Abstract

This article investigates African American sociologist and civil rights activist W. E. B. Du Bois’s global vision as manifested in his book “The Souls of Black Folk” (1903). Du Bois’s universal vision will be developed by examining two interrelated dimensions: the interpersonal dimension limited to troubled race relations within America and the international one covering power relations and injustice across the globe. This book is a universal document on human relations and the fight against oppression, and its local and universal contexts write back to each other. The conclusion points out that Du Bois’s book becomes the lingua franca of not only African Americans but also marginalized groups throughout the world, which gives his work an inescapable global and ethical dimension often unacknowledged by readers and critics and makes it a text on cultural dialogue in addition to its historical and sociological relevance. At the interpersonal dimension, we will discuss matters related to the interaction between white and black Americans and related intrapersonal conflicts. This interaction will be deliberated through the concepts of the veil, double-consciousness, and the color line. At the international dimension, we will discuss the universal human rights of equality, freedom, and education. We will also investigate Du Bois’ message for marginalized people worldwide through the global language of songs and international religion. The article, thus, highlights Du Bois’ universal vision through the intersection between the national, interpersonal level revolving on racism and the international level highlighting different manifestations of brotherhood and universal values. The result is a versatile rhetorical text functioning at many overlapping registers, addressing multiple audiences, incorporating elements from different genres, and having an evident spiritual bent.