Wheatley and Bradstreet

Wheatley's poems reminded me much of Anne Bradstreet.  I could only imagine that both these women had difficulties writing and publishing poems in their time.  For Anne Bradstreet, she was a Puritan woman and should not be writing witty poems, but instead doing housework.  For Phillis Wheatley, not only was she a woman writing poetry, but she was an African slave (which I'm sure was controversial).  However, both of them were able to overcome any difficulties producing great works of poetry due to their gender or race.

I felt as though both writers wrote about topics that were overall accepted by society (mostly being religious matters); however, I also noticed that there seemed to be "testing" of boundries in both writers poems (seen more so in Bradstreet than Wheatley).  Bradstreet wrote about her husband and their love, which at the time was look down on because of Puritan beliefs:

"I prize thy love more than whole mines of gold, or all the riches that the East doth hold.  My love is such that rivers cannot quench, Nor ought but love from thee give recompense." (pg. 103)

Wheatley seemed to be much more careful in her writings, picking topics that were approved by society.  Writing about God and repected figures in their society (i.e., Whitefield and Washington).  However, in her poem "On Being Brought from Afica to America", I found that the topic could be controversial.   The start of her poem talk about her acceptance of the Chrstian religion; however, by the end of the poem, the reader is acknowledged of her unhappiness in regards to the race issue in America:

"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." (pg. 403)

I think her poem brings up the question of the differing treatment of whites and blacks even though they both believe in the same God.  In the end, Wheatley states that regardless of her race, her acceptance of this religion will save her. 

Both Bradstreet and Wheatley were both able to overcome any difficulties they were faced with, and in the end it resulted in great poetry. 



Works Cited:
American Tradition in Literature, Twelfth Edition. George and Barbara Perkins. McGraw- Hill, 2009.
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