W.E.B. Du Bois

Vann R. Newkirk II

“The problem of the Twentieth Century is the problem of the color line.” This infamous formulation is the central idea around which W. E. B. Du Bois crafted what would become the most influential work about race in America: The Souls of Black Folk. Since he penned these words in 1903, the fraught relationship between the races has dominated the country’s policies, economy, and social developments. Published forty years after the Emancipation Proclamation, Du Bois’s radioactive essays addressed an American nation that had still not yet found “peace from its sins.” Today, amid furor over voting rights, mass incarceration, police brutality and extrajudicial killing, the ghosts of white supremacy and ethnonationalism, and the apparent fragility of the equality and desegregation gains of the Civil Rights Movement, Du Bois’s work has proven prophetic, and more urgently necessary than ever. Striking in their psychological precision and political foresight, the fourteen chapters of The Souls of Black Folk move between historical and sociological essays, song and poetry, personal recollection and fiction, laying out the foundational ideas of “double-consciousness”—an inner conflict created by the seemingly irreconcilable “black” and “American” identities—and “the veil,” through which African-Americans must see a spectrum of economic, social, and political opportunities entirely differently from their white counterparts. For anyone interested in understanding race in America, or in the literary lineage that Du Bois generated—from James Baldwin’s The Fire Next Time, to Toni Morrison’s Sula, to Ta-Nehisi Coates’s Between the World and Me—The Souls of Black Folk is essential reading.

The Souls of Black Folk

William Edward Burghardt Du Bois (1868 – 1963) was an American sociologist, socialist, historian, civil rights activist, Pan-Africanist, author, writer and editor. Born in Great Barrington, Massachusetts, Du Bois grew up in a relatively tolerant and integrated community, and after completing graduate work at the University of Berlin and Harvard, where he was the first African American to earn a doctorate, he became a professor of history, sociology and economics at Atlanta University. Du Bois was one of the founders of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) in 1909. Du Bois was a prolific author. His collection of essays, The Souls of Black Folk, is a seminal work in African-American literature; and his 1935 magnum opus, Black Reconstruction in America, challenged the prevailing orthodoxy that blacks were responsible for the failures of the Reconstruction Era. Borrowing a phrase from Frederick Douglass, he popularized the use of the term color line to represent the injustice of the separate but equal doctrine prevalent in American social and political life. He opens The Souls of Black Folk with the central thesis of much of his life's work: "The problem of the twentieth century is the problem of the color-line."

The Comet (1920) is a science fiction story by W. E. B. Du Bois. Written while the author was using his role at The Crisis, the official magazine of the NAACP, to publish emerging black artists of the Harlem Renaissance, The Comet is a pioneering work of speculative fiction which imagines a catastrophic event not only decimating New York City, but bringing an abrupt end to white supremacy. “How silent the street was! Not a soul was stirring, and yet it was high-noon—Wall Street? Broadway? He glanced almost wildly up and down, then across the street, and as he looked, a sickening horror froze in his limbs.” Sent to the vault to retrieve some old records, bank messenger Jim Davis emerges to find a city descended into chaos. A comet has passed overhead, spewing toxic fumes into the atmosphere. All of lower Manhattan seems frozen in time. It takes him a few moments to see the bodies, piled into doorways and strewn about the eerily quiet streets. When he comes to his senses, he finds a wealthy woman asking for help. Soon, it becomes clear that they could very well be the last living people in the planet, that the fate of civilization depends on their ability to come together, not as black and white, but as two human beings. But how far will this acknowledgment take them? With a beautifully designed cover and professionally typeset manuscript, this edition of W. E. B. Du Bois’ The Comet is a classic work of African American literature reimagined for modern readers.

The Comet

Suppression of the African Slave-Trade to the United States of America, 1638-1870

A thorough account of Africa’s history and its lasting influence on Western culture told from the perspective of the disparate descendants who inherited its legacy. W.E.B. Du Bois highlights the hidden stories that connect these varied communities. Originally published in 1915, The Negro presents an expansive analysis of the African diaspora over the course of history. W.E.B. Du Bois uses a critical eye to survey the early depictions of the continent, debunking stereotypical myths about its social structure. He addresses the generational impact of slavery as well as the capitalistic system that made it possible. It’s an honest look at the effects of white supremacy, classism and its place in modern society. From Ethiopia and Egypt to the West Indies and Latin America, Africa’s influence is undeniable. The Negro sheds light on the ignored history of the continent and its many descendants. It’s a vital piece of literature that acknowledges and celebrates its cultural power. With an eye-catching new cover, and professionally typeset manuscript, this edition of The Negro is both modern and readable.

The Negro

Stephen King

Ray Bradbury

Greg Bear

Kurt Vonnegut

Arthur C. Clarke

Brian Stableford

Joe R. Lansdale

Ramsey Campbell

Carmen Maria Machado

Mark Samuels

Erica L. Satifka

Sixteen compelling tales of post-apocalyptic societies and dystopian worlds include stories by Stephen King, Ray Bradbury, Arthur C. Clarke, Philip K. Dick, Kurt Vonnegut, W. E. B. Du Bois, Harlan Ellison, and others.

Tales of Mankind's Post-Apocalyptic, Dystopian and Disastrous Destiny

Grave Predictions

Lesser-known writings include "Strivings of the Negro People," "A Negro Schoolmaster in the New South," "The Talented Tenth," "Address to the Nation: The Niagara Movement Speech," "Evolution of the Race Problem," and more.

W. E. B. Du Bois: Selections from His Writings

"The Souls of Black Folk" is a cornerstone of African-American literary history. Published in 1903, this seminal book of essays incited many white supremacists who discredited it as "dangerous" and "imaginative." Drawing upon his own personal experiences of racism, Du Bois argued that African Americans are forced to wear a "veil" of color line, that is, they are forced to live their race every single day of their lives. This is why a strong political Black leadership must emerge from within the community and continue the fight for their rights. A century later, African Americans are still fighting these personal and political battles against racism and Du Bois' words have never run as true as they are now. W. E. B. Du Bois (1868–1963) was an American sociologist, historian, civil rights activist, Pan-Africanist, author, and editor. He was the first African American to earn a doctorate and to become a professor of history, sociology and economics at Atlanta University. Du Bois was one of the co-founders of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and a prominent the leader of the Niagara Movement, a group of African-American activists who wanted equal rights for blacks.

Du Bois: The Souls of Black Folk

This carefully crafted ebook: "THE SOULS OF BLACK FOLK" is formatted for your eReader with a functional and detailed table of contents. "The Souls of Black Folk" is a cornerstone of African-American literary history. Published in 1903, this seminal book of essays incited many white supremacists who discredited it as "dangerous" and "imaginative." Drawing upon his own personal experiences of racism, Du Bois argued that African Americans are forced to wear a "veil" of color line, that is, they are forced to live their race every single day of their lives. This is why a strong political Black leadership must emerge from within the community and continue the fight for their rights. A century later, African Americans are still fighting these personal and political battles against racism and Du Bois' words have never run as true as they are now. W. E. B. Du Bois (1868–1963) was an American sociologist, historian, civil rights activist, Pan-Africanist, author, and editor. He was the first African American to earn a doctorate and to become a professor of history, sociology and economics at Atlanta University. Du Bois was one of the co-founders of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and a prominent the leader of the Niagara Movement, a group of African-American activists who wanted equal rights for blacks.

THE SOULS OF BLACK FOLK

A definitive edition of the landmark book that forever changed our understanding of the Civil War’s aftermath and the legacy of racism in America Upon publication in 1935, W.E.B. Du Bois’s now classic Black Reconstruction offered a revelatory new assessment of Reconstruction—and of American democracy itself. One of the towering African American thinkers and activists of the twentieth century, Du Bois brought all his intellectual powers to bear on the nation’s post-Civil War era of political reorganization, a time when African American progress was met with a white supremacist backlash and ultimately yielded to the consolidation of the unjust social order of Jim Crow. Black Reconstruction is a pioneering work of revisionist scholarship that, in the wake of the censorship of Du Bois’s characterization of Reconstruction by the Encyclopedia Britannica, was written to debunk influential historians whose racist ideas and emphases had disfigured the historical record. “The chief witness in Reconstruction, the emancipated slave himself,” Du Bois argued, “has been almost barred from court. His written Reconstruction record has been largely destroyed and nearly always neglected.” In setting the record straight Du Bois produced what co-editor Eric Foner has called an “indispensable book,” a magisterial work of detached scholarship that is also imbued with passionate outrage. Presented in a handsome hardcover edition, with an illuminating new introduction by Foner and co-editor Henry Louis Gates, Jr. and an authoritative text, Black Reconstruction is joined here for the first time with important writings that trace Du Bois’s thinking throughout his career about Reconstruction and its centrality in understanding the tortured course of democracy in America.

An Essay Toward a History of the Part whichBlack Folk Played in the Attempt to ReconstructDemocracy in America, 1860–1880

W.E.B. Du Bois: Black Reconstruction (LOA #350)

"These essays by the prolific historian and civil rights activist W. E. B. Du Bois focus on some of the African-American author's lesser-known writings. They include "Strivings of the Negro People," "A Negro Schoolmaster in the New South," "The Talented Tenth," "Address to the Nation: The Niagara Movement Speech," "Evolution of the Race Problem," and more"--

W.E.B. Du Bois

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