Early Indigenous Literatures

Wheatley Photo Annotation 2

There is a lot to consider when scrutinizing the photo. First, this is the only photograph in the paratextual materials we will observe in this exhibit, so it is necessary to think about why Wheatley in particular was photographed. Perhaps it had to do with her fame and success as a young poet. Additionally, Wheatley’s gaze is away from the artist drawing her, and this is a moment where Wheatley enacts bell hooks’ contemporary concept of an oppositional gaze. hooks explains that “Those black women whose identities were constructed in resistance, by practices that oppose the dominant order, were most inclined to develop an oppositional gaze.”[1] As Wheatley will explain in the collaborative space, her gaze is a form of resistance, as her gaze opposes the illustrator and her servitude. We also see Wheatley holding a pen and paper which indicates that she is able to write. Her hand is on her chin, emphasizing that she is an intelligent woman pondering what to write next. Overall, the photo highlights Wheatley’s double roles. The clothing depicts her servitude, while the pen depicts her life as a poet, and the creativity and intelligence she holds inside. 
 
[1] bell hooks, Black Looks: Race and Representation, (2015), 127.

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