Journal #4 Du Bois

Liana Laskin

English 48B

"The Souls of Black Folk" by W.E.B. Du Bois

January 15, 2009

"The Father of Pan-Africanism." http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/W.E.B._Du_Bois

Summary:

In this story Du Bois talks about his experiences with racism as a child when a little white girl refused to accept a card from him as well as the white people who would come up to him as an adult and in so many words tell him that they pitied him. He also brings up "double-consciousness," pointing out that while it is painful to be considered a Negro and an American rather than just an African American, he does not think it is a bad thing to have that separation. In the third chapter he critiques Booker T. Washington's ideas about what is appropriate for Negros to have at the time, but also sees eye to eye with him.

Response:

I appreciate that Du Bois says that even though he feels split up into two different "souls," he makes a point of saying that these two halves can be brought together to make an even stronger whole. He definitely shows that America would not be what it is today without the pain and something Negros had to go through, especially when it comes to the cultural aspects that have been adopted and now labeled as "American." I think that it is important that Du Bois is not just critical, but in support of Washington's ideas because it would be wrong to say that Du Bois absolutely agrees or disagrees with Washington. I also really liked that Du Bois had bars of music (the spirituals) at the beginnings of chapters one and three because I think it made them more personalized and added an interesting visual to think about.