Phyllis+Wheatley

Phyllis Wheatley was born in 1753 in Gambia, Africa. Phyllis was a slave child at the age of seven, she was sold to a man and woman name John and Susanna in Boston on July 11, 1761. Her first name was derived from the ship that carried her to America, The Phillis. Phyllis had an amazing gift of writing poetry. In her time, it was not common for American women to be published, it was especially uncommon for slave children to have any kind of education. Phyllis Wheatley's inspiration forn writing poetry was from her owners and their daughter Mary. They taught her how to read and write. John and Susanna's son Nathaniel also taught Phyllis English, Latin, History, Geography, Religion, and the bible. She was baptised into Christianity at [|Old South Meeting House]. Phyllis wrote her first poem at the age of twelve, it was called " On Messrs. Hussey and Coffin." "//On Messrs. Hussey and Coffin" was soon published the same year.

A woman name [|Selina Hastings] was the countess of Huntingdon and a friend of the Wheatley's. Selina encouraged and financed the publication of her book of poetry. Obour Tanner was also a former slave who survived the journey through the middle passage with Phyllis, she was also a chief influences and supporter of Phyllis Wheatley's talent. Phyllis was also well versed in Latin which allowed her to write the epyllion, a short epic style with the publication of the "Niobe in Distress." Phyllis' popularity as a poet in both the United States and England brought her out of slavery on October 18, 1773. She even had the privellidge to appear before General Washington in March 1776 for her poetry.

Phyllis was also a strong support of the independence during the [|Revolutionary War]. She felt slavery to be the issue, which separated whites from true heroism, her words we're "whites can not hope to find deivine acceptance with the Almighty mind, when the disgrace and hold on bondage Africa's blameless race." In 1778 Phyllis Wheatley wrote "To the King's Most Excellent Majesty," it was about praising George III for repealing the Stamp Act. In 1770 Phyllis wrote a poetic tribute to George Whitefield that received lots of recognition. Her tribute revolved around Christian themes. Phyllis never really mentions her feelings in her poetry except one of a few "On being brought from Africa to America." Because many white people of the time found it hard to believe that a black woman could be so intelligent as to write poetry, in 1772 Phyllis had to defend her knowledge in court. She was examined by a group of Boston luminaries including John Erving, Reverend Charles Chauncey, John Hancock, Thomas Hutchinson, the governor of Massachusetts, and his Lieutenant Governor Andrew Oliver. They proved that she had in fact written the poems ascribed to her and signed an attestation. It was published in the preface to her book of poems.

Religious and Moral was published in Aldgate, London in 1773. The book was published in London because publishers in Boston had refused her book. Phyllis and her master's son Nathaniel Wheatley, went to London, where Selina, Countess of Huntingdon and the Earl of Dartmouth helped with the publication. Phyllis Wheatley married a free black grocer named John Peters. Together they had three children, two soon died. Her husband left her and she made a living as a servant. By 1784 she was lived in a boarding house, in December she and her remaining child died from Poverty and were buried in an unmarked grave. Phyllis Wheatley is credited with helping found African American literature, and is acknowledged for giving African American woman the opportunites, like the famous Maya Angelo to share her poetic talents. Phyllis Wheatley was put down by alot of people who didn't believe in her, but that didn't stop her, and because of that, she is known as the first African American to publish a book, A accomplished African American woman of letters, first African American woman to earn a living from her writing, and the first woman writer encouraged and financed by a group of women, (Mrs. Wheatley, Mary Wheatley, and Salina Hastings).//

__ACCOMPLISHMENTS__

> > > __ BIBLIOGRAPHY __  Hunter, Jane Edna, 1882-1950. //Phillis Wheatley : Life and Works//. Cleveland: National Phillis Wheatley Foundation, 1948. > >  Renfro, G. Herbert. //Life and Works of Phillis Wheatley//. Salem: Ayer Company, Publishers, Inc., 1993. > >  Robinson, William H., //Phillis Wheatley in the Black American Beginnings// (1975), //Black New England Letters: The Uses of Writing in Black New England// (1977) and //Critical Essays on Phillis Wheatley// (1982). > >  Shields, John C., //The Collected Works of Phillis Wheatley// (1988) > > Warlike, David 2004-. Citation Machine http:// **citationmachine**.net/. >
 * __First African American to publish a book __
 * __An accomplished African American woman of letters __
 * __First African American woman to earn a living from her writing __
 * __First woman writer encouraged and financed by a group of women (Mrs. Wheatley, Mary Wheatly, and Selina Hastings.) __