Posted
on October 18, 2013
It's
strange to think of a slave being a famous, published poet! But
Phillis Wheatley managed to transcend her short, difficult life by
writing poetry.
As
is usual for slaves, we aren't sure exactly when and where Wheatley
was born – but we do know that her name wasn't Phillis Wheatley
then! She was probably born in Senegal or Gambia, in Western Africa,
in 1753. She was sold into slavery when she was around seven years
old, and she was sent to Boston, Massachusetts, then a British
colony.
The Wheatley family bought her (isn't THAT a dreadful
sentence!); unlike many other slave owners, they taught her to read
and write. She mastered Greek and Latin as well as English, and after
she studied poetry, she began to write some of her own. When her
masters saw some of her poetry, they encouraged her to write more.
Her
collection of poems was published in 1773, and she was praised by
people such as African American poet Jupiter
Hammon. When she wrote a poem celebrating George Washington, he
invited her to his house to thank her, and Thomas Paine published that poem in a newspaper for all to read and enjoy.
Apparently,
Wheatley tended to write poems about famous people of the time as
well as religious, classical, and abstract themes. She wrote little
about her own life, and she wrote little about slavery as an idea or
practice. As a matter of fact, some people consider some of
Wheatley's rare mentions of slavery to be praise for the institution,
because she seemed grateful that slavery brought her into contact with
Christianity! However, at least one of Wheatley's poems refers to
slavery as a cruel fate.
As
we read Wheatley's words about slavery, we must remember that she had
had a unique slave experience. Her family had been surprisingly kind
to her to give her an education that wasn't just unusual for a slave,
but unusual even for a white woman! The family not only promoted her poetry, and
sought a publisher that would print it, they even sent her to
England to receive treatment for a medical problem.
Many
white colonists found it hard to believe that an African slave could
write excellent poetry, and Phillis Wheatley went to court, to be
examined by several learned white men, to prove that she wrote the
poems. After discussing poetry and some pretty scholarly ideas, the
learned men wrote and signed a note stating that she had, indeed,
authored the volume.
I have read many different reports about the sad end to the Wheatley family and the emancipation (freeing) of Phillis. Various researchers have concluded that Phillis Wheatley was freed on
this date, or that date, or maybe on this other date. I cannot be
certain of the facts, but one account states that Mrs.
Wheatley died on this date in 1773, and that Phillis was relieved of all
household duties and encouraged to concentrate on studying and
writing at that time. Some reports state that she was freed on 10/18/1773, but others report that it wasn't until Mr. Wheatley's death in 1778 that she was legally freed
through the terms of his will. Shortly after his death, the
Wheatley's daughter Mary died; she had been Phillis's original tutor.
Saddened by her family's sudden rash of deaths, Phillis married a
free black man named John Peters. The two struggled to earn enough
money to purchase food, even, and all three of
their children died as young babies. Phillis herself had become a
scullery maid in an effort to survive, and she died at age 31.
Tragic!
However, we can be very glad that Phillis Wheatley achieved a sort of
immortality through her poems!
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