The Song of the Smoke | Summary

Lines 1–2
As this poem begins, Du Bois identifies the persona of the poem as “the Smoke King.” The second line proclaims that, despite this light color, the persona is “black.” This was a startling proclamation for the time, as “color” had become as much of an issue in the African-American culture as outside it. Lighter skinned people “passed” as white, of course, but there was also a general acceptance of the notion in the African-American culture that lighter skin was preferable. Du Bois himself was a very light-skinned black man, and he strongly objected...

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