Knowra Phillis Wheatley Phillis Wheatley Phillis Wheatley was an 18th-century African-American poet, born in West Africa and enslaved in Boston. Her 1773 collection was the first published book by an African-American woman.
Atlantic slave trade : The forced transportation and sale of millions of Africans across the Atlantic from the 16th to 19th centuries. Wheatley was captured in West Africa and transported to Boston through this system.
Neoclassicism : An artistic movement that revived the forms, subjects, and ideals of ancient Greek and Roman culture. Wheatley’s poems adopt classical forms and allusions common in her literary world.
Poems on Various Subjects, Religious and Moral : Phillis Wheatley’s 1773 collection of poems, published in London while she was enslaved. This book established her as the first African-American woman to publish a book.
Susanna Wheatley : The Boston woman who enslaved Phillis Wheatley and supported her education and early literary development. She helped create the conditions in which Wheatley learned to write and publish.
African-American literature : Literature written by African Americans, shaped by Black history, culture, and experience. Wheatley’s book is an early landmark in this literary tradition.
Boston : A city in Massachusetts that became a major center of colonial and revolutionary activity. Wheatley lived, wrote, and published there after arriving enslaved as a child.
Elegy : A poem of mourning or reflection, often written in response to death. Several of Wheatley’s poems use elegiac conventions to address loss and mortality.
On Being Brought from Africa to America : A short poem by Phillis Wheatley that reflects on conversion, race, and Christian salvation. Its compressed treatment of enslavement and faith has drawn sustained debate.
John Wheatley : The Boston merchant who enslaved Phillis Wheatley and arranged for her 1773 collection to be published. His testimony and support were part of the book’s publication history.
Black women’s writing : Writing by Black women across genres, periods, and national traditions. Her publication is a foundational milestone in a tradition constrained by race and gender.
Show all 25