Phillis Wheatley however was educated in the classics, although in the context of theology, English, Roman, and Greek. Eventually, courses in ancient history, mythology, and literature were all incorporated into the curriculum.
African Booth
Phillis Wheatley, an early African American poet, was born in Senegal in 1753. She was taken from her home in West Africa at the age of eight and sold as a slave in Boston. John Wheatley, upon meeting the girl, bought her to serve his wife Susanna.
Wheatley (who, as was the practice at the period, took her master’s surname) was taken under Susanna’s wing as per family directive. Susanna did not teach Wheatley to be her servant since, despite her terrible condition, her rapid intelligence was obvious.
Wheatley, however, was educated in the classics, although in the context of theology, English, Roman, and Greek. Eventually, courses in ancient history, mythology, and literature were all incorporated into the curriculum.
Furthermore, although still being a slave, Wheatley was allowed a certain amount of freedom and was treated as an integral part of the family. Wheatley was an exception during a period when black people were actively prevented from acquiring literacy.
At the age of twelve, Wheatley had her first poetry published
At the age of twelve, Wheatley had her first poetry published. This piece, about two guys who come close to drowning at sea, was published in the Newport Mercury. Many more of Wheatley’s poems were eventually published, adding to his already considerable notoriety.
Wheatley rose to fame after the publication of her sole poetry collection, Poems on Different Topics, Religious and Moral, in 1773. Susanna Wheatley contributed to the book’s printing costs.
The poems in the anthology were supposedly written by her, and a group of 17 men from Boston wrote a prologue claiming she was the author.
One of the most significant contributions to American literature is Poems on Different Topics. Wheatley published it, making her the third American woman and the first African American and first U.S. slave to do so.
When Wheatley’s book came out, she went to London to conduct some book promotion and get some much-needed medical care for an illness she’d been suffering for some time.
Phillis Wheatley was a passionate supporter of the American Revolution
The changes in Wheatley’s life were dramatic once she moved back to Boston. Even though she was emancipated from slavery in the end, the loss of Susanna (who passed away in 1774) and John Wheatley (who passed away in 1776) grieved her (d. 1778).
Wheatley married free Black American John Peters of Boston in 1778; the couple had three infant deaths. A persistent fight against poverty dogged their marriage. Wheatley ended up having to take a job as a maid at a boarding home since she had nowhere else to turn.
Wheatley did keep on writing, but as the Revolutionary War and escalating tensions with the British wore on, her poetry lost some of their appeal. While she reached out to several publishing houses, she was unable to get funding for a second collection of poems.
Wheatley was a passionate supporter of the American Revolution and wrote numerous poems on George Washington, the commander of the Continental Army. There’s some doubt as to whether or not Washington ever checked out her writing.
On December 5, 1784, Phillis Wheatley passed away in Boston, Massachusetts.
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Courtesy: African Booth (Published with consent of African Booth)
