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What Does Wheatley Mean By 'Absurdity Of Americans' Conduct?

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1. What does Wheatley mean by the "absurdity" of Americans' conduct?  When Wheatley uses the word, “absurdity” she really means craziness or illogical because of the American’s conduct when the contradicted themselves. The Americans are fighting for a one-sided freedom where only whites experience and not African Americans. This is what is meant, where Wheatley wrote, “This I desire not for their hurry, but to convince them of the strange absurdity of their conduct whose words and actions are so diametrically, opposite” (Foner, Page 119). The Americans are fighting for the freedom God has intended them for man, but its only for once race. This is where they contradict each other. They are fighting for freedom for all, but when African Americans …show more content…

She did it tried to make people understand how the white revolutionaries were contradicting themselves and twisting their words to not give African American freedom when the white revolutionaries were supposed to be fighting for the people’s freedom, not the whites freedom. In Wheatley letter she mentioned something about God, almost implying as if at that time period the majority of people believed in God. This is what she wrote about God in her letter, “God has implanted a principle, which we call love of freedom; it is impatient of oppression, and pants for deliverance; and by the leave of our modern Egyptians I will assert, that the same principle lives in us” (Foner, Page 119). This quote raises a red flag because God gave everyone freedom not just white people. She also makes a point in her letter, “ How well the cry for liberty and the reverse disposition for the exercise of oppressive power over others agree,— I humbly think it does not require the penetration of a philosopher to determine” (Foner, Page 119). These quotes just prove thatWheatley’s sole purpose of using the white revolutionaries language was to show how they are twisting their words and actions when they say they are fighting for freedom when in reality slavery still exist. This is how Wheatley wanted to end slavery by showing the white revolutionaries how illogical they are being by turning

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