The use of Prose by Phillis Wheatley

Poet Phillis Wheatley's Life and Work


Poet Phillis Wheatley's life and work is an excellent example of a crucial idea in today's feminism theory-intersectionality. Intersectionality is characterized as the interplay and interconnection of social elements such as gender, race, and class, which results in experiences and identities, particularly in relation to power.


Dynamics of Authority and Privilege


Despite the fact that the power systems are dissimilar from modern society, Wheatley's work demonstrates the dynamics of authority and privilege. Wheatley is a name originating from the family that purchased the slave ship Phillis. Though Wheatley lived under limited privileges, she still enjoyed some advantages a black woman at the time was not privileged to enjoy. A slave by race, she was privileged within the Wheatley's home to become an educated woman. Although her wealthy family supported her prompting her to shine in her art, Wheatley, unfortunately, died pennilessly upon being freed. A widespread criticism of her work is that she lacks race consciousness and that she neither sympathized with the slaves nor protested against the norm in her writings. However, some opined that the assessment was unfair (Hull, 92). What is notable, however, is the manner in which her work was impacted by her life's complex identities.


Challenges of Racism and Gender Discrimination


The works of Phillis reflect a myriad of challenges of her time such as racism and gender discrimination. Wheatley can be termed a crusader of feminism basing on the content of her several poems. However, it may not be so in the contemporary context, but the work was appropriate and viable in her era. In "To his Excellency George Washington," Wheatley illuminates her thoughts on the issues of racial and gender discrimination in an elusive fashion but with strong overtones. Notably, this work is a celebration exceptionally performed by a black female poet with a Gambian origin, to the president of the most powerful country in the world. This move has a very special denotation, and George Washington's reply signified his acknowledgment of her spirit. Wheatley, as is the case in several of her artworks, stages an exonerating defense and advocates for universal love that will culminate into freedom from bondage (Wheatley 1). Despite the fact that her works sideline the feminine specificities, her spirit is in support of women's cause. The shying away from directly writing about feminism might be assumed to be because white males were preeminent publishers of her works.


Desire for Freedom and Fight Against Slavery


Reflecting on her poem, To the Right Honourable William, Wheatley expresses her desire for freedom from the firmly established domination and slavery activities encompassed with suppression across the globe. This she pens as "cruel fate" (Wheatley, qtd. in The Norton Anthology of American Literature 403), the fate as a result of being taken forcefully from Africa, Wheatley's original home country as well as reflecting on how her separation from the biological parents would have impacted her parents. Being a victim of slavery, Wheatley understands precisely what liberty means to an enslaved individual. As such, Wheatley uses the poem as a tool in advocating for the independence of the migrants as well as the African American loyalists who are in the same cause as hers; fight against slavery.


Criticism and Embracement


Wheatley's work, however, did not steer away from criticism. Critics, basing on the nature of many poets who used their pens to highlight the plight of people in the society, accused Wheatley of not employing her pen to write what people were going through around her. The allegations are however refuted with her poem "On Being Brought from Africa to America." Wheatley in the poem addresses the circumstances that brought her from her "pagan land to a realm positioned upon redemption neither fought nor knew." (Wheatley qtd. in The Norton Anthology of American Literature, 403).


However, Wheatley's poetry has been embraced by the 18th-century anti-slave trade activists and the abolitionists of the 19th century in advancing their ideas. This though did not come without shortcomings as these group of individuals did not internalize the message Wheatley wanted to pass across. Thomas Jefferson opined that Wheatley was not a poet of reputable quality, an opinion supported by those influenced by his criticism which also questioned her psychological, racial identity. Worth noting is that despite this criticism, Wheatley remains as the first poet of black ethnicity to have her works published in America amassing popularity in her time. Additionally, though critics argue that she is a poet who has forsaken her race (Hull 91), her works of prose envisage opposite of these thoughts.

Works Cited


Hull, Gloria T. "Black Women Poets from Wheatley to Walker." Negro American Literature Forum. Vol. 9. No. 3. St. Louis University, 1975.


Wheatley, Phillis. "On Being Brought from Africa to America." The Norton Anthology of American Literature. 8th ed. Vol. 1. N.p.: W. W. Norton, 2012. 403. Print.


Wheatley, Phillis. "To his excellency general Washington." The Poems of Phillis Wheatley (1776).

Deadline is approaching?

Wait no more. Let us write you an essay from scratch

Receive Paper In 3 Hours
Calculate the Price
275 words
First order 15%
Total Price:
$38.07 $38.07
Calculating ellipsis
Hire an expert
This discount is valid only for orders of new customer and with the total more than 25$
This sample could have been used by your fellow student... Get your own unique essay on any topic and submit it by the deadline.

Find Out the Cost of Your Paper

Get Price