On the recordJanuary 1, 1903
And so before each thought that I have written in this book I have set a phrase, a haunting echo of these weird old songs in which the soul of the black slave spoke to men.
Said by
W.E.B. Du Bois
Source
gutenberg.orgW.E.B. Du Bois: “And so before each thought that I have written in this book I have set a phrase, a haunting echo of these weird old…”
Editor's note · Context
In his foundational text, Du Bois explains his use of musical epigraphs to convey the essence of the Black American experience.
Share
More from W.E.B. Du Bois
Jan 1, 1903
Let the ears of a guilty people tingle with truth, and seventy millions sigh for the righteousness which exalteth nations, in this drear day when human brotherhood is mockery and a snare.
Jan 1, 1903
So wofully unorganized is sociological knowledge that the meaning of progress, the meaning of “swift” and “slow” in human doing, and the limits of human perfectability, are veiled, unanswered sphinxes on the shores of science.
Jan 1, 1903
But whichever it is, the meaning is always clear: that sometime, somewhere, men will judge men by their souls and not by their skins.