s no wonder the following names were only found out later as "no seventeenth-century Puritan women voluntarily published their writing" because of the "vulnerable position women held in the society" and also because "women of literary talent were especially stifled:" Ann Hayden, Mary English, Sarah Goodhue, Grace Smith, Mercy Wheeler, Jane Colman Turell. In the case of Jane Colman Turell it is important to note, that she was educated by her father just like Bradstreet, as we will see, and, besides Bradstreet, she was "the only Puritan woman to leave a substantial body of poetry" (3).
             There are more explanations for the position of women in colonial New England. The Puritan religion was one of the main reasons for the lowly view as "from medieval times, the church and state had systematically subordinated women through both custom and law, and the Protestant revolt was especially male-centered" (4). As Lockridge says "women were discriminated against because they were women and not because they were poor" (5).
             The consequences were, mainly, that women were dependent on their husbands and were restricted when it came to education. The basic expectation for females was to be "submissive to their husbands and all other male authorities." This was radical and elemental in the english society (6).
             Therefore, marriage was also not based on emotions. "Marriage was mostly for economic benefits, not romantic situations. Widows were also pressured to get married as soon as possible." Also, a wife had no authority over their possessions, goods, and fortune, if any. It was the husband's responsibility to discipline the wife (7). Among these circumstances it seems impossible for a woman to be a poet, a writer, or, for that matter, a businesswoman like Knight was. It seems that no independent behavior was accepted from women.
             As for the female education, it ...