Source identified1
Image design Midnight
Read & copy
“Thou ill-form’d offspring of my feeble brain, Who after birth didst by my side remain,”
Meaning & context
Bradstreet compares her published book to an imperfect child, combining embarrassment, affection and the writer’s persistent wish to revise work already exposed to readers.
Source details
“The Author to Her Book,” represented by Poetry Foundation from Bradstreet’s posthumous 1678 collection. The extended parent-child metaphor reflects authorship, unauthorized publication and revision rather than a literal statement about children.