Essay - Phillis Wheatley Introduction the Purpose of This Paper Is to...

PHILLIS WHEATLEY

INTRODUCTION

The purpose of this paper is to introduce and discuss Phillis Wheatley and the poem "Being Brought From Africa."

PHILLIS *****

Phillis Wheatley came ***** America as a slave when she was a young girl; ***** was probably about eight-years-old when Mr. and Mrs. Wheatley purchased her. She lived in Boston with the family, serving as a comp*****nion ***** helper to Mrs. Wheatley. They encouraged her education, "Indeed, she gained as good an ***** ***** (and probably a better one than) most Boston women had, and her learning and abilities gradually gained the interest ***** a wider and wider segment of ***** community, especially after ***** began writing poetry at about the age ***** twelve, after having been in Boston only ***** four years" (Mason 3-4).

***** Wooldridge wrote of *****, "While ***** Boston, I heard of a very Extraordinary female Slave, who ***** made verses on our mutually dear deceased Friend [Whitefield]: ***** visited her mistress, and found by conversing with the *****n, that she was no Impostor;" (Isani 152). Her first book ***** *****s ***** published in England, with the title "Poems on Various Subjects, Religious and Moral."

Interest*****gly enough, many people thought a slave could not possibly write the work, and the introducti***** to the published volume included the signatures of sixteen prominent Bos*****nians, confirming ***** did indeed pen the poems. "WE whose Names are under-written, do assure the World, that the POEMS specified in the following Page,* were (as we verily believe) written by Phillis, a young Negro Girl, who w***** but a few Ye*****rs since, brought an uncultivated Barbarian from Africa, and has ever since been, ***** now is, under the Disadvantage of ***** as a Sl*****ve in a Family in this Town. She has been examined by some of the best Judges, and is thought qualified to ***** them" (Wheatley).

***** before her ***** died, the Wheatley's granted ***** freedom, but remained in Boston ***** the Wheatley household, where she continued to write. "My old master's generous behaviour in granting me my freedom, and still so kind to ***** I delight to acknowledge my great obligations to him. This he did about 3 months before the death ***** my dear mistress & at her desire, as well as his own humanity" (Silverman 268).

***** married John Peters on April 1, 1778, and had three children ***** him. The marriage was not a happy one, and they ***** s*****e money troubles. During this time, she published only one or two poems, ***** it seemed she had s*****pped writing for the most part. One of the last poems she ***** appeared shortly before her ***** and the topic itself was de*****h. She had always suffered ***** poor health and asthma, ***** she died when she was only 31.

***** reports ***** her circumstances in ***** period before her death on Sunday, December 5, 1784, seem to agree that her life was then at least one of hardships, personal, financial, and familial. Her children