Olaudah Equiano and Phillis Wheatley had distinct reflections on their experience with slavery. Although they both underwent captivity and experienced the hardships of slavery, the work that they published during and following their emancipation differed greatly.
Equiano talked extensively about the hardships he was unjustly placed under because of his race and how slaves used God and their own inner strength to rise above slavery.
Wheatly, on the other hand, is often criticized for not focusing on the issue of race enough. Like Equiano, she was also religious. However, she considered the practice of religion as a bridge between slaves and their owners, as it was from the masters that the slaves were educated about the Christian faith. In some of her work, she seems to think favorably of her slave owners, and what they taught her about topics like English and philosophy. However, in other works, she openly condemns the institution of slavery.
http://ushistoryscene.com/article/phillis-wheatley/
http://www.uky.edu/AS/English/courses/online/eng251/assignment13.html
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