An Analysis Of Booker T. Washington's Up From Slavery

849 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Analysis of slaves

America is the land of opportunity where many people from all over the world come to live the “American Dream.” The American Dream states that everyone should have an equal opportunity to succeed regardless of social class, education, or race. In Booker T. Washington’s autobiography, Up From Slavery, he tells his story of achievement through education and how he spoke up in the hopes of bringing the two races together in a way that no one had tried before. When Washington was asked to give an address as a representative from the Negro race, he states that the one thing that he wanted to say was, “something that would cement the friendship of the races and bring about hearty cooperation between them” (449). Even after being freed from slavery, …show more content…

Langston Hughes illustrates this idea in his poem, “Theme for English B.” The fictional narrator is asked by his instructor to go home and write a page; but it must come from him (the writer) to ensure that it will be sincere. The writer has an internal conflict about him and his counterparts and how similar or different they truly are from him. This conflict is demonstrated in his words, “I guess being colored doesn’t make me not like / the same things other folks like who are other races” (Hughes 24-25). Keep in mind, the narrator is an African American student in an all-White class; making him the odd one out. However, he soon comes to realize that his race does not make him different from his counterparts. In the last stanza, as the narrator is contemplating whether his page will be colored or white, he states, “But it will be a part of you, instructor. / You are white— / yet a part of me, as I am a part of you” (Hughes 29-32). In other words, Hughes is symbolizing the fact that one is incomplete without the other and that we can learn from each other. The conjunction of fictional characters and the written page in this poem represent the unity among

Show More
Related

  • Comparing W.E.B. DuBois and Booker T. Washington

    1359 Words  | 3 Pages

    Nevertheless, Washington chose to be political rather than political. Washington was not agonized by what Du Bois called the Black man's sense of double consciousness, the sense of being both a Black man and an American. Booker T. Washington was singularly free of inner conflicts about his dedication to America with its worship of property and material substance. However controversial his methods and objectives are, few can doubt that Washington worked hard to achieve them. Certainly the high point in his career was his famous speech at the Atlanta Cotton States and International Exposition in 1895, in which he accepted social and legal segregation but promised racial friendship and cooperation.

    Read More

  • Booker T. Washington vs. W.E.B. Dubois

    1164 Words  | 3 Pages

    When it all comes down to it, one of the greatest intellectual battles U.S. history was the legendary disagreement between Booker T. Washington and W.E.B. DuBois. This intellectual debate sparked the interest of the Northerners as well as the racist whites that occupied the south. This debate was simply about how the blacks, who just gained freedom from slavery, should exist in America with the white majority. Even though Washington and DuBois stood on opposite sides of the fence they both agreed on one thing, that it was a time for a change in the treatment of African Americans. I chose his topic to write about because I strongly agree with both of the men’s ideas but there is some things about their views that I don’t agree with. Their ideas and views are the things that will be addressed in this essay.

    Read More

  • Ida B. Wells, Booker T, Washington, and W.E.B Dubois

    1245 Words  | 3 Pages

    Booker T. Washington was an African American leader who established an African-American college in 1181. Then in 1895 delivered the Atlanta Compromise Speech to an audience of mainly Southerners, but some Northerners were present. In his speech he made a few points. He said, “No race can prosper till it learns that there is as much dignity in tilling a field as in writing a poem.” Washington believed that the African American race needed to learn first that manual labor was just as important as the work of intellects. He thought that until they learned this they were not worthy of becoming intellects themselves. The color line is thus important in teaching them this lesson. He also said, “It is important and right that all privileges of the law be ours, but it is vastly more important that we be prepared for the exercise of these privileges.” His opinion was that one day blacks would deserve to have equal rights with the whites, but right now in 1895 the blacks needed to be...

    Read More

  • Compare And Contrast Washington And W. E. B. Dubois

    1057 Words  | 3 Pages

    “It should come as no surprise that Washington’s historical conflict culminated as a struggle between him and DuBois” (Gibson III 66). To say the least, both men were very active in the upbringing of African-Americans, but their differences in displaying out the solution was what brought them apart. Washington wanted the education system to enforce industrial teachings that started at lower economic power, while DuBois had more abstract ideas of equality and voting for African-Americans. Washington was conservative in the matter of African-American inclusion into society, hoping that given enough time and progress, people would learn to accept them, rather than fight for social power like what DuBois stood for. Despite Washington’s program that appealed to White-Americans, he was involved in politics and spoke about the disfranchisement of African-Americans.

    Read More

  • Up From Slavery Argumentative Essay

    740 Words  | 2 Pages

    “I have learned that success is to be measured not so much by the position that one has reached in life as by the obstacles which he has overcome while trying to succeed.” This quote is by Booker T. Washington. In the book “Up from Slavery” Mr. Washington was a poor African American man who wanted an education. He was able to peruse an education, through hard work and perseverance. Then he wanted to help others also receive an education, by building a school.

    Read More

  • Booker T. Washington and W. E. B. DuBoise

    1614 Words  | 4 Pages

    Both Washington and DuBois wanted the same thing for blacks—first-class citizenship—but their methods for obtaining it differed. Because of the interest in immediate goals contained in Washington’s economic approach, Whites did not realize that he anticipated the complete acceptance and integration of Negroes into American life. He believed blacks, starting with so little, would have to begin at the bottom and work up gradually to achieve positions of power and responsibility before they could demand equal citizenship—even if it meant temporarily assuming a position of inferiority. DuBois understood Washington’s program, but believed that it was not the solution to the “race problem.” Blacks should study the liberal arts, and have the same rights as white citizens.

    Read More

  • Mrs. Spring Fragrance Analysis

    1070 Words  | 3 Pages

    ...become Americanized in a different way. For example, Mrs. Spring Fragrance becomes Americanized through helping Laura and Kai Tzu form a relationship despite Laura’s betrothal to the schoolmaster’s son. The Chin Yuens become Americanized by finally allowing their daughter to marry her true love Kai Tzu. The Chin Yuens are now not only American in appearance, but they are also American through traditions. Mr. Spring Fragrance, however, had a much more difficult time becoming Americanized throughout the story. He had a difficult time accepting that the people around him, including his wife were changing and becoming Americanized. Mr. Spring Fragrance finally came to terms with the fact that though Laura and Kai Tzu achieved a happy marriage through American traditions of marriage, he and Mrs. Spring Fragrance are equally as happy in their through Chinese traditions.

    Read More

  • Hughes, Lucille Clifton, And I, Too, By Langston Hughes

    862 Words  | 2 Pages

    This poem is often compared to Walt Whitman’s I Hear America Singing because of the similarities of the two poems. In this poem, Hughes argues that the African American race is equal to whites. Hughes even declares that one day the African American race will be equal to whites. Hughes proclaims, “Besides, They’ll see how beautiful I am and be ashamed-I, too, am America.” Hughes was very bold and daring when he wrote these lines in this poem. He is implying that the white people will regret what they have done to blacks. That they will be ashamed of how they treated them. Undoubtedly, this poem expresses Hughes cultural identity.

    Read More

  • Of Booker T Washington And Others Summary

    804 Words  | 2 Pages

    In 1903 black leader and intellectual W.E.B. Du Bois wrote an essay in his collection The Souls of Black Folk with the title “Of Mr. Booker T. Washington and Others.” Both Washington and Du Bois were leaders of the black community in the 19th and 20th century, even though they both wanted to see the same outcome for black Americans, they disagreed on strategies to help achieve black social and economic progress. History shows that W.E.B Du Bois was correct in racial equality would only be achieved through politics and higher education of the African American youth.

    Read More

  • Rhetorical Analysis Of Booker T. Washington's The Atlanta Compromise

    724 Words  | 2 Pages

    When Booker T. Washington speeches the Atlanta Compromise, it is still a big step to talk about equality and social problems of the white and black races, even though it is after the Civil War. However, it is necessary to agitate to reach complete liberty and social change ultimately, which address Washington to have an oblique approach to express the purpose of the speech. He announces his intention of the black race, simultaneously, he wants to make the Southern white men feel relief and relaxed about talking about it. It supports the reason he speaks meek and polite all the time, not to offend the white audience. He insists that the importance of having a business is greater than getting a social equal for African-Americans, which makes

    Read More

  • The Harlem Renaissance: Planned Phenomenon and The Search for An Identity

    1482 Words  | 3 Pages

    Lewis’s viewpoint is not without it’s truths. The Harlem renaissance was overseen by a number of intellectuals such as Booker T. Washington, Marcus Garvey, and W.E.B. Dubois. Booker T. Washington‘s, a highly influential speaker of the age, words appealed to both Caucasians and African-Americans. Washington forged an interracial bridge of communication through his unique tactics in the quest for equality. He believed in more subtle ways of gaining equality through hard work, cunning, and humility. He stated, “The wisest among my race understands that the agitation of questions of social equality is the extremist folly, and that progress in the enjoyment of all the privileges that will come to us must be the result of severe and constant struggle rather than of artificial forcing.”(Salley, 15) With this statement, Washington himself denies that this new awakening in equality and arts could be forced,...

    Read More

  • Up From Slavery Book Report

    1215 Words  | 3 Pages

    This book was about Booker T Washington who was a slave on a plantation in Virginia until he was nine years old. His autobiography offers readers a look into his life as a young child. Simple pleasures, such as eating with a fork, sleeping in a bed, and wearing comfortable clothing, were unavailable to Washington and his family. His brief glimpses into a schoolhouse were all it took to make him long for a chance to study and learn. Readers will enjoy the straightforward and strong voice Washington uses to tell his story. The book document his childhood as a slave and his efforts to get an education, and he directly credits his education with his later success as a man of action in his community and the nation. Washington details his transition from student to teacher, and outlines his own development as an educator and founder of the Tuskegee Institute in Alabama. He tells the story of Tuskegee's growth, from classes held in a shantytown to a campus with many new buildings. In the final chapters of, it Washington describes his career as a public speaker and civil rights activist. Washington includes the address he gave at the Atlanta Cotton States and International Exposition in 1895, which made him a national figure. He concludes his autobiography with an account of several recognitions he has received for his work, including an honorary degree from Harvard, and two significant visits to Tuskegee, one by President McKinley and another by General Samuel C. Armstrong. During his lifetime, Booker T. Washington was a national leader for the betterment of African Americans in the post-Reconstruction South. He advocated for economic and industrial improvement of Blacks while accommodating Whites on voting rights and social equality.

    Read More

  • Of the Coming of John by W.E.B. Du Bois

    2251 Words  | 5 Pages

    Booker T. Washington and W.E.B. Du Bois were very important African American leaders in the United States during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. They both felt strongly that African Americans should not be treated unequally in terms of education and civil rights. They had strong beliefs that education was important for the African American community and stressed that educating African Americans would lead them into obtaining government positions, possibly resulting in social change. Although Booker T. Washington and W.E.B. Du Bois had similar goals to achieve racial equality in the United States, they had strongly opposing approaches in improving the lives of the black population. Washington was a conservative activist who felt that the subordination to white leaders was crucial for African Americans in becoming successful and gaining political power. On the other hand, Du Bois took a radical approach and voiced his opinion through public literature and protest, making it clear that racial discrimination and segregation were intolerable. The opposing ideas of these African American leaders are illustrated in Du Bois’ short story, “Of the Coming of John”, where Du Bois implies his opposition to Washington’s ideas. He shows that the subordination of educated black individuals does not result in gaining respect or equality from the white community. In fact, he suggests that subordination would lead the black community to be further oppressed by whites. However contrasting their views might have been, Booker T. Washington and W.E.B. Du Bois were significant influential black leaders of their time, who changed the role of the black community in America.

    Read More

  • Compare Harlem And I Too

    1772 Words  | 4 Pages

    In the line “I am the darker brother. They send me to eat in the kitchen” (Hughes 2-3) is denial of a particular person due to the pigmentation of their skin. The African American race had to suffer and be treated differently because of one small detail that was out of their control. Many individuals struggled with how they were treated during this time and others let such treatment make them stronger. As seen in the following lines “Nobody’ll dare say to me, “Eat in the kitchen, then.” Hughes illustrates that the narrator is in touch with being the same as everyone else. These lines show that he knows what he deserves and he will stand up for himself. Guilt of being a certain race is not hanging over the narrator’s head unlike many others who feel defeated. This poem stands for those who see themselves equally with the ones that look down upon them. “I, too, am America” is a testament of faith in his countrymen and women to recognize and appreciate the contribution of African-American citizens.” (Lewis) shows that America should be proud of the strong ethnic mix. Hughes possessed optimism for all human beings and took a lot of pride in showing that through his

    Read More

  • The Influence Of The American Dream

    2198 Words  | 5 Pages

    When the term ‘American Dream’ was first mentioned in 1931 by James Truslow Adams, he described it as “that dream of a land in which life should be better and richer and fuller for everyone, with opportunity for each according to ability or achievement.” (Clark). When Adams mentioned the term, it had much more of an idealistic meaning, rather than the materialistic meaning it has in modern society. At the time of it’s mention, the dream meant that prosperity was available to everyone. In the beginning, the American Dream simply promised a country in which people had the chance to work their way up through their own labor and hard work (Kiger). Throughout history, the basis of the dream has always been the same for each individual person. It

    Read More

More about An Analysis Of Booker T. Washington's Up From Slavery

Open Document