In the first chapter of The Souls of Blackfolk, W. E. B. Du Bois says that he along with all black Americans experience a
In the first chapter of The Souls of Blackfolk, W. E. B. Du Bois says that he along with all black Americans experience a “double consciousness.” Du Bois describes this experience in the following way:
It is a peculiar sensation, this double-consciousness, this sense of always looking at one’s self through the eyes of others, of measuring one’s soul by the tape of a world that looks on in amused contempt and pity. One ever feels his two-ness,—an American, a Negro; two souls, two thoughts, two unreconciled strivings; two warring ideals in one dark body, whose dogged strength alone keeps it from being torn asunder.
In this portion of the class, we have read several examples of black American characters. Whether that character is Jim, the run away slave seeking his freedom and that of his family, Mr. Ryder, the sophisticated dean of the Blue Vein society, or Julius, the former slave who tells the tale of Mars Dugal’s vineyard, these characters offer some version of what it is like to be black in America. The question is do these depictions agree with Du Bois?
Your essay should answer the question, “Based on the stories you have read, would either Mark Twain or Charles Chesnutt agree with Du Bois’s theory of double-consciousness?”
*NOTE* You may find that either both do agree, neither agree, or that one author does and the other does not. You may even find that only one of the three characters really represents Du Bois’s ideas. Any of these answers are acceptable so long as you provide evidence. You do not need to do any outside research for this essay. Base your argument off of what we have read in class.
*ADVICE* Consider more than just the one paragraph from Du Bois included in this prompt. Du Bois describes a number of ways in which he believes this double-consciousness reveals itself. Consider these before deciding on your thesis.
Answer preview for In the first chapter of The Souls of Blackfolk, W. E. B. Du Bois says that he along with all black Americans experience a
MLA
1120 Words