In “Souls of black folk,” W.E.B. Du Bois drew from his own experiences as an African American in American society. He established the main reasons of discrimination is because of skin color and the central problem of 20^th century is the color line. At a time being American essentially meant to be white and how difficult it was to be both black and American. The slow growth of personal leadership and frankly criticized the leaders who bear the primary responsibility of today’s race. Also, he quickly outlined behind the veil, next, he developed his view on double consciousness. Du Bois is driven into two concepts of “veil” and “double consciousness.”

The significance of these words is profound, because they not only briefly describe the situation of blacks and Americans at that time but are also faithful to the spiritual themes of blacks and Americans today. Being African Americans in the United States experience two things. First is having black identity and second is black identity born as slavery. A central metaphor in the book is the idea that the veil separates whites from blacks. The veil is recommended for darker black skin. At the same time, in addition to racist negative visions of black people, the veil prevents blacks from seeing themselves. Du Bois even gave an example that the veil can physically make him different from other people. He recalled his childhood memory that was the first time he realized racism when a girl refused to accept his visiting card. According to Du Bois, “Then it dawned upon me with a certain suddenness that I was different from the others; or like, mayhap, in heart and life and longing, but shut out from their world by a vast veil. I had thereafter no desire to tear down that veil” (1).

In the age of slavery, African American have experienced all doubts and disappointments in a sacred event as “To him, so far as he thought and dreamed, slavery was indeed the sum of all villainies, the cause of all sorrow, the root of all prejudice” (Du Bois 1). People couldn’t fully understand the lives of African American people inside the veil. This is a special feeling most African American men and women experience of double consciousness. Double consciousness is considered here as a kind of feeling. It is also part of a more complex dualism, a completely different thought, effort and ideal feeling. As we can see that in some situations they are being treated disrespectfully and pitifully in society for no particular reason and it is just because of black. Those feelings are fixed and lasting forms of consciousness to them and experience them with invalidating. According to Du Bois, “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” (1). Du Bois, as a victim of racism as black African American have struggled through a variety of stressful outcomes.

At the beginning of his introduction, R.W. Emerson sounded angry and not happy, he wrote “our age is retrospective” (Emerson 1), this shows that he was not  satisfied with generations who keep looking backward instead of looking forward and enjoy their life. His point of view is that why do we have to stick with the past and its experiences that hold us back. Emerson says” there are new lands, new men, new thoughts. Let us demand our own works and laws and worship” (1). Hence, every day is a new day, we meet new people and experience new things that keep changing, so why not come up with our own religion, works, and regulations that go with our current life. In other words, adapt to our nature because it is already perfect.

Emerson continues to talk about the beauty of nature. He encourages us to be alone far from others to enjoy nature. Emerson states “to go into solitude, a man needs to retire as much from his chamber as from society… But if a man would be alone, let him look at the stars. The rays that come from those heavenly worlds, will separate between him and what he touches.” (Emerson 3). It is clear how nature is important for Emerson; he believes that humans deserve some quality time with nature to discover its beauty. Describing the stars, the sun, the fields show that Emerson is in love with nature. Focusing on nature makes us feel that we own the world. Emerson claimed that “here is a property in the horizon which no man has but he whose eye can integrate all the parts, that is, the poet” (3). In this passage, the author explains that when we look at every detail of nature, we own it more than the person who bought that piece of land because he/she is not enjoying it.

The relationship between humans and nature is very strong. Emerson states that “Nature says,—he is my creature, and maugre all his impertinent griefs, he shall be glad for me” (4). Emerson is trying to convince us that the best thing to do when we are feeling angry and stressed is to go to nature because that is where we belong. There is a very important message for all human beings. We all got carried away by technology and political and economic problems, some are still connected with the past. As a result, we forgot about the beauty of nature that gives us positive energy whenever we need it and for free.

How can you be free, when you are constantly reminded that you are less because of the color of your skin?  And why does it matter? 

Why does his appearance and the appearance of other people that look like him treated differently?

In W.E.B De Bois’s  The Souls of Black Folk, he asks…

De Bois describes his life as someone who lives  between two worlds; his own, and a white man’s world. Stating “Between me and the other world there is ever an unasked question… ‘How does it feel to be a problem'”(De Bois).  A problem, by definition, is something that you want to solve/fix/get rid of/control. But a person can’t be a problem. This is shown when De Bois describes living a life as a “problem” strange. Thus, showing that he acknowledges that the idea of a person being a problem due to their appearance, is not right. As a young boy, De Bois had to realize that he was indeed different when a fun experience of exchanging visiting cards quickly changed to be a daunting one once a girl refused his card off of a glance. But De Bois liked exchanging cards, and he continued to pursue what he liked by later by reading law, or healing the sick. But no matter what he did he still felt what he describes to have a “double conscience”. Stating ” It is a peculiar sensation, this double-conscienceness, this sense of always looking at one’s self through the eyes of others”(De Bois). Because De Bois is black, he has the conscience of a black man, but he also has the conscience of an American. But, De Bois doesn’t want to have a double-conscience, he wants to proudly be both but the systematic racism, and discrimination(which still occur to this day) create this in between world. That brings me to question what was the purpose of creating a world where African Americans live “in between worlds” when the United States of America is supposed to be the land of the free? But everyone isn’t free, and everyone isn’t equal.

“To be a poor man is hard, but to be a poor race in a land of dollars is the very bottom of hardships. He felt the weight of his ignorance- not simply of letters, but of life, of business, of the humanities; the accumulated sloth and shirking and awkwardness of decades and centuries shackled his hands and feet. Nor was his burden all poverty and ignorance,”(De Bois) 

De Bois later discusses what African Americans have to experience every time they speak up that something is wrong, and that they should not be treated differently. When African Americans fought for the right to vote, their civil rights, when the abnormally high rate of disease in African American communities was discussed, and the fight for a better education. All human rights issues that are still prevalent to this date.

In W.E.B Du Bois, “The Souls of Black Folk”, he makes a strong point for highlighting the division among Black and White Americans that’s continued post-slavery. What’s interesting about Du Bois’ perspective, especially in comparison to Hurston’s, is how he experiences being black. He does talk about his individual experience but many times it feels as though he shifts to a perspective of one that is more collective. He experiences being black as being essentially it’s own entity, a part of him that defines him in society.

 In both of the texts there is no question of the divide that is present among the two races, the question is only in how that divide affects them as an individual and as a member of that race in society. What Du Bois does rather effectively, is talk about both while it feels like the other text focuses more on the former. While it is important to note that every person is going to have different individual experiences, such as Hurston’s assertion that she can both feel and not feel her blackness in a more individual perspective, there are many times where Du Bois is clearly looking more at the outside perspective. He’s looking at his experiences as black man from lenses of his own race as well as the other to form a bigger picture of a divide that he sees within society. This reads much more powerful, as it feels like he is not just speaking for himself in his text.

“To be a poor man is hard, but to be a poor race in the land of dollars is the very bottom of hardships.” Not only is this line the indication of the fact that he is speaking farther than just his individual self, he’s making a serious point in analyzing the position black people are faced with in society. By pointing out that while it may be one thing to be poor, it is another thing to be both poor and black, he’s highlighting racial differences and illustrating a concept that is still very relevant in conversation today: white privilege. He affirms that as a race, black folks are encountering hardship within itself and are in the midst of a battle to get on an equal level to their white peers. He capitalizes on that throughout the text, particularly a lot towards the end. He clearly outlines the history of how they have got here and how this divide is present as well as remaining hopeful that as a collective black folks will be able to integrate into American society, not by trying to be just like their white peers but by offering something to add to it, enriching it. 

Throughout reading Du Bois text, it felt as if a lot of what he was saying was relevant to today, not only showing how much the divide is still present, but just how much his focus on society rather than the individual came through. That’s what his text does so well, it analyzes the racial divide between society that has continued to this day and that’s why it is able to be so relevant to the current climate many years after it was written. It sheds light on all that is a racially divided America and begs the reader to recognize this and strive for something better.