Ann Plato
Encyclopedia
Ann Plato was a nineteenth century mixed race (African American
and Native American
) educator and author
. She was the second woman of color to publish a book in America and the first to publish a book of essays and poems.
. Like many people of color who lived in America during the 1800s, there exists very little information about her. Most of what is known about her comes from the introduction of her book, written by Reverend W.C. Pennington, pastor of the Colored Congregational Church of Hartford, who called her "Platoess". Plato had a Native American
father.
In 1841, she published her only known book, entitled Essays: Including Biographies and Miscellanoeus Pieces in Prose and Poetry. The essays reflected the New England
Puritan
values of her environment. Topics included "Benevolence," "Education," "Employment" and "Religion." The essays stressed both the importance of education and of leading a pious, industrious life. The book also contained some poetry and biographies of departed female friends and acquaintances.
Some critics from later generations found Plato's essays and poetry to be overly moralizing as well as routine and lacking in originality. Many of them also derided her for not mentioning the issue of slavery
in America, as some of her near contemporaries like Frances Harper
and Charlotte Forten Grimke
did. Her one reference to slavery in her book concerns its abolition
in the West Indies in 1838 (perhaps a reference to the Slavery Abolition Act 1833 valid throughout the British Empire
).
Nothing is known about Plato's life after her book was published in 1841. Furthermore, the year of her death cannot be found.
released The Schomburg Library of Nineteenth-Century Black Women Writers with Professor Henry Louis Gates as the general editor of the series. Plato's book was reprinted as a part of this collection.
Trinity College
, Connecticut
, established the Ann Plato Fellowship in her honor.
-Ann Plato
A good education is another name for happiness"
-Ann Plato
African American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
and Native American
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
) educator and author
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
. She was the second woman of color to publish a book in America and the first to publish a book of essays and poems.
Early years
Plato was born during 1820 in Hartford, ConnecticutConnecticut
Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...
. Like many people of color who lived in America during the 1800s, there exists very little information about her. Most of what is known about her comes from the introduction of her book, written by Reverend W.C. Pennington, pastor of the Colored Congregational Church of Hartford, who called her "Platoess". Plato had a Native American
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
father.
Teacher and writer
She was employed as a school teacher/misteress at the Black Zion Methodist Church School of Hartford. She was a member of the Talcott Street Congregational Church in Hartford.In 1841, she published her only known book, entitled Essays: Including Biographies and Miscellanoeus Pieces in Prose and Poetry. The essays reflected the New England
New England
New England is a region in the northeastern corner of the United States consisting of the six states of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut...
Puritan
Puritan
The Puritans were a significant grouping of English Protestants in the 16th and 17th centuries. Puritanism in this sense was founded by some Marian exiles from the clergy shortly after the accession of Elizabeth I of England in 1558, as an activist movement within the Church of England...
values of her environment. Topics included "Benevolence," "Education," "Employment" and "Religion." The essays stressed both the importance of education and of leading a pious, industrious life. The book also contained some poetry and biographies of departed female friends and acquaintances.
Some critics from later generations found Plato's essays and poetry to be overly moralizing as well as routine and lacking in originality. Many of them also derided her for not mentioning the issue of slavery
Slavery
Slavery is a system under which people are treated as property to be bought and sold, and are forced to work. Slaves can be held against their will from the time of their capture, purchase or birth, and deprived of the right to leave, to refuse to work, or to demand compensation...
in America, as some of her near contemporaries like Frances Harper
Frances Harper
Frances Ellen Watkins Harper was an African American abolitionist and poet. Born free in Baltimore, Maryland, she had a long and prolific career, publishing her first book of poetry at twenty and her first novel, the widely praised Iola Leroy, at age 67.-Life and works:Frances Ellen Watkins was...
and Charlotte Forten Grimke
Charlotte Forten Grimké
Charlotte Louise Bridges Forten Grimké was an African-American anti-slavery activist, poet, and educator.-Biography:...
did. Her one reference to slavery in her book concerns its abolition
Abolitionism
Abolitionism is a movement to end slavery.In western Europe and the Americas abolitionism was a movement to end the slave trade and set slaves free. At the behest of Dominican priest Bartolomé de las Casas who was shocked at the treatment of natives in the New World, Spain enacted the first...
in the West Indies in 1838 (perhaps a reference to the Slavery Abolition Act 1833 valid throughout the British Empire
British Empire
The British Empire comprised the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom. It originated with the overseas colonies and trading posts established by England in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. At its height, it was the...
).
Nothing is known about Plato's life after her book was published in 1841. Furthermore, the year of her death cannot be found.
Legacy
In 1988, Oxford University PressOxford University Press
Oxford University Press is the largest university press in the world. It is a department of the University of Oxford and is governed by a group of 15 academics appointed by the Vice-Chancellor known as the Delegates of the Press. They are headed by the Secretary to the Delegates, who serves as...
released The Schomburg Library of Nineteenth-Century Black Women Writers with Professor Henry Louis Gates as the general editor of the series. Plato's book was reprinted as a part of this collection.
Trinity College
Trinity College (Connecticut)
Trinity College is a private, liberal arts college in Hartford, Connecticut. Founded in 1823, it is the second-oldest college in the state of Connecticut after Yale University. The college enrolls 2,300 students and has been coeducational since 1969. Trinity offers 38 majors and 26 minors, and has...
, Connecticut
Connecticut
Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...
, established the Ann Plato Fellowship in her honor.
Quote
"A good education is that which prepares us for our future sphere of action and makes us contented with that situation in life in which God, in his infinite mercy, has seen fit to place us, to be perfectly resigned to our lot in life, whatever it may be."-Ann Plato
A good education is another name for happiness"
-Ann Plato
Further reading
- Plato, Ann. Essays: Including Biographies and Miscellanoeus Pieces in Prose and Poetry. New York: Oxford University Press, 1988. ISBN 0-19-505247-1
- Robinson, William H., editor. Early Black American Poets, Dubuque, Iowa: William C. Brown Publishers, 1969. ISBN 0-697-03953-6
- Sherman, Joan R. Invisible Poets: Afro-Americans of the Nineteenth Century, Urbana, Illinois: University of Illinois Press, 1974. ISBN 0-252-06061-X