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4.27 AVERAGE
4.27 AVERAGE
read for APUSH monograph critical review, lots of thoughts
A moving, lyrical collection of essays by W.E.B. Du Bois that examines the African-American experience in the post-Civil War era. Du Bois is a very poetic writer and his use of figurative language meant that I was often rereading passages to make sure I really took in what he was saying. The essays span a wide variety of issues and and Du Bois manages to make his writing both intelligent and emotional, a difficult balance to achieve.
After reading a lot of books about racism, black history and social issues I have heard this man quoted a lot so it was good to read this book. This book was written over one hundred years ago but some parts felt like it was written yesterday.
A must read
An important book from our history and great insight into the pain and suffering of the time. Interesting to read next to Up From Slavery. Two very different views of the time. Really glad I took the time to read this. I highly recommend.
An important book from our history and great insight into the pain and suffering of the time. Interesting to read next to Up From Slavery. Two very different views of the time. Really glad I took the time to read this. I highly recommend.
challenging
emotional
informative
sad
slow-paced
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
A book you may have to read twice to capture its full essence
Floating abstractions anchored to...........nothing at all
Reviewed in the United States on December 4, 2020
Reviewed in the United States on July 29, 2017
This book is ridiculous.
The sentences read like A, B, C, D......, but the book is so overly-abstract and incoherent that it's like if some editor came along and rearranged the sentences like D, A, C, B then there wouldn't be that much of an effect. The prose is so babbly, that it reminds me of Joseph Conrad (Heart of Darkness (AmazonClassics Edition)), except that that book is 85 pages long and takes weeks to read and this one is over a couple of hundred pages.
It also does not bother me that this book has been reviewed over 800 times. The Willie Lynch Letter And the Making of A Slave has been reviewed 380 times and is known to be a hoax.
The more things change, the more they stay the same. It really is amazing to realize that this book was written 114 years ago, because all the same banalities are here. (Selected sampling.)
1. Everything needs to be turned into a political issue.
2. Everything CAN BE solved through the political process.
3. Political equality is solved first and then economic/ social equality will follow.
4. College prep. education is preferred to learning vocational skills and making things that people will pay for.
There is a chapter in here thrown in on BT Washington. I'll note that:
1. WEB DuBois outlived Washington by about 48 years and died an embittered old man in Ghana (before independence).
2. Washington died after building something that still exists. DuBois built nothing that exists.
3. People are still carrying the DuBois torch (again, 114 years after this series of essays was written) and politicizing everything. And as high as the tide might lift boats in the US, they just don't manage to lift the black boats as high.
Verdict: Not recommended. I would say that you could read this to trace the history of a silly idea/ series of silly ideas, but this book is just SO HARD TO READ that it's not even worth the time that it takes.
Reviewed in the United States on December 4, 2020
Reviewed in the United States on July 29, 2017
This book is ridiculous.
The sentences read like A, B, C, D......, but the book is so overly-abstract and incoherent that it's like if some editor came along and rearranged the sentences like D, A, C, B then there wouldn't be that much of an effect. The prose is so babbly, that it reminds me of Joseph Conrad (Heart of Darkness (AmazonClassics Edition)), except that that book is 85 pages long and takes weeks to read and this one is over a couple of hundred pages.
It also does not bother me that this book has been reviewed over 800 times. The Willie Lynch Letter And the Making of A Slave has been reviewed 380 times and is known to be a hoax.
The more things change, the more they stay the same. It really is amazing to realize that this book was written 114 years ago, because all the same banalities are here. (Selected sampling.)
1. Everything needs to be turned into a political issue.
2. Everything CAN BE solved through the political process.
3. Political equality is solved first and then economic/ social equality will follow.
4. College prep. education is preferred to learning vocational skills and making things that people will pay for.
There is a chapter in here thrown in on BT Washington. I'll note that:
1. WEB DuBois outlived Washington by about 48 years and died an embittered old man in Ghana (before independence).
2. Washington died after building something that still exists. DuBois built nothing that exists.
3. People are still carrying the DuBois torch (again, 114 years after this series of essays was written) and politicizing everything. And as high as the tide might lift boats in the US, they just don't manage to lift the black boats as high.
Verdict: Not recommended. I would say that you could read this to trace the history of a silly idea/ series of silly ideas, but this book is just SO HARD TO READ that it's not even worth the time that it takes.
[more like a 3.5] Very important work for the history of sociology, in particular black sociology. You can see just how Du Bois' views changed over the years, with him in his later life being a lot more radical than what he presents here. He published this book when he was only 35 years old, which is incredibly young for a work this serious. Still, even though some of his points might seem dated, it is clear he was an incredibly observant intelligent man with a keen interest in writing history from the bottom up even at such a young age. He only talks of regular people here - the only chapter where he discusses a famous black figure being to viciously criticize them (rip Booker T). But what struck me the most was just how beautiful his prose is. At points I really felt like I was reading poetry more than a serious work of sociology. I especially loved chapter 11 for this reason, because it was so beautiful and raw. I'm absolutely certain I'll be thinking about that chapter for years to come. Overall a recommend from me, both from its historical importance and the content being really good (albeit dated and a little self-defeating at times).
It’s good.
I didn’t give it full marks just because it has a little of everything. Unfortunately, when you have everything, there are some parts that are less engaging to me than others.
A little history.
A little social observations.
A little social commentary.
A little anecdotes.
A little poetic story telling.
A little Allegory.
It’s certainly open my mind to the past, the present and the future.
Ps.
I just thought about how interesting the levels of passions running through the different parts.
The historical “section” is oddly dispassionate. He often gives objective, rational arguments for some of the racism and discrimination. Then discusses the plight of the freedman and the where the prejudice may have originated from.
Sometimes it’s strange, He’ll offer some rationalizations like “of course the black man is lazy, we gave him freedom but taught him the meaningless of his actions”.
And initially you go “Du Bois is so right”
But then you think, “wait a minute, you mean ‘all black men’, Du Bois?”
You go further down a couple of chapter and you can really feel Du Bois passion in the anecdotes and stories he tells.
This book has a wide range.
I didn’t give it full marks just because it has a little of everything. Unfortunately, when you have everything, there are some parts that are less engaging to me than others.
A little history.
A little social observations.
A little social commentary.
A little anecdotes.
A little poetic story telling.
A little Allegory.
It’s certainly open my mind to the past, the present and the future.
Ps.
I just thought about how interesting the levels of passions running through the different parts.
The historical “section” is oddly dispassionate. He often gives objective, rational arguments for some of the racism and discrimination. Then discusses the plight of the freedman and the where the prejudice may have originated from.
Sometimes it’s strange, He’ll offer some rationalizations like “of course the black man is lazy, we gave him freedom but taught him the meaningless of his actions”.
And initially you go “Du Bois is so right”
But then you think, “wait a minute, you mean ‘all black men’, Du Bois?”
You go further down a couple of chapter and you can really feel Du Bois passion in the anecdotes and stories he tells.
This book has a wide range.
reflective
slow-paced