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Nyah Ward
Professor Judah-Micah Lamar
ENG 383
10 February 2023
The Misunderstanding of Jupiter Hammon’s Works
Jupiter Hammon was considered to be the first African American poet to have his literary
works published. Originating from Long Island, New York, Hammon was born into slavery on
October 17, 1711, and served as a clerk and bookkeeper for the Henry Lloyd family estate for the
majority of his life. Despite the little-known details regarding his life and death date, there has
been evidence indicating that his master provided him with private tutoring which helped him
become literate. His writings gave his audience perception and view of slavery and freedom
while embodying the word of the Bible. Some of his poetic works consisted of “An Evening
Thought: Salvation by Christ, with Penitential Cries” and “An Address to Miss Phillis
Wheatley.” The purpose of Hammon’s poetry was to influence other enslaved African
Americans to stay strong together as a community through the implication of biblical texts as he
believed applying it would be the source of power to free them from slavery in colonial America.
In spite of that,
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Works Cited
Nydam, Arien. “Numerological Tradition in the Works of Jupiter Hammon.” African American
Review, vol. 40, no. 2, 2006, pp. 207–20. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/40033710.
Accessed 9 Feb. 2023.