The Souls of Black Folk Group

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chillyred
chillyred
Student
College - Freshman

What does Washington think about agitation as a strategy for achieving social equality in The Souls of Black Folk?

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Posted by chillyred on Monday March 24, 2008 at 6:32 PM and tagged with social equality, the souls of black folk, washington.

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  1. podunc Teacher
    College - Sophomore

    eNotes Editor

    In The Souls of Black Folk, W.E.B. Du Bois makes it clear that he and Booker T. Washington do not share the same position regarding the African-American pursuit of social equality.

    According to http://www.enotes.com/souls-black/chapters-1-6-summary-analysis:

    Washington's "ideas posed what DuBois considered an imperfect middle ground between the legacy of slavery and the expansion of freedom for blacks. Washington argued that blacks didn’t immediately need all of the freedoms granted them under emancipation and that it might be wiser to cede some of these freedoms in the short term in favor of sharing the American quest for economic development." For DuBois, this kind of attitude only solidified the "veil" that existed between black America and white America.

    Since Washington is well-known for his 1895 compromise speech, it is unlikely that he approved of social agitation of any kind. In the speech, he urges African Americans to accept their position as socially inferior and to strive for personal improvement through vocational training while foregoing political power and higher education. As a Harvard-educated scholar, Du Bois was certainly not in agreement with this strategy.

    Sources:
    http://www.enotes.com/souls-black/

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    Posted by podunc on Friday April 25, 2008 at 7:17 PM