The Works of Phillis Wheatley

The Works of Phillis Wheatley

Biography:

Phillis Wheatley was born in West Africa around 1753. Sometime after her birth, she was brought to America and purchased by John Wheatley in 1761. He turned Phillis over to his wife, Susanna, to work as a personal maid. After realizing Phillis’ intellect, the Wheatley family encouraged Phillis to study the Bible and read English and Latin literature, history and geography.

Wheatley’s first poem was published in a Rhode Island newspaper in 1767. Poems on Various Subjects consisted of thirty-eight poems written by Wheatley, and it could be found in London in 1773. Wheatley died on December 5, 1784.*

Discussion of Wheatley’s Work:

The poetry of Phillis Wheatley should be considered very controversial and powerful. The content of Wheatley’s poetry contains the muscle needed to strike controversy and power, but it also must be understood within the context of history. Wheatley was a black slave writing very methodic poetry in America during a time when African-Americans were considered to be less than animals. Reading and writing was not an option given to an overwhelming majority of slaves. Wheatley was able to do both with ease, and her white masters encouraged her to do so.

The fact that Wheatley’s poetry was read in her time is another impressive factor. She was black and a female, yet she received a decent amount of readership. In addition, she was respected for her art. However, the controversy and power existed not only within the time period Wheatley lived in, but they also existed within the content of her poetry.

"On Being Brought from Africa to America" praised the salvation that Wheatley received by coming to America and being exposed to Christianity. She also ...

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... Wheatley stands as a pioneering figure of African-American poetry (Gates xi). Wheatley has provided tremendous inspiration for African-American literature. Zora Neale Hurston, Lorraine Hansberry and Toni Morrison are among the many writers that Wheatley has influenced, and she will continue to influence many more considering her works are still published and read worldwide.

Works Cited

Gates, Henry Louis Jr. Foreword. The Collected Works of Phillis Wheatley. Ed. John C. Shields. New York: Oxford UP, 1988. xi.

Gates, Henry Louis Jr., and Nellie Y. McKay, eds. The Norton Anthology of African American Literature. New York: W.W. Norton, 1997. 164-167.

Wheatley, Phillis. "On Being Brought from Africa to America", "Atheism" and "An Address to the Deist." The Collected Works of Phillis Wheatley. Ed. John C. Shields. New York: Oxford UP, 1988. 18, 130, 131.