Phillis Wheatley and Frederick Douglass are two of the most important voices in the early slave and African American narrative. Phillis Wheatley being one of the biggest child poet prodigies of her time, her works are filled with hope and candor regarding her fellow blacks, both slave and non-slave. Frederick Douglass, as one of the foremost scholars, orators and politicians of his time, spoke from a much more authoritative and straightforward perspective on his works. Both their tones and attitudes, specifically as they speak to unique audiences, are quite different, and they will be explored in detail as they pertain to Wheatley's "To" poems and Douglass' letter to his father in his autobiography.
Phillis Wheatley, in her poem "To the University of Cambridge, in New England," she regards the students of said university - presumably the youth of tomorrow - to enjoy their lives, to seize each moment, and to work for a better future. She urges them to "improve [their] privileges while they stayLet sin, that baneful evil to the soul, by you be shunned, nor once remit your guard" (lines 21-25). Her tone and attitude are quite giving and welcoming; she is thankful for the privileges she has had, and wishes to impart those same advantages on her audience - she even is glad that she was taken from "those dark abodes" of Africa to enjoy the grace of God in America (line 6). She states that Africa is "the land of errors," because they had not found God yet and were not yet converted - Wheatley's praise and salutations for her listeners revolve chiefly around her love of the Lord.
Douglass, in his letter to his old master, shows a very different personality than Wheatley's thankfulness for her past and the chance for a brighter future. Instead, he wishes to demonstrate that he is quite bitter to his old master, wanting to tell him how and why he ran away from him. "Sir, you will undoubtedly make the proper application of these generally admitted principles, and will easily see the light in which you are regarded by me; I will not therefore manifest ill temper, by calling you hard names" (p. 1500). He wants to show him that, while he is mad at the old master, he wants to rise above that. His approach to God is much different than Wheatley's; while she is very much thankful for God, Douglass makes a point that he is continually puzzled by the injustices his people have received despite the existence of a loving God. All the same, he recognizes that both he and the master, on opposite sides of the slavery issue, are both borne of Him. "What you are, I am. You are a man, and so am I. God created both, and made us separate beings" (p. 1502).
Phillis Wheatley and Frederick Douglass speak differently to their respective audiences in their works, changing tone and attitude to adjust them. Wheatley, in her "To" poems, speaks of the hope that lies in the future. Douglass, on the other hand, wishes to revisit old wounds, explaining why he hates them and why his people have been so disenfranchised. These two people work towards equality in different ways; Douglass wishes to examine the mistakes of the past, while Wheatley encourages excitement about what lies ahead.
