376 DuBois, W. E. B.
of $10 bills; hats, dresses, and little accessories; and
the “shine and rustle of new things.” Pieces of cloth-
ing speak to her as well, and a significant symbol of
the upper class is “the roll of cushioned carriages.”
While problems relating to personal finances bother
her throughout the story, it is through these material
things that consciousness of social class takes hold
of Carrie.
A pertinent example of a class distinction coded
in personal apparel is Carrie’s observation of Hurst-
wood’s shoes, made of soft leather and elegantly
“polished only to a dull shine.” This proves his supe-
riority over Drouet, whose common leather shoes
are always polished to the extreme, betraying the
immaturity or vanity of an upstart. Drouet, however,
is the only one among the three main characters
whose status in society remains fairly constant
throughout the story. Owing to her looks, Carrie’s
social standing improves dramatically both in Chi-
cago and in New York, while Hurstwood’s eventu-
ally collapses to the very bottom. In Sister Carrie, the
permanence of one’s social standing has few guaran-
tees. Hurstwood’s history illustrates how easily social
status can be lost in the face of adversity. With luck
and ruthless determination, upward mobility is also
possible, but Dreiser’s skeptical vision makes it clear
that for every success there are several failures.
In contrast to high society, extreme poverty is
constantly present in the city. People at the foot of
the social ladder, nearly invisible to the well-to-do,
beg in the streets and stand in line for a bed. When
a desperate man asks for a dime, Hurstwood, still in
his social and economic prime, “scarcely noticed the
incident. Carrie quickly forgot.” Ironically, at the end
of the story, it is Hurstwood himself who has to beg
for alms. Yesterday’s achievements can turn dramati-
cally into tomorrow’s failure.
Like many American writers at turn of the cen-
tury, Dreiser was influenced by Charles Darwin’s
theory of evolution and related social philosophies.
Given the complexity of urban society as repre-
sented in the book, the idea of “survival of the
fittest” may not explain any dramatic turns of plot,
but it does lurk persistently behind many characters’
words and actions. The need to elevate oneself, or to
maintain the image of high social standing, seems a
vital instinct as success is largely based on appear-
ances, reputations, and personal connections. After
Carrie’s ascent to stardom, Hurstwood, having lost
his money and comfortable life, swears at a scorn-
ful theater attendant who prevents him from seeing
her: “I—I hired such people as you once.” This line
points at a central element of Dreiser’s commentary
on society. Social hierarchies may occasionally be
turned upside down and relations of power reversed,
but the immense effect of such hierarchies on
people’s lives remains.
Markku SamelaDUBOIS, W. E. B. The Souls of Black
Folk^ (1903)
The Souls of Black Folk by W. E. B. DuBois (1868–
1963) is a foundational text in the study of Ameri-
can and African-American struggles, successes, and
limitations during the post–Civil War era. After
slavery was abolished by the Thirteenth Amend-
ment in January of 1865, African Americans began
to develop in the fields of business, education, and
politics. However, discrimination based on race
continued to plague many African Americans as
they sought these social, political, and economic
advancements. DuBois compares the challenges fac-
ing blacks to these of the biblical Israelites as they
sought a “Promised Land” through fruitful labor
and spiritual growth. Unbeknownst to the Israel-
ites they would have to wait another 40 years to
enter this “Promised Land.” Comparably, American
blacks were forced to wait in a kind of limbo, where
their paths overtook their former lives as southern
slaves and future lives as free and successful citizens.
They experienced “double consciousness,” seeing the
now free world through the eyes of both formerly
enslaved and free people.
DuBois’s text is filled with commandments of
sorts—personal advice for blacks to live by in order
to advance, while never forgetting their sorrow-
ful past. He encourages educated blacks to teach
uneducated members of their community. He coins
the term “Talented Tenth,” to refer to educated
blacks, whom he encourages to liberate the race
through mentoring and leadership. The “Talented
Tenth,” DuBois believed, would lead blacks into
public influence as a respected and visible voting