Cosmopolitanism in the Fictive Imagination of W. E. B. Du Bois: Toward the Humanization of a Revolutionary Art

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This book traces W.E.B. Du Boiss fictionalization of history in his five major works of fiction and in his debut short story The Souls of Black Folk through a thematic framework of cosmopolitanism. In texts like The Negro and Black Folk: Then and Now, Du Bois argues that the human race originated from a single source, a claim authenticated by anthropologists and the Human Genome Project. This book breaks new ground by demonstrating the fashion in which the variants of cosmopolitanism become a profound theme in Du Boiss contribution to fiction. In general, cosmopolitanism claims that people belong to a single community informed by common moral values, function through a shared economic nomenclature, and are part of political systems grounded in mutual respect. This book addresses Du Boiss works as important additions to the academy and makes a significant contribution to literature by first demonstrating the way in which fiction could be utilized in discussing historical accounts in order to reach a global audience. The Coming of John, The Quest of the Silver Fleece, Dark Princess: A Romance, and The Black Flame, an important trilogy published sequentially as The Ordeal of Mansart, Mansart Builds a School, and Worlds of Color are grounded in historical occurrences and administer as social histories providing commentary on Reconstruction, Jim Crow segregation, African American leadership, school desegregation, the Pan-African movement, imperialism, and colonialism in Africa, Asia, and the Caribbean.

Reviews

Noted primarily as a sociologist, a historian, a journalist, an essayist, and a civil rights activist, Du Bois (18681963) also wrote fiction, in it demonstrating his leadership in the genre of revolutionary art. In examining Du Bois, Doku artfully exposes the historical exigencies of imperialism, colonialism, segregation, and injustice, primarily in Africa, Asia, and the Caribbean. The first half of the book (which derives from Doku's doctoral dissertation) concentrates on two major historical novelsThe Quest of the Silver Fleece (1911) and Dark Princess (1928)in which Du Bois explores the possibility of overcoming systemic racism. The second half gives a historical and practical account of Pan-Africanism and global recognition of human rights. The author looks at the historical, political, and sociological implications of cosmopolitanism as the ultimate political and moral goal of humanity. An original contribution to Africana studies and the sociology of diaspora, this book offers a genuinely interdisciplinary analysis of Du Boiss literary fiction. The book ends with a panegyric on President Barack Obama. Summing Up: Recommended. Lower-division undergraduates and above. * CHOICE *
Meditating on the expansive horizons of DuBoiss literary and historical imagination, this work outlines DuBoiss cosmopolitan visions. Doku focuses on DuBoiss five novels and early short story 'Of the Coming of John' (1903) to argue for an evolution from 'classical humanism and Africology' to heterogeneous cosmopolitanisms in his thinking. Critical work by theorists including James Clifford and Ifeoma Kiddoe Nwankwo augment Dokus formulation of the avant-garde, discrepant, and black cosmopolitanisms that shape DuBoiss intellectual trajectory. This work will be of interest to scholars of African and African American studies, diaspora, cosmopolitanism, and modernism. * American Literature *
Sam Dokus book reminds us that Du Bois was a literary artist as well as a social critic, sociologist, civil rights activist and Pan-Africanist. Dokus attention to the nuances and Du Bois creative writing demonstrates how fiction is often informed by the personal and the political. Dokus analysis of Du Bois fiction is a welcomed addition to scholarship that seeks to reveal the complexities of one of the greatest scholars of the twentieth century. -- Gregory Hampton, Howard University
In this sophisticated and innovative study, Samuel Doku explores tensions between DuBoiss black identity and his universalism through the lens of cosmopolitan theory, bringing important attention to lesser-known works by DuBois.Doku proposes that the ideals of cosmopolitanism can lend insight into the aspirations of DuBois and, potentially, other African-American writers as well. -- Laura J. Rosenthal, University of Maryland

Author Bio

Samuel O. Doku is lecturer in the Department of English at Howard University.