African-American Literature Du Bois in The Souls of Black Folks offers the reader glimpses into the heart and mind of black men and women living in the post-reconstruction south when the splendor that had resided especially in the cotton market, had all but disappeared. The disappearance of the cotton market left in its wake thousands of black men and women the legacy of the laborers that built the place still laboring

African-American Literature Unfortunately, the perverted socio-economic institution known as slavery has always had significantly greater psychological ramifications and horrors for women, than it has traditionally had for men. This is particularly the case when one considers chattel slavery, such as that which was prevalent in the United States in the inception of this country's founding. Many of the perverse manifestations made evident by slavery's effects upon women are detailed in Harriet

African-American Literature In literature the relationship between the text and paratext is used to introduce the reader to the subject and setting of novel. As the paratext, is utilized to inform and influence their minds before they have started reading the actual book. In African-American literature before the Civil War, this was a standard way publishers used to provide some kind of insights about what people were reading. To fully understand

The resistance tactic of educating black youth is challenged and despite the fact that the boy has likely been told that this education will free him of prejudice, through proof of his intellect he is called back and told to keep the error to himself, so as not to overturn the apple cart. The idea that adopting the ideals and goals of whites, in this case education as resistance

He had lived his life as a white child, and even after his discovery of his true race lived as a white man. He was allowed to pass as white, and therefore turned his back on his real heritage. Thus, his blackness became a secret, something to be ashamed of and hide; "I know that in writing the following pages I am divulging the great secret of my life,

The two have a unity in their interactions, wanting essentially the same things. The family forms a social system based on the interactions among the members of the family. This is seen throughout the book as each member shows that what he or she has, needs and values depends upon the nature of the social system to which he or she belongs. In this case, Maya, as do other people,