American Writers (One Hundred Pages at a Time)

Part two of my comments on W. E. B. Du Bois's autobiography and statement on global race relations, "Dusk of Dawn." In this part, we explore Du Bois' thoughts on Africa, empire, and the chaotic early 20th century.

The finale of my review of Philip K. Dick's novel "Dr. Futurity" and my thoughts on what it means for us in our time.

Part 3 of my comments on Philip K. Dick's 1960 novel, "Dr. Futurity".

Part 2 of my review of Philip K. Dick's "Dr. Futurity".

Part one of my comments on W. E. B. Du Bois' "Dusk of Dawn," an autobiograhy and statment of American (and global) race relations in the 20th century.

The second part and finale of my review of W. E. B. Du Bois' "The Souls of Black Folk." In the second part of this collection of wounderful essays Du Bois explores some of the cultural and economic aspects of black life in America at the turn of the century.

Part one of my review of Philip K. Dick's 1960 novel "Dr. Futurity". It may not be one of his best, but it is rich with ideas, many of which are relevant to us. At the the heart of its concern, the relationship between young people and the systems we hand over to them.

In "War Game," Philip K. Dick considers the ideology of toys. It makes me think a bit about "Mimsy Were the Borogroves".

I humbly give my comments on what I think is one of the greatest works of American literatre, W. E. B. Du Bois' "The Souls of Black Folk".

Although this story was written much earlier in Dick's career, "Fair Game" was not published until 1959. A rather silly tale, but good for a chuckle and a little meditation on the nature of how we respond to those who watch us.

Part two of my review of Du Bois' Ph. D. dissertation on the legal, moral and economic changes that led to the end of the slave trade.

"The Suppression of the Slave Trade" was W. E. B Du Bois' Ph. D. dissertation wirtten in Harvard. It is a solid work of legal history exploring the relationship betwene moral progress, legal justice, and economic change.

In this Philip K. Dick story, "Recall Mechanism", we consider the relationship between mental illness and precognition.

The first of Philip K. Dick's stories from 1959, "Explorers We", considers the possiblities of a very strange alien invasion.

In this episode we say goodbye to Charles W. Chesnutt by looking at a handful of his most important esasys. Next up, W. E. B. Du Bois.    

In this episode, I look at some of the uncollected stories by Charles W. Chesnutt. We have some more stories in the Julius series, including one on Southern geophagia. There are also some of his "northern stories" dealing wtih the color line from a broader national perspective. There are even a few stories were Chesnutt (out of character) took on issues not relating to the color line at all.

The finale of my review of Philip K. Dick's novel "Time Out of Joint".

Part 4 of my review of Philip K. Dick's "Time Out of Joint".

Part two of my review of Charles Chesnutt's novel "The Marrow of Tradition"

The first of two episodes looking at Charles W. Chesnutt's masterpiece, "The Marrow of Tradition", a book on post-Reconstruction politics, race relations, racial violence, and the color line.

We go a little bit deeper into the rabbit hole of Ragle Gumm's strange life in part three of my review of Philip K. Dick's "Time Out of Joint".

The finale of my review of Charles W. Chesnutt's "The House Behind the Cedars." The novel shifts from being about the color line to being about sexual harassment and the struggles of a young woman in the workplace. Very important to revist today.

Part 2 of my review of Time Out of Joint by Philip K. Dick.

In "The House Behind the Cedars" Charles Chesnutt takes a deep look at the color line. The result is a brilliant novel on race, but also gender and the harassment faced by young women.

Part one of my review of "Time Out of Joint", Dick's 1959 novel about a man realizing that the world he lives in is a false front. This is one of Dick's best and maybe the best 1950s novel he wrote.