Biography of Phillis Wheatley.

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Biography of Phillis Wheatley
Phillis Wheatley’s capturing in the 18th century proved to be more beneficial to her than expected. She fell into the hands of a Bostonian family who helped her realize her talent and became the first Black woman to publish a poetry book. She was also among the first women in that century to do the same in the colonies. So who was Phillis Wheatley?
In 1753 a poet was born in or around Senegal. The place of birth is not exactly clear, but it is believed that she was born somewhere around Senegal and Gambia (Carretta 7). Her early childhood life is not recorded, but it is known that she got captured when she was around seven years of age. She was taken to America via the route famously known as the Middle Passage aboard a slave ship named ‘Phillis’. The Middle Passage was among the routes used by the transatlantic slave traders. After eight months of day-and-night travel, they arrived in Boston on July 11, 1761(Carretta 8). It is reported that by the end of this journey, almost twenty-one slaves had already died.
A famous tailor in Boston, John Wheatley, bought her hoping to get some domestic help for his wife, Susannah. Among the reasons why this little girl was chosen by the Wheatley family was that she reminded them of their daughter who died at around seven years old (Weidt & Maryann 74). The young slave was named after the ship that brought her, Phillis, and according to the traditions, she took the surname of her new home.

Her lack of understanding of the English language forced her to use gestures as a way of communication. However, it took her a few months to understand the new language, and it is recorded that after eighteen months of her stay in Boston, she was able to read even the most difficult sentences. Her new family was interested in her development, and they encouraged her to pursue her literary abilities. Her life was not normal to the other African Americans who were discouraged from anything concerning education (Doak & Robin 27). Greek, Theology, and Latin were among the lessons she was lucky to receive.
At the age of 12, she started putting the lessons she had received into practice. She wrote her first poem, ‘To the University of Cambridge in New England’, which was not published until 1773 (Doak & Robin 29). However, ‘On Messrs. Hussey and Coffin’ became her first published work on December 21, 1767. In her first poem, she thanked God for the safe journey to the USA and reminded the students of Harvard University about the work of Jesus and asked them to stay away from evil (Wheatley 3). This shows that she had learned a lot about Christianity from her loving family. The Wheatley’s realized that her talent was becoming more apparent and they decided to free her from her domestic chores. The slaveholders treated her like family and even allowed her to interact with the guests, which was anomaly during that time. However, despite the treatment, she never forgot that she was still a slave to the white Bostonians and continued giving them the respect they deserved. She never wrote any content that would offend them in any way.
In another great work of 1768, ‘To the King’s Most Excellent Majesty’, she expressed her gratitude towards King George III of England for revoking the Stamp Act which saw the American colonists get taxed on every printed piece of paper they used (Wheatley 6). In the same year, she wrote about her slavery in ‘On Being Brought from Africa to America’. In 1770, she rose to the public scenes and was now recognized nationally. The work that gained even more national attention towards her was ‘On the Death of Rev. Mr. George Whitefield'(Weidt & Maryann 76). She had written a collection of poems by 1772 and was ready to publish them as a book. However, on realizing that there was no response forthcoming after running advertisements for subscribers, she decided to send her work to Great Britain. Americans were concerned about the authenticity of Wheatley’s work, and they ran to the court. She defended her work, and with the help of the Boston luminaries, she won the judgment. The Boston luminaries included Thomas Hutchinson (Massachusetts’ governor), Andrew Oliver (Lieutenant governor), John Erving, Reverend Charles Chauncey and John Hancock (Carretta 14). She published a collection of poems on September 1, 1773.
Her mistress, Susannah died in 1774, and this was tough for her to bear. She had known her as a family, and just a slaveholder. In 1778, it became even tougher with the death of Mr. Wheatley and his daughter in 1778 (Doak & Robin 33). Against the wishes of her closest friends, she married John Peters, who was a free black. By 1779, all her benefactors had died, and it was now difficult for her to publish even a single poem. This pushed her more into poverty, and in her final years, she worked as a charwoman to maintain herself. She, however, was able to publish her last poem in 1784, congratulating America on her victory over England. In the same year, her husband, Peters, was jailed because of his debts. Wheatley had to work harder to feed herself and her infant son. She became which will and died on December 5, 1784, at the age of thirty-one. Sadly, her infant son also died at the same time (Willard 30).
Phillis Wheatley was an inspiration to both the African Americans and all women at large. Some of the slaves entered the literature world because they felt inspired by her writings (Doak & Robin 34). She also appreciated the political issues at the time by writing poems geared at encouraging the good deeds of some political leaders. Her legacy has continued living over the years and has even been featured in the Boston Women’s Memorial with a sculpture. Phyllis Wheatley High School situated in Houston and Phyllis Wheatley YWCA in Washington is among the famous public institutions named after her.
 

Works Cited
Carretta, Vincent. Phillis Wheatley: Biography of a Genius in Bondage. University of Georgia Press, 2011.Doak, Robin S. Phillis Wheatley: The Inspiring Life Story of the American Poet. Capstone, 2016.Weidt, Maryann N. Revolutionary poet: A story about Phillis Wheatley. Millbrook Press, 2012.
Wheatley, Phillis. The Poems of Phillis Wheatley: With Letters and a Memoir. Courier Corporation, 2012.
Willard, Carla. “Phillis Wheatley.” The Cambridge Companion to American Poets (2015), 24:31.