A New Reading of Phillis Wheatley's "On Being Brought from Africa to America"

One of the more problematic things I do as an English Major is privilege interpretations based on whether or not I think they're "better" than others. Typically "better" for me is an interpretation that is more interesting, or less problematic in a wider sense.

In reading Phillis Wheatley's "On Being Brought from Africa to America," I was struck by how unaware it was, praising the people who stole her from her family and forced her to abandon her culture and language. Phillis Wheatley proved herself to be exceptionally intelligent, as she learned English in record time and took on the classics. I find it hard to believe that Wheatley's poetry lacked any attempts to subvert her position.

I found my subversion in the penultimate line of "On Being Brought from Africa to America," where Wheatley writes "Remember, Christians, Negroes, black as Cain,/May be refin'd, and join th' angelic train." The typical reading suggests that Wheatley's speaker is reminding Christians that negroes may be refined. However, nothing requires that interpretation except maybe unspoken grammatical convention, a convention that poetry is not generally in the business of keeping.

I posit instead that "On Being Brought from Africa to America" is instead written to the negroes, reminding them that the Christians may be refined. The only difference is an unusual change in emphasis in the line, but it opens the entire poem up to be read subversively. Perhaps the "Pagan Land" is not Africa.

A Woman Speaks

On Tuesday last week, there was a bit of a heated discussion on Audre Lorde's poem, "A woman Speaks." Particularly on the last stanza that read:

I have been woman
for a long time
beware my smile
I am treacherous with old magic
and the noon's new fury
with all your wide futures
promised
I am
woman
and not white.

I am not quite sure what everyones argument was because there were so many, but I decided to pitch my two cents. I believe that her poem is about woman wanting more. She is writing this as a woman looking for equal opportunities in life, not as an African-American seeking rights. First of all, the poems title is "A Woman Speaks," blatantly implying that a woman is writing the poem. On the last few lines, Lorde says "I am, woman, and not white." She is implying that her gender is as big of, if not a bigger issue than the color of her skin. She has been demoralized in her life by her skin-color, but in this poem, she is fed up with the way she is treated because she is a woman, not because she is black. This type of poetry is how Lorde captured the attention of white audiences by directing this poem at a group of people (woman) that include whites.

They Set if Off

On Tuesday, we watched the rap video “Set if Off” by an all-female cypher. First off, this song was sick and kept me entertained throughout the whole song. But, more importantly it delivered a powerful message not only through the lyrics, but through the structure of the cypher as well. This song delivered messages of fighting the power and oppression, especially in the forms of racism, sexual orientation, and the spirit of not only women, but as black women. What I found particularly astounding, was each woman’s different message that they sent. Even though they each took aim at something in particular, they each fought a part of the same beast. After hearing this song, I had to give it another listen and also look up the lyrics. These are some of my favorite lyrics in the piece, coming from the 3^rd woman in order, “I heard through the grapevine that the world mine. Like them Cherokee Indians: land mine. Yo I’m just tryna blow, land mine. Tell Christopher Columbus this land mine!” This reference to the manifest destiny of white man, and white man’s excuse to rule the land was spot on, and spinning it in her own way makes it that much more of a potent statement.

But, I’m also curious on what your thoughts are on this piece. What were your favorite parts? Have you listened to it more than once?

This song is legit.

A Space for Women in Our Construction of Woman

Charlene Carruthers, national director of BYP100 (shout out!), gave a Chapel Talk this past Thursday titled, "Building a Black Freedom Movement: How Black Queer Feminism Builds Power for Us All." From that talk, there was one thing, among others, that really stood out to me, that being: black queer feminism means that we all should be able to live in our full dignity as human beings. And having read Zami: A New Spelling of My Name by Audre Lorde, I could not but think of Audre Lorde, another black, queer, feminist.


I am reminded sort of the history of Black feminism from Harriet Tubman to Sojouner Truth's "Ain't I a Woman" speech to Lorde's "A Woman Speaks" to Angela Davis's lecture at the University of Chicago in May 2013 to Charlene Carruthers's talk at Wabash.


Black feminism has always walked the intersection between racial oppression and gender oppression (and capitalist oppression too!). Even the conventional way we approach conversations about womanhood or feminism is sort of problematic. When we look at studying works outside the cannon in English or Philosophy, we often approach "women's perspectives" and "Black perspective." The authors in the former camp are typically white. The authors in the latter are typically male. Where are the Black women? They are in an upper level English course.

"In Celebration of My Uterus" - Anne Sexton

I will start by admitting that, yes, this post is simply an excuse to share a poem from my absolute favorite poet. However, it is also very relevant. Not only does Anne Sexton identify as a woman and embrace the ideals of feminism, but her poems also explore sexuality and the limitations placed on a female's expression of that sexuality during the 1960s and early 70s.

Similar to Lorde's life as described in Zami, much of Sexton's work communicates a certain dissonance felt between the desires of women and the socially constructed roles placed on them since infancy. 

Sexton's poem, "In Celebration of My Uterus," is a triumphant praise of womanhood and an encouragement to love and live out one's life as a woman unapologetically and unrestricted. This is yet another perspective on what it means to be a woman -- a perspective not too far distant temporally or ideologically from Lorde's. 

In Celebration of My Uterus 

Anne Sexton

Everyone in me is a bird.
I am beating all my wings.
They wanted to cut you out
but they will not.
They said you were immeasurably empty
but you are not.
They said you were sick unto dying
but they were wrong.
You are singing like a school girl.
You are not torn.

Sweet weight,
in celebration of the woman I am
and of the soul of the woman I am
and of the central creature and its delight
I sing for you. I dare to live.
Hello, spirit. Hello, cup.
Fasten, cover. Cover that does contain.
Hello to the soil of the fields.
Welcome, roots.

Each cell has a life.
There is enough here to please a nation.
It is enough that the populace own these goods.
Any person, any commonwealth would say of it,
“It is good this year that we may plant again
and think forward to a harvest.
A blight had been forecast and has been cast out.”
Many women are singing together of this:
one is in a shoe factory cursing the machine,
one is at the aquarium tending a seal,
one is dull at the wheel of her Ford,
one is at the toll gate collecting,
one is tying the cord of a calf in Arizona,
one is straddling a cello in Russia,
one is shifting pots on the stove in Egypt,
one is painting her bedroom walls moon color,
one is dying but remembering a breakfast,
one is stretching on her mat in Thailand,
one is wiping the ass of her child,
one is staring out the window of a train
in the middle of Wyoming and one is
anywhere and some are everywhere and all
seem to be singing, although some can not
sing a note.

Sweet weight,
in celebration of the woman I am
let me carry a ten-foot scarf,
let me drum for the nineteen-year-olds,
let me carry bowls for the offering
(if that is my part).
Let me study the cardiovascular tissue,
let me examine the angular distance of meteors,
let me suck on the stems of flowers
(if that is my part).
Let me make certain tribal figures
(if that is my part).
For this thing the body needs
let me sing
for the supper,
for the kissing,
for the correct
yes. 

Audre Lorde's Zami as a Model of Resistance Against Tension

As we are to be wrapping up on reading Zami, there is one element to Audre Lorde's biomythography that I am still pondering on. Much of this thought revolves around the shear discord that she endures as she tries to settle into her own, and as she tries to find her one true love. As these are a mirror of what might virtually have happened in Lorde's actual life, I can't help but wonder if "Zami" is a reflection of the tension that is prevalent ins society, especially as it relates to racism, sexuality, and humanity.

It is nothing new to say that that Lorde's character never finds true happiness. There are moments where she is able to find an indeterminable modicum of bliss, but these are momentary, and are eventually hounded by societal pressures, as well as personal conflict with trying to fit in a world that essentially condemns not just her sexual orientation, but her very skin. However, through all of the strife that comes with her "unorthodox" lifestyle and her paranoia of sexual "longing", Zami comes through it all with a deeper sense of herself, her sexuality, and her womanhood. He these elements intersect with her life experiences can give some credence to Zami as a resistor to this societal and personal tension.

It would be interesting if this theme would be seen in some similar works by Lorde, or if this model is specific to her character in Zami. The concept of intersectionality will, no doubt, permeate deeply as we come to understand more about the experiences of women and their expressions in literature. Even so, Audre Lorde's story is a good introduction to figuring out such a concept, and puts the struggles of black women in general, whether gay or not, into perspective.

Volta and the Dissonant Chord

When Professor Marshall first described the "volta", I immediately made a connection with what my old music teacher referred to as a "diminished chord." I'm not going to go into the music theory behind the chord, but it is very similar to the volta in that they both represent a shift in music or literature.

According to what I've found online, the volta is basically the heart and soul of a piece of literature. It represents drive and release on an emotional and rhythmical level. Many authors and poets describe the volta as "indispensable", and is the source of everything worth while that comes from a poem. The shifting and constantly evolving nature of poetry is what makes this art so interesting, deep, and emotional. A good volta will help a poem transform into something beautiful and contrasting, allowing it to evolve into a complex and beautiful work of art.

A diminished chord or triad is a grouping of three notes, and is most commonly used in orchestral music. Traditionally, the diminished chord had a very unique and important role: A diminished chord signified the beginning of the end. It should properly be used only once in any piece of music. It's dissonant and atonal sound drove the piece and gives the listener the perception that something is amiss or something is changing. Music tells a story much like a piece of literature, and much like the volta, the diminished chord signifies change. One slight clarification: a volta may also represent a stylistic change, while a diminished chord typically does not. However, in terms of tone and the message behind the music, it can be an immediate shift, or a subtle hint that things will soon go in a completely different direction.

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