Painting of Mercy Otis Warren
Mercy Otis Warren, given the title by some historians of Muse of the American Revolution, is often neglected in the U.S. historical memory. However, her motivation for contributing numerous literary works on the subject of independence demonstrates virtues
found in the common individual while pointing out the discrepancies in a non-representational government. In her 1773 play, The
Adulateur, Warren describes the issue of individual rights through the
speech of her main character, Brutus:
The change how drear! The sullen
ghost of bondage
Stalks
full in view—already with her pinions,
She
shades the affrighted land—the insulting soldiers
Tread
down our choicest rights; while hoodwinked justice
Drops
her scales, and totters from her basis.
Thus
torn with nameless wounds, my bleeding country
Demands
a tear – that tear I’ll freely give her. [1]
Using the rebellious poetic format of blank verse,
Warren creates an image of the capture of justice, illustrating the conception
that human beings might be inherently good, but their thirst for power could cause a
diminishing of spiritual truth, thus leading to contrived allegiances to
governments and other forms of false leadership.
We thank such brave intelligent writers as Mercy Otis Warren for their insights regarding historical perspectives of justice.
[1] Mercy Otis
Warren, The Adulateur, Act I, Scene I,
Boston: New Printing Office, 1773.
