Paper #1

Poetry Paper

On Being Brought from Africa to America

’Twas Mercy brought me from my pagan land,

Taught my benighted soul to understand

That there’s a God, that there’s a Savior too:

Once I redemption neither sought nor knew,

Some view our sable race with scornful eyes

“Their color is a diabolical dye.”

Remember, Christians, Negros, as black as Cain,

May be refined, and join the angelic train.

(Wheatley 764)

Phillis Wheatley was one of the most influential African American poets and writer of her time not only due to the fact that she was an African American writer and a woman writer. This was also because her writing spoke deeply to her audience about the religious teachings and called out many people who spoke up against racial equality as well as gender inequality. The poem I chose to write about is one of her most well known works as it addresses the issues of religion, race, equality, and calls out the audience to actually practice their religious teachings and to become better people like they are suppose to be.  Her poem points to the audience that they have to actually practice what they have been forcing on to her people and others, as well as claims that equality is possible for all races in the scheme of religion through her celebration of Christianity. This poem also contains a double meaning in which she feely expresses her heritage and her gender.

Wheatley was an African American girl brought to Boston in 1761. During her time as a slave to the white tailor who bought her, Wheatley learn about the religion of Christianity and full heartily embraced it fully. However, the poem On Being Brought from Africa to America, she talks about this devotion to Christianity and how she saw how white Christian American we abusing their religion to put African Americans and other races. When she says the African Americans “May be refined, and join the angelic train” (Wheately 764). She is referring to how in the scheme of religion, everyone is suppose to be treated as equals in the eyes of God and as such she is addressing the reader as to follow in the teaching of Christianity and treat their colored members as equals. This is also in her use of the double language as she refers to her birth land of Africa “my pagan land” (Wheately 764). This used as double loaded word in regards to how the Christians view Africa as pagan and savage land while at the same time calling these white Christians out on their racism and their hypocritical use of their religion. Wheately also deploys a double meaning behind her words, as shown above but in more elaborate ways that truly reveal her creative genius.

Wheatley uses elegant language and words to express to the reader a need to understand the hypocrisy that was happening at the time. During this time period, slavery was in full bloom and the rights of Africans was stripped from them, this is shown in the way her language call out their treatment of African Americans by the line “Their color is a diabolical dye”. However, there is another meaning behind her poem. Not only is this poem focusing on the mistreatment of African Americans but also she is also not apologizing for being an African American and a woman. Such examples of double loaded words that she uses include “pagan land” (Wheately 764), along with her use of the biblical figure of Cane in the line “black as Cain” (Wheately 764).  Both of which are considered to be negative things in this time period when the society was dominated and controlled by white Christian men.  Wheately uses this stereotype outlook on African Americans in her poem when she uses the religious reference to Cain when she calls African American evil by referring them as the same as Cain. the double meaning behind this figure is that the bible depicts Cain as some one who is tainted by his evil deeds against his family so he forever marked on his body as a murder. Wheately uses this to refer to how society saw slaves, as evil, savage, and beneath them, just as Cain was seen. However, this references also shows the level of intense racism that controlled society and showed just how corrupt the plantation and slave owners were in their use of religion.  This is used as a reference and an insult to the white male readers that abuse their powers and their religion to put down the people like Wheately.

These uses of creative language and double meanings help Wheately create a poem that is impacted many people. Her poem celebrates Christianity along with her race and gender. Her use of double meaning in her poems shows eloquent language and religious references appeals to many readers and the use of these terms and references forces them the understand the hypocrisy of the time and the religious dominated society that they are forced to live in.  All of these tools of writing just shows the incredible skill that Wheately had as one of the most accomplished and famous female African writers in the history of our country.

References:

Wheately, Phillis. “On Being Brought from Africa to America.” Literature: The Norton Anthology of American Literature, Volume A. Ed. Nina Braym. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 2015. 215. Print