The Souls of Black Folk was first published in 1903, many of its essays previously having been published in iournals and magazines. The book was immediately successful -- six printings over the next two years -- and brought Du Bois national recognition. By 1938, The Souls of Black Folk had gone through twenty-two additional printings, and in 1953, the book was reissued with Du Bois' preface, "Fifty Years Later," and only minor changes. Part social documentary, part history, part autobiography, part anthropological held report.

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This landmark book is a founding work in the literature of black protest. W. E. B. Du Bois (1868-1963) played a key role in developing the strategy and program that dominated early 20th-century black protest in America. In this collection of essays, first published together in 1903, he eloquently affirms that it is beneath the dignity of a human being to beg for those rights that belong inherently to all mankind. He also charges that the strategy of accommodation to white supremacy advanced by Booker T. Washington, then the most influential black leader in America, would only serve to perpetuate black oppression.

Publication of The Souls of Black Folk was a dramatic event that helped to polarize black leaders into two groups: the more conservative followers of Washington and the more radical supporters of aggressive protest. Its influence cannot be overstated, It is essential reading for everyone interested in African-American history and the struggle for civil rights in America.

 The Forethought

 Of Our Spiritual Strivings 

 II. Of the Dawn of Freedom 

III. Of Mr. Booker T. Washington and Others

 IV. Of the Meaning of Progress

  V. Of the Wings of Atalanta

 VI. Of the Training of Black Men

VII. Of the Black Belt

VIII. Of the Quest of the Golden Fleece

 IX. Of the Sons of Master and Man

  X. Of the Faith of the Fathers

 XI. Of the Passing of the First-Born

XII. Of Alexander Crummell

XIII. Of the Coming of John

XIV. The Sorrow Songs

 The Afterthought