Showing results by author "Phillis Wheatley" in All Categories

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African American literature is the body of literature produced in the United States by writers of African descent. It begins with the works of such late 18th-century writers as Phillis Wheatley. Before the high point of enslaved people narratives, African-American literature was dominated by autobiographical spiritual narratives. The genre known as slave narratives in the 19th century were accounts by people who had generally escaped from slavery, about their journeys to freedom and ways they claimed their lives.

In Women Who Wrote, editors have thoughtfully curated classic and groundbreaking works from some of literature’s bravest and most talented women. In this gorgeous, giftable volume, the literary selections feature brief introductory biographical sketches of these revolutionary women writers and details the greater historical value of their work. For years to come, the women in your life will enjoy this beautiful and powerful collection, which features writings from Jane Austen, Louisa May Alcott, Emily Dickinson, Edith Wharton, Phyllis Wheatley, Zitkala-Sa, and more.

African American literature is the body of literature produced in the United States by writers of African descent. It begins with the works of such late 18th-century writers as Phillis Wheatley. Before the high point of enslaved people narratives, African-American literature was dominated by autobiographical spiritual narratives. The genre known as slave narratives in the 19th century were accounts by people who had generally escaped from slavery, about their journeys to freedom and ways they claimed their lives.

Margaretta Matilda Odell's 1834 Memoir and Poems of Phillis Wheatley is the only substantive early source on Wheatley's life. Phillis Wheatley (ca. 1753-1784) is considered the first African American poet to write for a transatlantic audience, and her Poems on Various Subjects, Religious and Moral (1773) kindled debates about race.

Poems on Various Subjects, Religious and Moral was the first published book of poetry by an African-American woman. Phillis Wheatley was a servant to a family in Massachusetts, and initially promoted her poetry in Boston newspapers to find a publisher. When she was initially unable to find a publisher in America, she sent her poetry overseas to England, hoping to eventually find someone who would both believe in the authenticity of her words and allow them to be widely printed.

One of the best-known poets of the Revolutionary War era, Phillis Wheatley made history with this collection, which was the first such work to be published from an African American woman. Celebrated on both sides of the Atlantic, Wheatley found admirers in the likes of Voltaire, George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, and John Paul Jones.

Enjoy these fun, inspiring, and touching poems by women authors writing about inspiration, their own works, and the art of others. This collection overlaps with my other mini collections that are ideal for black history and women’s history programs.