32 Phillis Wheatley (c. 1753–1784)

Introduction Needed

Portrait of Phillis Wheatley, attributed by some scholars to Scipio Moorhead

 

“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 Saviour too:
Once I redemption neither sought nor knew.
Some view our sable race with scornful eye,
“Their colour is a diabolic die.”
Remember, Christians, Negros, black as Cain,
May be refin’d, and join th’ angelic train.

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Open Anthology of Earlier American Literature Copyright © by Edited by: Timothy Robbins is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, except where otherwise noted.

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