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The Souls of Black Folk by W. E. B. Du Bois
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The Souls of Black Folk

With "The Talented Tenth" and "The Souls of White Folk"

With "The Talented Tenth" and "The Souls of White Folk"

With "The Talented Tenth" and "The Souls of White Folk"

By W. E. B. Du Bois
Introduction by Ibram X. Kendi
Notes by Monica E. Elbert

By W. E. B. Du Bois
Introduction by Ibram X. Kendi
Notes by Monica E. Elbert

By W. E. B. Du Bois
Introduction by Ibram X. Kendi
Notes by Monica E. Elbert

By W. E. B. Du Bois
Introduction by Ibram X. Kendi
Notes by Monica E. Elbert

By W. E. B. Du Bois
Introduction by Ibram X. Kendi
Notes by Monica E. Elbert

By W. E. B. Du Bois
Introduction by Ibram X. Kendi
Notes by Monica E. Elbert

Best Seller

Part of Penguin Vitae

Paperback $14.00

Apr 01, 1996 | ISBN 9780140189988

Hardcover $25.00

Feb 23, 2021 | ISBN 9780143134435

Ebook $6.99

Apr 01, 1996 | ISBN 9781101078143

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    The Souls of Black Folk by W. E. B. Du Bois
    Hardcover $25.00
    Feb 23, 2021 | ISBN 9780143134435

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    • $14.00

      Apr 01, 1996 | ISBN 9780140189988

      Buy from Other Retailers:

    • $25.00

      Feb 23, 2021 | ISBN 9780143134435

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    • Apr 01, 1996 | ISBN 9781101078143

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    About The Souls of Black Folk

    The landmark book about being black in America, now in an expanded edition commemorating the 150th anniversary of W. E. B. Du Bois’s birth and featuring a new introduction by Ibram X. Kendi, the #1 New York Times bestselling author of How to Be an Antiracist, and cover art by Kadir Nelson
     
    “The problem of the Twentieth Century is the problem of the color-line.”
     
    When The Souls of Black Folk was first published in 1903, it had a galvanizing effect on the conversation about race in America—and it remains both a touchstone in the literature of African America and a beacon in the fight for civil rights. Believing that one can know the “soul” of a race by knowing the souls of individuals, W. E. B. Du Bois combines history and stirring autobiography to reflect on the magnitude of American racism and to chart a path forward against oppression, and introduces the now-famous concepts of the color line, the veil, and double-consciousness.
     
    This edition of Du Bois’s visionary masterpiece includes two additional essays that have become essential reading: “The Souls of White Folk,” from his 1920 book Darkwater, and “The Talented Tenth.”

    For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,800 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.

    About The Souls of Black Folk

    A collectible hardcover edition of the landmark book about being black in America, featuring an introduction by Ibram X. Kendi, the #1 New York Times bestselling author of How to Be an Antiracist

    A Penguin Vitae Edition

    When The Souls of Black Folk was first published in 1903, it had a galvanizing effect on the conversation about race in America–and it remains both a touchstone in the literature of African America and a beacon in the fight for civil rights. Believing that one can know the “soul” of a race by knowing the souls of individuals, W. E. B. Du Bois combines history and stirring autobiography to reflect on the magnitude of American racism and to chart a path forward against oppression, and introduces the now-famous concepts of the color line, the veil, and double-consciousness.

    Penguin Vitae–loosely translated as “Penguin of one’s life”–is a deluxe hardcover series from Penguin Classics celebrating a dynamic and diverse landscape of classic fiction and nonfiction from seventy-five years of classics publishing. Penguin Vitae provides readers with beautifully designed classics that have shaped the course of their lives, and welcomes new readers to discover these literary gifts of personal inspiration, intellectual engagement, and creative originality.

    About The Souls of Black Folk

    The landmark book about being black in America, now in an expanded edition commemorating the 150th anniversary of W. E. B. Du Bois’s birth and featuring a new introduction by Ibram X. Kendi, the #1 New York Times bestselling author of How to Be an Antiracist, and cover art by Kadir Nelson
     
    “The problem of the Twentieth Century is the problem of the color-line.”
     
    When The Souls of Black Folk was first published in 1903, it had a galvanizing effect on the conversation about race in America—and it remains both a touchstone in the literature of African America and a beacon in the fight for civil rights. Believing that one can know the “soul” of a race by knowing the souls of individuals, W. E. B. Du Bois combines history and stirring autobiography to reflect on the magnitude of American racism and to chart a path forward against oppression, and introduces the now-famous concepts of the color line, the veil, and double-consciousness.
     
    This edition of Du Bois’s visionary masterpiece includes two additional essays that have become essential reading: “The Souls of White Folk,” from his 1920 book Darkwater, and “The Talented Tenth.”

    For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,800 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.

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    About W. E. B. Du Bois

    William Edward Burghardt Du Bois (1868–1963) was born in Great Barrington, Massachusetts, in 1868. He attended public schools there prior to attending Fisk University, where he received his BA degree in 1888. Thereafter he received a second BA degree, and an… More about W. E. B. Du Bois

    About W. E. B. Du Bois

    William Edward Burghardt Du Bois (1868–1963) was born in Great Barrington, Massachusetts, in 1868. He attended public schools there prior to attending Fisk University, where he received his BA degree in 1888. Thereafter he received a second BA degree, and an… More about W. E. B. Du Bois

    About W. E. B. Du Bois

    William Edward Burghardt Du Bois (1868–1963) was born in Great Barrington, Massachusetts, in 1868. He attended public schools there prior to attending Fisk University, where he received his BA degree in 1888. Thereafter he received a second BA degree, and an… More about W. E. B. Du Bois

    Product Details

    Category: Biography & Memoir | Classic Nonfiction | Philosophy

    Paperback | $14.00
    Published by Penguin Classics
    Apr 01, 1996 | 288 Pages | 5-1/16 x 7-3/4 | ISBN 9780140189988

    Category: Biography & Memoir | Classic Nonfiction | Philosophy

    Hardcover | $25.00
    Published by Penguin Classics
    Feb 23, 2021 | 288 Pages | 5-1/16 x 7-3/4 | ISBN 9780143134435

    Category: Biography & Memoir | Classic Nonfiction | Philosophy

    Ebook | $6.99
    Published by Penguin Classics
    Apr 01, 1996 | 288 Pages | ISBN 9781101078143

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    Praise

    “I was assigned this book of essays in college and it was transformative for me as a person and a writer. Du Bois captures the complexity and the interiority of what it’s like to be black in the United States, and even though it was written more than a century ago, the way Du Bois writes makes it feel like he wrote this book last year.” —Tomi Adeyemi, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Children of Blood and Bone, in the Good Morning America Book Club

    “A work that is still relevant today . . . Vividly depict[s] what it was like to be black . . . Many of the ideas that Du Bois outlined in the book still endure. . . . [A book] for anyone who wants to understand America.” —Lynn Neary, NPR’s Morning Edition

    “[The Souls of Black Folk is] the foundation on which Du Bois built a lifetime of ideas, and on which the black and antiracist intelligentsia continues to build today. . . . In 1903 . . . black newspapers . . . typically shouted in unison, ‘SHOULD BE READ AND STUDIED BY EVERY PERSON, WHITE AND BLACK.’ . . . And today it still SHOULD BE READ AND STUDIED BY EVERY PERSON.” —Ibram X. Kendi, from the Introduction

    Table Of Contents

    Introduction by Donald B. Gibson
    Acknowledgments
    Suggestions for Further Reading

    THE SOULS OF BLACK FOLK

    The Forethought

    I. 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. Of the Sorrow Songs

    The Afterthought
    Notes by Monica M. Elbert

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