An+Hymn+to+the+Evening

• The time is the late 1700’s, better referred to as the Revolutionary period. The writings of Phillis Wheatley are influenced by the morality of slavery and the hard times faced in the Revolution, and afterwards when the government was slowly being formed.

• Phillis wrote this to describe the beauty of the evening, the amazing phenomenon that occurs, and the earth.

• Phillis uses several techniques to make the poem exceptional. For instance, she uses a definite rhyme scheme. "SOON as the sun forsook the eastern main"

• The poem uses very unfamiliar words to most people of this time. Zephyr- a west wind. This is used to describe how the wind is personified as a bird carrying the scent of spring with it. This use of imagery is normal, but the language shows that the time is different. In addition, the literature has many places that no longer resemble what is in this poem.

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 * Why is this poem important? (The Depth)
 * Why is the writer important?