3. Trace Taylor's use of objects from the natural world or of secular experience in Upon Wedlock, and Death of Children; Upon a Wasp Chilled with Cold; or A Fig for Thee, Oh! Death and examine the relationship in the poem between earthly life and spiritual salvation.

4. Discuss the extent to which Taylor's poetry reflects specific concepts of Puritan theology.

5. Edward Taylor's poetry displays the influence of English metaphysical poets. How valid is the view that Taylor's metaphors are too homely for sacred poetry, that their vividness and oddity distract the reader from the poems' messages?

MLA Style Citation of this Web Page:

Reuben, Paul P. "Chapter 1: Early American Literature to1700 - Edward Taylor." PAL: Perspectives in American Literature- A Research and Reference Guide. WWW URL: http://www.csustan.edu/english/reuben/pal/chap1/taylor.html (provide page date or date of your login).

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