The Veil, Double-Consciousness, and Two-nes

Each time I read any section of The Souls of Black Folk, I am amazed at Du Bois’ ability to so eloquently articulate his ideas about race. Only published seven years after Hoffman’s “Race Traits and Tendencies of the American Negro,” Du Bois’ ability to construct an analysis of race in America as a social, rather than scientific, construction seems revolutionary and far beyond the comprehension of white scholars at the time of his book’s publication.

One of the most striking passages in the first few chapters of Du Bois’ text was his description of the double-consciousness of black people in America. After discussing his childhood realization that black and white children have starkly different opportunities, Du Bois notes:

After the Egyptian and Indian, the Greek and Roman, the Teuton and Mongolian, the Negro is a sort of seventh son, born with a veil, and gifted with second-sight in this American world,–a world which yields him no true self-revelation of the other world. It is a peculiar sensation, this double-consciousness, this sense of always looking at one’s self through the eyes of others, of measuring one’s soul by the tape of a world that looks on in amused contempt and pity. One ever feels his two-ness,–an American, a Negro; two souls, two throughs, two unreconciled strivings; two warring ideals in one dark body, whose dogged strength alone keeps it from being torn asunder. (Du Bois 2)

This passage from Du Bois’ text is important because it brings up, among other things, three key themes or terms, namely the: veil, double-consciousness, and two-ness of black people in America. Hence, my question is, what does Du Bois mean by these terms? Is there any difference between the veil, double-consciousness, and two-ness of black people in America? 

When Du Bois mentions the veil, one may think to a wedding. In a wedding, a veil is sometimes worn by the bride, not only restricting an observers view of her face, but also restricting her view of her own face. However, while all of the observers can view the bride in an uninhibited fashion, the bride must look out, from the physical confinement of her veil, through a haze. While this description of the ways in which the veil may inhibit a bride’s sense of view may be overstated, it is nonetheless important to think about the ways in which a veil not only marks someone as different from the crowd, but also creates an isolated space from which one must view the world through a seemingly hazy lens. With a veil, one is seeing a distorted world. Furthermore, one must wonder what others see when they see you, as, under the veil, one often cannot see them self clearly. In the context of race, it seems that the veil constricts the view of black people, meaning that they cannot truly view themselves aside from the ways in which white people view them. In addition, the veil’s symbolization of purity in marriage may even suggest that the veiling of black people in America is an attempt to maintain racial purity through a barrier of separation, even if this barrier is not physically there. One must ask then, who veils the black people of America? It seems that the answer would be white people, and thus the veil seems to further suggest that it is an attempt to erase the ability of black people to see themselves independently from the image that white people assign to them.

Double-consciousness and the veil, for Du Bois, seem to be two interrelated terms. In the passage above, double-consciousness seems to mean that black people have the ability to view themselves from their own standpoint, as well as that of white people. Not only can they see themselves independent of the white gaze, but they also understand the ways in which white people view them, understand them, and demoralize them. On a deeper level, Du Bois seems to suggest that black people can see the ways in which the white racist system operates, and the mechanisms used to keep them as the bottom race in the racial hierarchy. Furthermore, one must wonder, to what extent does the double-consciousness mean that black people have two separate identities? Does this mean they separate, in their minds, the ways in which they view themselves and the ways white people view them or have told them to view themselves? Would this negate the idea of the veil in that the veil impacts the ways in which people can view themselves? Or is the veil and the idea of double-consciousness interacting in a more complex way? 

Interestingly enough, the compartmentalization of this double-consciousness could have both positive and negative effects. If Du Bois means, by double-counsciousness, that black people are aware of the ways that white people view them, there is potential for the internalization of the white characterization of black people. As Du Bois notes, this white classification of black people and loss hope for freedom has resulted, in some cases, of black people feeling “ashamed of themselves” (Du Bois 3). Hence, the compartmentalization of this double-consciousness may allow for one to not internalize the pervasive ideas of inferiority spouted from the white side of history. However, as Du Bois suggests, this double-consciousness, or two-ness means that black people are facing the reality of “two warring ideals in one dark body” (Du Bois 2), something that clearly impacts the ways in which one views them self. What are the implications for this sustained two-ness? When Du Bois notes, “an American, a Negro” (Du Bois 2), is he suggesting that to be an American means one cannot be a “Negro,” and vice versa? What would happen if, for example, white people gained the ability of a sense of double-consciousness? Would the realization of how black people view white people and the ways in which white people have historically viewed black people produce a complete awareness of the plight of black people in America? 

Questions Combined:

What does Du Bois mean by the veil, double-consciousness, and two-ness? Is there any difference between the veil, double-consciousness, and two-ness of black people in America? Who veils the black people of America? To what extent does the double-consciousness mean that black people have two separate identities? Does this mean they separate, in their minds, the ways in which they view themselves and the ways white people view them or have told them to view themselves? Would this negate the idea of the veil in that the veil impacts the ways in which people can view themselves? Or is the veil and the idea of double-consciousness interacting in a more complex way? What are the implications for this sustained two-ness? When Du Bois notes, “an American, a Negro” (Du Bois 2), is he suggesting that to be an American means one cannot be a “Negro,” and vice versa? What would happen if, for example, white people gained the ability of a sense of double-consciousness? Would the realization of how black people view white people and the ways in which white people have historically viewed black people produce a complete awareness of the plight of black people in America? 

Sources Used:

Du Bois, W.E.B.. The Souls of Black Folk. New York: Dover Publications, Inc., 1994. Print.