User:Meghan mouton/sandbox

Scholarly Critique of Wheatley
Black literary scholars in the 1960s and to the present have critiqued Wheatley's writing due to its absence of a strong sense of her identity as a black enslaved person. A number of black literary scholars have viewed her work - and its widespread admiration - as a barrier to the furthering the development of black people during her time and a prime example of Uncle Tom syndrome. These scholars believe that Wheatley's lack of awareness of her condition of enslavement furthers this syndrome among African descendant in the Americas.

'''It is thought by scholars that Wheatley's perspective came from her upbringing. The Wheatley family took interest in her at a young age because of her timid and submissive nature. Using this to their advantage, the Wheatley family was able to mold and shape her into a person of their liking. The family separated her from other slaves in the home and was prevented from doing anything other than very light house work. This shaping prevented Phillis from ever becoming a threat to the Wheatley family or other people from the white community. As a result a result, this allowed Phillis to be able to attend white social events and created a misconception of the relationship between black and white people for her. '''