Must this, and that fair flower of Freedom which, despite the jeers of latter-day striplings, sprung from our fathers’ blood, must that too degenerate into a dusty quest of gold,—into lawless lust with Hippomenes?
W.E.B. Du Bois: “Must this, and that fair flower of Freedom which, despite the jeers of latter-day striplings, sprung from our fathers’…”
Editor's note · Context
Reflecting on the legacy of freedom, Du Bois questions whether its noble origins will be corrupted by the pursuit of wealth and unchecked desires.
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