Phillis Wheatley

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Phillis Wheatley

• During the time of slavery many believed that
  African Americans were not capable of reading and
  writing. Phillis Wheatley proved them wrong by
  publishing Poems on Various Subjects in 1773.
  Many believed that she did not author the poems,
  but her owner John Wheatley supported her claims.
  How else did Phillis Wheatley influence America?

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Phyllis Wheatley was a female slave and poet. Her
first book, Poems on Various Subjects, was
published in 1773. It was one of the earliest
books of poetry published by an African-American,
and the first published by an African-American
female slave. Her poems were mostly about her
religion and how it influenced her life.
Wheatley, P. (1773). Poems on Various
Subjects,Religious and Moral. . . Portrait facing
Title Page . Library of Congress Exhibitions, Ame
rican Treasures of the Library of Congress.
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Phyllis Wheatley was a female slave and poet. Her
first book, Poems on Various Subjects, was
published in 1773. It was one of the earliest
books of poetry published by an African-American,
and the first published by an African-American
female slave. Her poems were mostly about her
religion and how it influenced her life.
Wheatley, J. (1772). Poems on various subjects,
religious and moral. (Image 8). Library of
Congress American Memory, African American
Odyssey.
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Many of Wheatleys poems dealt with issues that
were not related to her personal condition as a
slave. Her poems were very similar, in subject
and style, to those of other poets of that time.
In this poem, for example, she talks about King
George III of Britain. Wheatley did not speak
directly about being a slave, and her writing
very carefully reflected the unwritten social
rules of the times. Many historians and literary
scholars do not, therefore, see her as an
activist. She is remembered for her success as a
poet and for being a noteworthy, literate,
enslaved African-American in an era in which few
African-Americans were literate. Wheatley, J.
(1772) Poems on various subjects, religious and
moral. (Image 19). Library of Congress American
Memory, African American Odyssey.
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Although Phyllis Wheatley did not share much of
her life as a slave in her poetry, she did
inspire other African-Americans to write about
their experiences. One was Olaudah Equiano, a
former slave who wrote down his life-story. He
became an important leader in the fight against
slavery, and his autobiography became one the
abolitionist movements most important texts.
Some scholars have recently questioned the truth
of some his stories, however. Equiano, O.
(1794). The Interesting Narrative of the Life of
Olaudah Equiano, or Gustavus Vassa, the African.
Library of Congress American Memory, African
American Odyssey.