Poem- "On Virtue" by Phillis Wheatley

[Ms. Knarr]

On Virtue By Phillis Wheatley 1753–1784



O thou bright jewel in my aim I strive

To comprehend thee. Thine own words declare

Wisdom is higher than a fool can reach.

I cease to wonder, and no more attempt

Thine height t’explore, or fathom thy profound.

But, O my soul, sink not into despair,

Virtue is near thee, and with gentle hand

Would now embrace thee, hovers o’er thine head.

Fain would the heaven-born soul with her converse,

Then seek, then court her for her promised bliss.



Auspicious queen, thine heavenly pinions spread,

And lead celestial Chastity along;

Lo! now her sacred retinue descends,

Arrayed in glory from the orbs above.

Attend me, Virtue, thro’ my youthful years!

O leave me not to the false joys of time!

But guide my steps to endless life and bliss.

Greatness, or Goodness, say what I shall call thee,

To give an higher appellation still,

Teach me a better strain, a nobler lay,

O Thou, enthroned with Cherubs in the realms of day!

[paulabatoon]

1. In this poem, Phillis Wheatley is trying to grasp the true nature of virtue, as shown in the line, "O thou bright jewel in my aim I strive to comprehend thee." She knows virtue is out of her reach, but it will make her happy. This poem seems to have Christian undertones, such as heaven and angels, so she could be saying that God is the only way to find virtue. In the line, "Greatness, or Goodness, say what I shall call thee," Phillis says that God himself is something we cannot truly grasp as human beings, that he is way over our heads. Overall, this is a poem about how one cannot understand virtue without God - however, we can't even understand God. So, true virtue is out of our reach, but with God's help, we can certainly get close to it.

2. I liked the poem because I liked the meaning behind the poem. I get what Phillis Wheatley is trying to say here, how you can find virtue in God and that it might not be so unreachable after all. That was the part of the poem I liked. However, I found the language to be very difficult to read at first, but as soon as I dissected the poem a little bit, the meaning became a little more clear to me. Overall, I thought it was a good read, once I understood what Phillis was saying.

3. Q1: Do you think Phillis Wheatley wrote this about herself? About someone else? Or about a group of people?
Q2: What can we tell about Phillis Wheatley by reading this poem?
Q3: Why did she write this poem?
Q4: Do you agree with Phillis that virtue is unreachable without God?

[jimmymahoney]

1. I think the concept of "virtue" can be seen very symbolically. Virtue could be a lot of things. Virtue could be a lover, or a vocation. Even religion. Virtue is something that everyone wants, but is not the same for everyone.

2. I think this poem is slightly harder to understand than others, but its message is sound. Everyone wants to find something to make them happy, and that will never change.

3. To answer Paula's 4th question, I disagree. Plenty of people are happy and satisfied without God in their lives. Even if others think that isn't possible, it isn't their place to decide how to be happy.
My question coincides with the one I answered, does Phyllis Wheatley believe that there is only her way of being happy, or could others find their own path?

[elineal]

1. I have different views on the poem than Jimmy and Paula. I feel like this jewel is symbolic of a love and she is attempting to understand and get to know this love. In stanza 2 I feel like she has obtained this love and is telling it of how ending it makes her life.

2. I like the metaphors in the poem and how different a meaning one could conjure up just by emphasizing one word over another. Like Jimmy said everybody wants to love something and Wheatly is expressing her own love.

3.
(Answering question 2) We can assume Wheatly is strong in faith and is a very loving person.

(My question) What is your take on this 'jewel'?

[mattteryek]

1. In my interpretation of "On Virtue," I agree more with Eli's perspective. I feel Phillis Wheatley is talking about her journey to understand virtue, and how she should continue her life in relationship with God. Love seems to be a major influence in her journey, and enables her to accept that God solely holds the answer to her quest.

2. I enjoyed "On Virtue" because it makes one question his/her future, and what one's virtue is in life. The poem was also appreciated because of the somewhat confusing lines such as, "Thine height t’explore, or fathom thy profound." Phillis Wheatley's writing makes various interpretations possible.

3. (Answering question 2) We can assume that Phillis Wheatley may have had conflicted views of how she should continue her life. However, one can also say she found God to be the answer of her future.

(My question) Who do you think the Auspicious Queen is?

[kevinskocypec]

1. I feel like my opinions are very similar to those are Paula. Phillis Wheatley is expressing how it is hard for anyone to understand virtues. "Auspicious queen, thine heavenly pinions spread" could be referring to how a "virtue" can mean anything and "pinions spread" means there are many different opinions about it.

2. I had a good time reading "On Virtue." It really showed what Wheatley was feeling and how she was unable to understand the true meaning of a virtue. Like Jim said, she just wanted happiness. The way she expressed this was unique and warming.

3. (Answering Matt's Question) I feel like the Auspicious Queen is the virtue itself. As I said before, I feel like it is referring to the many interpretations of, basically, desire.

(My question) When Phillis Wheatley says, "thou bright jewel," is she referring to the need for virtue by using the pleasing term, bright?

[dylanzaliwski]

1. I agree with Paula on the interpretation of the poem. I believe this poem shows how Phillis Wheatley is trying to understand virtue itself. The also shows how this virtue is connecting to her faith, because of the many references to Christianity. Wheatley shows that there are many aspects of life that we may never be able to understand.

2. I did like this poem for many reasons. Phillis Wheatley tries to get you to think about the many aspects of life that we cannot comprehend. This intrigued me and is why I liked the poem.

3. (Answering Kevin's Question) The use of bright in the opening line,"O thou bright jewel in my aim I strive," is used to refer to virtue. This is because Wheatley says through the poem that virtue is something that is positive, pleasing, and holy.

(My Question) With the many Christian undertones in the poem, is Phillis Wheatley's poem about her own struggle with attaining this virtue and her relationship with God?

[paulabatoon]

1. I agree with the different perspectives after my post. I especially liked Eli's interpretation of the poem, how the jewel represents love. Phillis Wheatley is trying to say that God is the key to love and virtue through this poem. I also agree with Dylan's point about how we may never be able to understand certain aspects of life.

2. (In response to Dylan's question) I think this poem is about Phillis Wheatley's struggle with attaining virtue. I think she wrote this poem to try and get a better feel for virtue itself. This poem also says a lot about her relationship with God. She's saying that you can't obtain love/virtue without him, so her relationship with God must be very strong.
My question: Do you think Phillis wrote this poem as a prayer?

[dylanzaliwski]

1. I agree with what Paula said in response to my first question. This poem does show a lot about Phillis Wheatley, her faith, and how virtue is essential in her life.

2. (Answering Paula's Question) I do believe that Phillis Wheatley wrote this poem as a form of prayer. Seen throughout the poem, she mentions heaven, angels, and refers to God and Christianity. The poem is a reflection of her faith and she praying for God to help her faith grow.

(My Question) Does this poem act as a way for Phillis Wheatley to find and understand this virtue?

[Katie Mustillo]

1. I agree 100% with Paula and Dylan on the interpreation of the poem. Throughout the entire poem Phillis is trying to figure out what virtue is in her own life. She's trying to comprehend and grasp what it is in her own life. She realizes that she cannot do it alone and that she needs help from a superior figure. She uses many concepts of religion and God in it and that with God's help she will come close to it. She knows that she may not be able to understand or grasp it all, but she, with the help of God, will do the best she can to succeed. In conclusion, she knows that comprehension and piece by piece to her virtue puzzle will come with time. Eventually she will know it all in heaven as illustrated in this line; "But guide my steps to endless life and bliss." The meaning also shows that everyone can be successful in some things with the help of others.
2. I enjoyed the poem very much because it had a good concept and overall meaning that you could connect to. It was hard to understand though, but once you read it and thought about the meaning it made it much clearer to understand and connect to. It made you really think and try to see what Phillis was trying to say. I liked that because there could be so many different interpretations. It was easy to connect to once you understood what she was talking about because people our age are also trying to figure out the concept of religion/God and their own virtue as well. Overall, it was a great story with an awesome meaning.
3. Answering Paula's 1st question: Yes I do think Phillis Wheatley wrote this about herself. During this time she was brought over to be a slave and religion was all she had. I think the virtue she was trying to grasp was that she didn't understand why this was happening and why it had to happen to her. She was trying to grasp the concept of slavery and why it had to happen to her. She was trying to seek God to help her and one day she'd understand it all.
My question: Was God and how she didn't understand how he could do this to her people the virtue she was trying to grasp in her poem?

[thomashaldeman]

1. I agree with Katie, Dylan, and Paula. Phillis seemed confused about the virtues that she has in her own life are. This can also show how she is strengthening her own faith, or at least making an attempt to. Phillis was determined to try to understand the concept of "virtues."
2. I wasn't a huge fan of this piece. I just simply can't relate to this poem because I myself can understand the virtues in my life. However, I can totally understand how many individuals could relate to this so I think it was a good idea for her to express her feelings.
3. To answer Katie's question, I do believe that that was the virtue she was trying to grasp. She couldn't understand how God could let this happen to her people because it was such a horrible thing. I can totally understand her point of view.
My question: Do you think that Phillis ever found her "Virtue" and gained inner peace?