Questions

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  1. What argument does the speaker of this poem make against the prevailing view of Africans during this time period?

    Question

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    Questions: - What argument does the speaker of this poem make against the prevailing view of Africans during this time period?
  2. In line 3, what is the significance of Phillis Wheatley’s distinction between “a God” and “a Saviour too”?

    Question

    ALMF/kS1zzW73MouRsoXk1h0lKY=
    Questions: - In line 3, what is the significance of Phillis Wheatley’s distinction between “a God” and “a Saviour too”?
  3. Consider connotations and multiple meanings of word choices that Wheatley makes. What difference would it have made if she had used “heathen” instead of “Pagan” (l. 1)? What ambiguity is there in the word “benighted” (l. 2)? What is the impact of her description of her color as “sable” (l. 5)?

    Question

    ALMF/kS1zzW73MouRsoXk1h0lKY=
    Questions: - Consider connotations and multiple meanings of word choices that Wheatley makes. What difference would it have made if she had used “heathen” instead of “Pagan” (l. 1)? What ambiguity is there in the word “benighted” (l. 2)? What is the impact of her description of her color as “sable” (l. 5)?
  4. What tone does the speaker take when she addresses her audience with the imperative, “Remember, Christians” (l. 7)? What way might that line be read other than as a direct address to her Christian readers?

    Question

    ALMF/kS1zzW73MouRsoXk1h0lKY=
    Questions: - What tone does the speaker take when she addresses her audience with the imperative, “Remember, Christians” (l. 7)? What way might that line be read other than as a direct address to her Christian readers?
  5. In his biography of Wheatley, Vincent Carretta admonishes those who read this poem as Wheatley’s rejection of her African heritage as “confus[ing] accommodation with appropriation.” What do you think he means by that statement? Explain why you agree or disagree.

    Question

    ALMF/kS1zzW73MouRsoXk1h0lKY=
    Questions: - In his biography of Wheatley, Vincent Carretta admonishes those who read this poem as Wheatley’s rejection of her African heritage as “confus[ing] accommodation with appropriation.” What do you think he means by that statement? Explain why you agree or disagree.