The Life of the American Poet Phillis Wheatley (Essay Sample)

Student’s Name
Professor’s Name
Course
Date
An Interview with Phillis Wheatley
Phillis Wheatley, an American poet, was born in Senegal in 1753. Besides, no one knew her real name since she was kidnapped in 1761 from West Africa and taken to Boston. The young girl obtained her name from Timothy Fitch’s ship “Phillis.” Her last name Wheatley came from John Wheatley, her master. Slave traders kidnapped people from Africa so that they can sell them to the United States of America (USA). When the seven-years-old girl reached Boston, she was sold to the Wheatley’s family since she was frail and would not have handled hard labor. However, Wheatley’s family supported Phillis by allowing her to learn English, Latin, Greek, mythology, literature, and theology. The paper focuses on the life of Phillis Wheatley and gives answers to three questions that one should ask the poet if given a chance to go back in time using a time machine.
Phillis journey to becoming the first African American poet had many challenges. The poet published her first work while she was twelve-years-old in 1767. The poem “On Messrs. Hussey and Coffin” talks about two men who almost drowned while in the sea. Other of her renowned poems include “On Being Brought from Africa to America,” “On the Death of the Rev. Mr. George Whitefield,” and “Poems on Various Subjects, Religious and Moral.” Although Wheatley’s family set Phillis free on 18th October 1773, slightly before the death of her Mistress, Susannah, her life became miserable. Moreover, when Wheatley and his daughter