The Souls of Black Folk Themes

Du Bois wrote The Souls of Black Folk almost 40 years after the Emancipation Proclamation officially abolished chattel slavery across the US, yet the legacy of slavery was anything but over. Much of the book is dedicated to examining this legacy, and calling into question the extent that African-American people can truly be considered free. Du Bois also examines the way that the South is particularly shaped by the ongoing consequences of slavery, and argues…

One of the most groundbreaking aspects of The Souls of Black Folk is its focus on the psychological experience of racism alongside the issues of physical and economic oppression. In the book, Du Bois argues that even the few black people who manage to achieve prosperity, higher education, and professional success cannot escape the mental and emotional effects of living in a racist society. Du Bois himself is a key example of this phenomenon; born…

Throughout the book, Du Bois implies that one of the main problems preventing African Americans from achieving greater justice and prosperity is lack of proper leadership. He devotes a whole chapter to criticizing the leadership of Booker T. Washington, the most famous and influential black leader at the time. Du Bois argues that Washington was far too conciliatory to whites, and that his decision to compromise on the issues of civil, political, and educational…

Du Bois begins the book by arguing that “the problem of the 20th century is the problem of the color line,” thereby claiming that black people’s exclusion from white society is the most important issue facing 20th-century America. Both a physical and metaphorical barrier, the color line prevents black people from accessing the institutions, spaces, and opportunities available to white people; this exclusion is both created by and fuels the psychological and social issues…