---
title: "Phillis Wheatley — AP African American Studies Definition"
description: "Phillis Wheatley was an 18th-century poet whose visions of freedom after abolition make her an early example of Afrofuturism in AP African American Studies Topic 4.21."
canonical: "https://fiveable.me/ap-african-american-studies/key-terms/phillis-wheatley"
type: "key-term"
subject: "AP African American Studies"
unit: "Unit 4"
---

# Phillis Wheatley — AP African American Studies Definition

## Definition

Phillis Wheatley was an 18th-century enslaved poet whose verses imagining future freedom and mobility after abolition are cited in AP African American Studies (Topic 4.21) as an early example of Afrofuturism, centuries before the term existed.

## What It Is

Phillis Wheatley was an 18th-century poet, [enslaved](/ap-african-american-studies/unit-2/5-slave-auctions-and-the-domestic-slave-trade/study-guide/emjWEVMx5ufYjuD1 "fv-autolink") in Boston, who became one of the first published [African American writers](/ap-african-american-studies/unit-1/4-africas-ancient-societies/study-guide/tYDGKYURzWv9DpBI "fv-autolink"). In 1773 she published *Poems on Various Subjects, Religious and Moral*, a book that forced many white readers to confront living proof that Black people could produce serious literature.

For the AP exam, the thing to know is *why* she shows up in [Unit 4](/ap-african-american-studies/unit-4 "fv-autolink"). The CED names Wheatley as an early example of Afrofuturism (EK 4.21.B.2) because her poetry envisioned future freedom and mobility after abolition. Think about what that means. While she was still legally enslaved, she was writing a future where slavery didn't exist. That's the core Afrofuturist move, imagining Black life beyond present oppression, and Wheatley was doing it more than 200 years before anyone coined the word.

## Why It Matters

Wheatley lives in **[Topic 4.21](/ap-african-american-studies/unit-4/21-black-studies-black-futures-and-afrofuturism/study-guide/j47itxqaFB3GyMzG "fv-autolink") (Black Studies, Black Futures, and Afrofuturism)** in **Unit 4: Movements and Debates**. She directly supports learning objective **4.21.B**, which asks you to explain how Afrofuturism envisions Black lives in futuristic environments. The CED defines Afrofuturism as a movement that reimagines Black pasts and envisions Afrocentric futures (EK 4.21.B.1), and Wheatley is one of the two named historical anchors that prove this impulse predates the modern movement (EK 4.21.B.2). She also connects to 4.21.A, because tracing Afrofuturism back to an 18th-century poet is exactly the kind of analysis African American Studies does that traditional disciplines skipped. If a question asks for an *early* example of Afrofuturism, Wheatley and [Benjamin Banneker](/ap-african-american-studies/key-terms/benjamin-banneker "fv-autolink") are the answers the CED hands you.

## Connections

### [Benjamin Banneker (Unit 4)](/ap-african-american-studies/key-terms/benjamin-banneker)

Banneker is Wheatley's partner in EK 4.21.B.2. They're the two early Afrofuturists the CED names. Wheatley imagined free Black futures through [poetry](/ap-african-american-studies/unit-2/3-capture-and-impact-of-slave-trade-on-west-african-societies/study-guide/ee2K7GYOvbiS83qL "fv-autolink"), while Banneker did it through science by studying the stars. Together they show Afrofuturism's roots run through both art and STEM.

### [Almanac and Ephemeris (Unit 4)](/ap-african-american-studies/key-terms/almanac-and-ephemeris)

Banneker's *[Almanac and Ephemeris](/ap-african-american-studies/key-terms/almanac-and-ephemeris "fv-autolink")* is the scientific counterpart to Wheatley's poetry collection. Both works proved Black intellectual achievement in the 1700s and challenged claims of white superiority, which is why the CED pairs them as early Afrofuturism.

### [Sun-Ra (Unit 4)](/ap-african-american-studies/key-terms/sun-ra)

[Sun-Ra](/ap-african-american-studies/key-terms/sun-ra "fv-autolink") represents Afrofuturism in its full modern form, blending jazz, cosmic imagery, and space-age identity. Putting Wheatley next to Sun-Ra lets you make a continuity argument that imagining Black futures stretches from the 1770s to the 20th century.

## On the AP Exam

Wheatley is most likely to appear in multiple-choice questions about Topic 4.21, usually as the answer to a stem like "Which early Afrofuturist envisioned future freedom through poetry?" Practice questions also ask you to explain *how* her work exemplified Afrofuturistic thought before the term was coined, so don't just memorize her name. Be ready to make the link explicit. She was enslaved, yet her poetry pictured freedom and mobility after abolition, which matches the CED's definition of Afrofuturism as envisioning futures beyond oppression. No released FRQ has used her name verbatim in this context, but she works well as evidence in a short-answer or project response about how Afrofuturism's roots predate the modern movement.

## Phillis Wheatley vs Benjamin Banneker

Both are the CED's named early Afrofuturists, so it's easy to swap them on an MCQ. The fix is the medium. Wheatley is the *poet* who imagined freedom through literature. Banneker is the *mathematician and astronomer* who studied the stars and published the Almanac and Ephemeris. If the question says poetry, it's Wheatley. If it says astronomy, math, or almanac, it's Banneker.

## Key Takeaways

- Phillis Wheatley was an 18th-century enslaved poet whose visions of future freedom and mobility after abolition are an early example of Afrofuturism (EK 4.21.B.2).
- She appears in Topic 4.21 of Unit 4 and supports learning objective 4.21.B on how Afrofuturism envisions Black lives in futuristic environments.
- Her Afrofuturist move was imagining a world without slavery while she was still enslaved, which matches the CED's definition of reimagining Black pasts and futures.
- The CED pairs her with Benjamin Banneker; Wheatley represents the literary path to early Afrofuturism while Banneker represents the scientific one.
- On the exam, distinguish the two by medium: poetry points to Wheatley, astronomy and the Almanac point to Banneker.

## FAQs

### What did Phillis Wheatley do, and why is she in AP African American Studies?

Wheatley was an 18th-century enslaved poet who published *Poems on Various Subjects, Religious and Moral* in 1773. The AP course covers her in Topic 4.21 because her poetry envisioned future freedom and mobility after abolition, making her an early example of Afrofuturism.

### Was Phillis Wheatley actually an Afrofuturist?

Not by name, since the term Afrofuturism wasn't coined until the late 20th century. But the CED counts her as an early example because her poetry did the core Afrofuturist work of envisioning Black freedom beyond present oppression, centuries before the movement got its name.

### How is Phillis Wheatley different from Benjamin Banneker?

Both are the CED's early Afrofuturists, but Wheatley was a poet who imagined freedom through literature, while Banneker was a mathematician and astronomer who studied the stars and published the Almanac and Ephemeris. Same impulse, different fields.

### How does Phillis Wheatley connect to Afrofuturism on the AP exam?

EK 4.21.B.2 names her directly as an early example of Afrofuturism. Exam questions ask you to explain that her visions of future freedom and mobility after abolition match Afrofuturism's definition of envisioning Black futures beyond oppression.

### What unit of AP African American Studies covers Phillis Wheatley?

She's covered in Unit 4 (Movements and Debates), specifically Topic 4.21 on Black Studies, Black Futures, and Afrofuturism, under learning objective 4.21.B.

## Related Study Guides

- [4.21 Black Studies, Black Futures, and Afrofuturism](/ap-african-american-studies/unit-4/21-black-studies-black-futures-and-afrofuturism/study-guide/j47itxqaFB3GyMzG)

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