Phillis Wheatley (ca. 1753-1784), the first African American woman poet, was a celebrated literary figure in Boston during the Revolutionary era. In 1761, a frail child of seven or eight years, Phillis Wheatley came to America by slaveship from Senegal a...

Phillis Wheatley's status as a slave has hampered a thorough consideration of her work. While many modern readers-accustomed to placing emphasis upon writers' personal reactions to their subjects—agree that there has been a revolution in poetic tas...

Phillis Wheatley's status as a slave has hampered a thorough consideration of her work. While many modern readers--accustomed to placing emphasis upon writers' personal reactions to their subjects--agree that there has been a revolution in poetic taste s...

His Excellency: George Washington * Joseph J. Ellis * New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2004 * xiv, 320 pp. * $26.95 We cannot spare this man: he writes, seems to be the consensus on Joseph J. Ellis. His Excellency is true to form....

[Tanacharison] stepped up to where Jumonville lay, in French declared, "Thou art not yet dead, my father,'" then sank his hatchet into Jumonville's head, split his skull in half, pulled out his brain, and washed his hands in the mixture of blood and...