Themes & patterns

The poems consistently emphasize Christian theology, focusing on redemption through Jesus Christ's sacrifice, the promise of eternal life, and the importance of faith, as seen in poems like 'On Being Brought from Africa to America' and 'To the University of Cambridge.'

Many elegies and funeral poems explore death as a transition to a heavenly afterlife, offering consolation to mourners by depicting the deceased as ascending to blissful immortality, as in 'On the Death of the Rev. Dr. Sewell' and 'On the Death of a Young Gentleman.'

Wheatley subtly addresses themes of freedom and tyranny, drawing on her own experience of being enslaved and brought from Africa, while advocating for liberty and condemning oppression, notably in 'To the Right Honourable William, Earl of Dartmouth.'

The natural world is portrayed as a reflection of God's wisdom, power, and goodness, with poems like 'Thoughts on the Works of Providence' celebrating creation as evidence of divine order and benevolence.

Wheatley repeatedly exhorts readers to pursue virtue, piety, and moral rectitude, warning against sin and temptation, as seen in 'On Virtue' and 'To the University of Cambridge,' where she urges students to shun evil.

Wheatley confronts racial prejudice and asserts the spiritual equality of African people, using her own identity as an 'Ethiop' or 'Afric's muse' to challenge racist assumptions, as in 'On Being Brought from Africa to America' and 'To S. M. A Young African Painter.'

The collection frequently addresses personal and communal grief, offering religious consolation by redirecting mourners' focus to heavenly reunion and divine will, as in 'To a Lady on the Death of Her Husband' and 'On the Death of a Young Lady of Five Years of Age.'

Wheatley weaves references to Greek and Roman mythology (e.g., Apollo, Niobe, the Muses) alongside biblical stories (e.g., David and Goliath, Isaiah) to elevate her themes and demonstrate her erudition, as in 'Niobe in Distress' and 'Goliath of Gath.'