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On Being Brought From Africa To America By Phillis Wheatley

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Imagine you are taken from your home and brought to a land where you are seen as an outcast, how would you feel? Born in Africa and sold into slavery around 1761 around the age of eight, Phillis Whatley started her journey. She was sold to a married couple located in Boston to perform as their domestic servant. During her time, Wheatley was taught how to read and write while still being a slave. Around age twelve, Phillis Wheatley published her first poems, which became vastly popular. Over the next several years, Wheatly’s work became sensational. One of her most favored poems published in 1763 called, “On Being Brought From Africa to America,” explained her story from the darkness into light. On the other hand, Wheatley’s personal life got …show more content…

When the war started many African Americans joined the English who promised their freedom after the war. On the other hand, Phillis Wheatley believed in the patriot side of the war due to her belief that it was over a significant cause. Wheatley published her first poem a couple of years earlier, providing long-lasting hope to the black community until her last breath (“Contribution…Literature”). Wheatley, despite being a slave, put her faith in the people who altered her life. Michals expresses how, “… Wheatley’s literature and artistic talents helped show that African Americans were equally capable, creative, intelligent human beings.” Therefore, the horror of the Revolutionary War showed the white race that both groups can work together to fight an enemy. Also, through one of her most famous poems, “To His Excellency George Washington,” Wheatley argues for the freedom of the black slaves would give America the peace it desires. Overall, Wheatley advocates for African Americans through her aptitude she has in …show more content…

Sold into slavery at nine years old, Wheatley found her calling in life through her owners teaching her how to read and write. In the middle years of her life, Wheatley published several poems and wrote her first book. Some works like “To His Excellency to George Washington”, explain the terror and challenges for African Americans during the Revolutionary War. Another important aspect of Wheatley was her religion. Christianity helped shape Wheatley’s life and the messages she incorporated in her writings. Furthermore, “what makes her exceptional is that she accomplished it while being a slave” (“Contribution…Literature). During this period, slaves did not receive the same blessings as white people did, yet Wheatley prevailed through those barriers. Therefore, Phillis Wheatley’s life accomplishments have greatly impacted the world of poetry and literature that would influence the abolitionist movement and American

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As a young girl she was frail in health and very intelligent. Phillis learned to speak English and read the Bible and religious writing with fluency. At the age of thirteen, her first poem was published. She was the first African American slave to publish a book of poems on various subjects. This is important because although she was bought as a servant her owner noticed her frail health and high intelligence and did not uses her as a slave, instead, encouraged her to pursue her intellectual desire.

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Did you know that Phillis Wheatley traveled to London because she was such a good poet? She was born on May 8 1753, in Gambia. In this paper you will learn about Phillis Wheatley’s childhood, education, how they impacted the Revolutionary War, and other interesting facts! Her early childhood was very interesting.

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Phillis Wheatley: The Forgotten Revolutionary The poetry and literature of the American Revolution is some of the most well known, but have you ever heard of Phillis Wheatley? Phillis Wheatley was a successful poet and an unlikely revolutionary. As a black woman who began her career as a slave, Wheatley cleared hurdles and broke rules on a daily basis. Wheatley was born in Gambia, around 1753.

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Phillis Wheatley's "On Being Brought from Africa to America" is dated in 1773, immediately a reader can make an assumption based on the title that the poem is about slavery and someone who has come to the new continent as a slave. The author feels that the Africans should be pleased that they were brought from Africa to America and saved from their Pagan land (Wheatley). The author makes it clear in the first four lines of the poem that being brought from Africa to a new continent as slaves allowed them to find their god and their entry into Christianity as hope for themselves (Explanation of: 'On Being Brought From Africa to America' by Phillis Wheatley). Wheatley even stated in her poem that "taught my benighted soul to understand That there's

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Phillis Wheatley and Frederick Douglass were two of the most well-known African American writers that were both for the abolishment movement in America but had two vastly different ideas about the unholy institution of slavery. Through her poem, “On Being Brought from America”, Phillis Wheatley appears thankful for her journey from Africa to America, clinging tightly to her Christian views and faith in God but still reminding the slave owners that people of all races will be welcome in heaven. In Frederick Douglass’ story, “My Bondage and My Freedom”, he displays no joy in the evil institution of slavery and points out the differences between the cruel actions of the southern Christian slaveholders against those of the peaceful doctrine of

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His main significance was supporting Zenger in the trial, and leading the jury to a not guilty verdict making a statement in the freedom of press. He helped maintain the first amendment, which we follow today. 4.Phillis Wheatley a.Phillis was a slave girl in the colonies, and then moved to England when she was of age. Despite having no training what so ever in reading or writing she still was able to write a book of poetry that was very renowned. Her ability to overcome the many obstacles she faced is what makes her so significant in the course of

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She showed all African American women and men that they can achieve the impossible and have an intelligent mind like everyone else. Even African American poets from today like Alice Walker found her as an inspiration. In one of her poems about being brought to america, she perfectly summarizes what the struggle was being a slave that is equal to everyone

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• "On Being Brought from Africa to America," Wheatley applauds the leniency of God for singling her out for recovery. Such a significant number of on the planet don't know God or Christ. The word "benighted" is an intriguing one: it signifies "overtaken by night or darkness" or "being in a condition of good or scholarly haziness.” She likewise utilizes the expression "mercy brought me" and the title "on being brought" - deftly down-playing the savagery of the capturing of a tyke and the voyage on a slave transport, in order to not appear a perilous pundit of subjugation, but rather in the meantime crediting not the slave exchange, but rather (divine) kindness with the demonstration. This could be perused as denying the ability to those people who seized her and subjected her to the voyage and to her consequent deal and accommodation.

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Abigail Adams expressed her deep concern about the status of women in American society and emphasized the importance of recognizing and respecting their rights. She believed that women should have a voice in the decisions that would shape their lives and the lives of their families. Furthermore, Phillis Wheatley, an enslaved African woman, defied the odds to become one of the first published African American poets in the United States, using her poetry to challenge the institution of slavery and advocate for freedom and equality. " Wheatley has been condemned for more than a century by whites and blacks alike for failing to espouse in any way the plight of her race"

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Frances Ellen Watkins Harper, born on September 24, 1825, was a leading African American poet, author, teacher and political activist. Although she was born to “free” parents in Baltimore, Maryland, she still experienced her share of hardships. She lost her mother at the tender age of three, was raised by her aunt and uncle, and fully employed by thirteen. Though all odds seemed against her, she triumphed over her obstacles, publishing her first book of poetry at the of age twenty and her first novel at the age of sixty-seven. Outside of writing books, she was a civil rights leader and a public speaker in the Anti-Slavery Society.

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Religious Effects Poems on Various Subjects, Religious and Moral by Phyllis Wheatley was the first book to be published by a black American, and “On being brought from Africa to America” was probably one of the most famous poems included in the book. It discusses Wheatley’s experience of being taken as a slave, and the religious effects of the experience. Religion played a great role in shaping Wheatley’s outlook on many subjects. “On being brought from Africa to America” expresses religion’s effect on Wheatley through her word choices and the overall message of the poem.

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“I was born a slave; but I never knew it till six years of happy childhood had passed away” from Incidents of the Life of a Slave Girl. After reading Incidents of the Life of a Slave Girl, the readers can say it complicates or confuses their understanding of slavery. Linda’s Memoirs can be confusing to modern age American’s because it is not the typical story readers hear, watch or, learn about in society today. Linda story isn’t of a field slave that was whipped and raped by her master, but the story of a slave that resisted and escaped slavery. Upon her reaching freedom, readers quickly learn that the North does not treat free African Americans well.

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I. Introductory Paragraph and Thesis Statement Phillis Wheatley has changed the world of the literature and poetry for the better with her groundbreaking advancements for women and African Americans alike, despite the many challenges she faced. By being a voice for those who can not speak for themselves, Phillis Wheatley has given life to a new era of literature for all to create and enjoy. Without Wheatley’s ingenious writing based off of her grueling and sorrowful life, many poets and writers of today’s culture may not exist. Despite all of the odds stacked against her, Phillis Wheatley prevailed and made a difference in the world that would shape the world of writing and poetry for the better. II.

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Phyllis Wheatley shocked the world with poetry as a young black woman who was raised as a slave. Wheatley, unlike most slaves, received an extensive religious education from her owners. The disbelief that surrounded Wheatley’s ability caused her to have to go to court to prove that the writing was her own. This doubt ran through the colonies, showing their opinions on who could be successful at this time . One of Wheatley’s best known poems is “On being brought from Africa to America” and another poem is “To the Right and Honorable William, Earl of Dartmouth”.

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To understand the real meaning of a literary work, we need to look into the meaning of each word and why the author has chosen these particular words and not different ones. Close reading of literary works helps us understand the author’s thinking and understanding of the time they lied in. One of the American poet and author of the 18th century, Phillis Wheatley, she was one of the most famous poets who changed the life of most Americans. Wheatley’s most famous poem is “On Being Brought from Africa to America”. To look in more detail into this specific poem, first thing is the language that she uses, second the form and style of the poem, and lastly what message she is trying to get to her audience.

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