Phillis Wheatley’s significance in literature cannot be overstated. She was the first black woman to publish a book of poetry in America. ‘POEMS ON VARIOUS SUBJECTS,RELIGIOUS AND MORAL’

Phillis Wheatley was born in Senegal, West Africa and sold into slavery at the young age of seven. She was brought to Boston and purchased by the Wheatley family. Phillis had the rare opportunity of an education and quickly learned English and Latin, showcasing her exceptional intellect and talent for poetry.

Her work challenged the stereotypes and misconceptions about the intellectual capabilities of enslaved blacks. These was especially poignant during a time when many states had slave anti-literacy laws.

The zeitgeist of the uneducated slave was so alive during the time that her master feared that no one would believe that this slave girl had such elegant and sophisticated command of the written word.

Therefore in the preface of her book, 18 men were called to verify and attest to their knowledge that this former “uncultivated Barbarian from Africa” was in fact the author .