Phillis Wheatley

Also known as Phillis Wheatley Peters, Phillis Peters, Philis Wheatley

first African-American poet (1753–1784)

Person · Open Library

Born: c. 1753
Died: 5 December 1784
Works: 69

Top works

Memoir and poems of Phillis Wheatley, a native African and a slave
Poems on various subjects, religious and moral
To the Rev. Mr. Pitkin, on the death of his lady
To the Hon'ble Thomas Hubbard, Esq; on the death of Mrs. Thankfull Leonard
To Mrs. Leonard, on the death of her husband

via Open Library + Wikidata

Music · MusicBrainz

Type: Person
Gender: Female
Origin: United States
Active from: 1753-05-08
Active to: 1784-12-05

via MusicBrainz · CC0

Listeners · Last.fm

Listeners: 24
Total plays: 51

via Last.fm · Phillis Wheatley

Recent publications · Crossref

5 total works indexed

Neutralizing antibody levels are highly predictive of immune protection from symptomatic SARS-CoV-2 infection
· 2021 · cited 3,788x
Guidelines for the use and interpretation of assays for monitoring autophagy (4th edition)<sup>1</sup>
· 2021 · cited 2,489x
On the capacity of a cellular CDMA system
· 1991 · cited 2,410x
The Importance of Diagnostic Cytogenetics on Outcome in AML: Analysis of 1,612 Patients Entered Into the MRC AML 10 Trial
· 1998 · cited 2,105x
A stratigraphic framework for abrupt climatic changes during the Last Glacial period based on three synchronized Greenland ice-core records: refining and extending the INTIMATE event stratigraphy
· 2014 · cited 1,857x

via Crossref · CC0

Quotes

“When first thy pencil did these beaties give And breathing figures learnt from thee to live”
“Creation smiles in various beauty gayWhile day to night, and night succeeds day”
“Some view our sable race with scornful eye, "Their colour is a diabolic die." Remember, Christians, Negroes, black as Cain, May be refin'd, and join th' angelic train.”
“But how is Mneme dreaded by the race, Who scorn her warnings and despise her grace? By her unveil'd each horrid crime appears, Her awful hand a cup of wormwood bears. Days, years mispent, O what a hell of woe! Hers the worst tortures that our souls can know.”
“But, Madam, let your grief be laid aside, And let the fountain of your tears be dry'd, In vain they flow to wet the dusty plain, Your sighs are wafted to the skies in vain, Your pains they witness, but they can no more, While Death reigns tyrant o'er this mortal shore.”
“Celestial choir! enthron'd in realms of light, Columbia's scenes of glorious toils I write. While freedom's cause her anxious breast alarms, She flashes dreadful in refulgent arms.”

via Wikiquote · CC BY-SA

Key facts

Born: c. 1753 , West Africa
Died: December 5, 1784 (1784-12-05) (aged 31), Boston , Massachusetts
Occupation: Poet
Language: English
Period: American Revolution
Notable works: Poems on Various Subjects, Religious and Moral (1773)
Spouse: John Peters
Children: Uncertain. Up to three with none surviving past early childhood.

via Wikipedia infobox

~24 min read

Encyclopedic overview

Phillis Wheatley Peters, also spelled Phyllis and Wheatly (c. 1753 – December 5, 1784), was an American writer who is considered the first African-American author of a published book of poetry. Born in West Africa, she was sold into slavery at the age of seven or eight and transported to North America, where she was bought by the Wheatley family of Boston. After she learned to read and write, they encouraged her poetry when they saw her talent.

On a 1773 trip to London with the Wheatleys' son, seeking publication of her work, Wheatley met prominent people who became her patrons. The publication in London of her Poems on Various Subjects, Religious and Moral on September 1, 1773, brought her fame both in England and the American colonies. Prominent figures, such as George Washington, praised her work. A few years later, African-American poet Jupiter Hammon praised her work in a poem of his own.

Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “Phillis Wheatley” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.