Phillis Wheatley free essay sample

When I reviewed our reading assignments for this past week, I was thrilled to see that we would be reading the works of Phillis Wheatley. During one of my recent classes, The African American Experience, I was able to read about the impact that Phillis Wheatley had on the enslaved African Americans and our society as a whole. Her story is nothing short of amazing and her poetry is joy to read. Phillis Wheatley was born in Africa around 1753 and was captured as a slave in the area known today as Senegal, which is located in West Africa. She was brought to America on one of the slave ships and sold in 1761 to the Wheatley family to be a personal slave to Mrs. Wheatley, Susanna. Almost immediately, the Wheatley’s, John and Susanna, took a special liking to Phillis and treated her more like a third child than a slave. It is said that the Wheatley’s noticed something special in Phillis and choose to encourage it rather than hinder it as many slave owners did during this time period. We will write a custom essay sample on Phillis Wheatley or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page The turning point for Phillis Wheatley was that she was fortunate enough to be educated. This was an amazing blessing to her because it was uncommon for free women in this era to be educated, not to mention enslaved women. Phillis Wheatley was an exceptional student and is said to have mastered English, including reading and writing, in less than two years time. After mastering English, she went on to learn both Greek and Latin. According to the readings and obvious by her works, Phillis Wheatley was knowledgeable beyond her years. She had a very mature writing style while still a young teenager. Fortunately for Phillis Wheatley, her owners and their family did not treat her like a slave. Her education was encouraged and her writings were praised. The Wheatley’s son, Nathaniel, is partly responsible that we are able to read the poetry of Phillis Wheatley today. He went with her to London in 1773 where she hoped to gain support of her manuscript and have her works published. Her first book, Poems on Various Subjects, Religious and Moral, was published while she was technically an enslaved African. Her new friends in England that she met while gaining support for her manuscript requested that she be freed, and her owners obliged. As a free African American, Phillis Wheatley met and married a man by the name of John Peters who was also free. The marriage did not last as he abandoned her. She never stopped writing, but she only had a few new poems published after her marriage. To support herself since her husband had left, she became a servant. When she died in 1784, she was living in poverty still working as a servant. It was after her death that more of her works were published. There were two additional books of her work that were published, and it is said that she has more works that remain hidden. Phillis Wheatley must have written hundreds, if not thousands, of poems. Despite the large amount of poetry, her most famous is â€Å"On Being Brought from Africa to America† which was written in 1768. This is the poem that I read in my previous course and this one too which shows how popular it is. It is such a joy to read because so many enslaved Africans were very angry over their enslavement. In this poem, it appears that Wheatley is thankful for her new opportunities because she wrote â€Å"’Twas mercy brought me from my pagan land†. The entire poem is about how she was able to learn about Christianity and that changing her life. She also wrote that others too may be changed and join â€Å"the angelic train†. In some ways, this could be taken in a negative light saying you must be Christian to be accepted, but I took in a positive way because I believe her faith was genuine and she was thankful to have been taught about God and Christianity. I also think she was thankful that she came to America because she was taught to read and write which was her pleasure in life. Phillis Wheatley was the first African American to have a book published. She gave hope to the other enslaved Africans that they too could be educated and become more than just a slave. Although many enslaved Africans did not agree that they needed to be â€Å"refined† as she wrote in her poem to â€Å"join the Anglican train†, they still respected her for her works.