Jacob Dyas

American Lit
William Du Bois

In Darkwater by William Du Bois, Du Bois describes what it is like growing up as a black

boy in the north. The way Du Bois describes it makes me believe that at a young age he felt as if
he was no different than any other kid. Du Bois claims that he was quite a popular kid and
considered himself to sometimes be the leader of the gang of boys around his town. It wasnt
until Du Bois was going to college when people started to declare him as going to join his Kind
down in the south. On the other hand, when Du Bois wrote The Souls of Black Folk Du Bois
talks about how African Americans live life behind a veil. There is their life behind the veil and a
completely separate life on the outside of the veil. I think Du Bois is able to use his childhood
experiences when describing both sides of the veil. When he was a young boy I believe that he
considers himself to be on the outside of the veil. It was not until college that he began to
understand the challenges that African Americans were facing during those times. Thus causing
him to understand the two sides that he later describes in The Souls of Black Folk.