First edition
Up from Slavery is the 1901 autobiography of American educator Booker T. Washington
(1856–1915). The book describes his personal experience of having to
work to rise up from the position of a slave child during the Civil War, to the difficulties and obstacles he overcame to get an education at the new Hampton Institute, to his work establishing vocational schools—most notably the Tuskegee Institute in Alabama—to
help black people and other disadvantaged minorities learn useful,
marketable skills and work to pull themselves, as a race, up by the
bootstraps. He reflects on the generosity of both teachers and
philanthropists who helped in educating blacks and Native Americans. He
describes his efforts to instill manners, breeding, health and a feeling
of dignity to students. His educational philosophy stresses combining
academic subjects with learning a trade (something which is reminiscent
of the educational theories of John Ruskin).
Washington explained that the integration of practical subjects is
partly designed to reassure the white community as to the usefulness of
educating black people.
This book was first released as a serialized work in 1900 through The Outlook,
a Christian newspaper of New York. This work was serialized because
this meant that during the writing process, Washington was able to hear
critiques and requests from his audience and could more easily adapt his
paper to his diverse audience.
First Cover of The Outlook newspaper
Washington was a controversial figure in his own lifetime, and W. E. B. Du Bois,
among others, criticized some of his views. The book was, however, a
best-seller, and remained the most popular African American
autobiography until that of Malcolm X. In 1998, the Modern Library listed the book at No. 3 on its list of the 100 best nonfiction books of the 20th century, and in 1999 it was also listed by the conservative Intercollegiate Review as one of the "50 Best Books of the Twentieth Century".
Plot summary
Up from Slavery
chronicles more than forty years of Washington's life: from slave to
schoolmaster to the face of southern race relations. In this text,
Washington climbs the social ladder through hard, manual labor, a decent
education, and relationships with great people. Throughout the text, he
stresses the importance of education for the black population as a
reasonable tactic to ease race relations in the South (particularly in
the context of Reconstruction).
The book is in essence Washington's traditional, non-confrontational message supported by the example of his life.
Major themes
- Education
- What it means to be your own person
- Industriousness
- Humility
- The people's capacity for change
- Poverty among the black population
Chapter summaries
Chapter 1
"A
Slave Among Slaves": In the first chapter, the reader is given a vivid
yet brief sight of the life of slaves, as seen from the author's point
of view. Basically, it speaks of the hardships the slaves endured before
independence and their joys and hassles(arguments) after liberty. The
first chapter explains about his suffering in that plantation and the
end days of his slavery. The author feels that his life had its
beginning in midst of the most miserable surroundings.
He explains about his living conditions. How his mother/ works hard to
make the days end.
Chapter 2
"Boyhood
Days": In the second chapter, the reader learns the importance of
naming oneself as a means of reaffirming freedom and the extent to which
freed men and women would go to reunite their families. After families
had reunited and named themselves, they would then seek out employment
(often far from their former masters). The reader learns the story
behind the author's name: Booker Taliaferro Washington. The second
chapter also gives an account of cruel labour of both adults and
children in the mines at the city of Malden.
Furthermore, Booker is strongly attracted towards education and
oscillates between the extensive schedule of the day's work and the
school. The second chapter also describes the character of Booker's
mother and her role in his life.
Chapter 3
"The Struggle for Education": Washington struggles, in this chapter,
to earn enough money to reach and remain at Hampton Institute. That was
his first experience related to the importance of willingness to do
manual labor. The first introduction of General Samuel C. Armstrong
Chapter 4
"Helping
Others": Conditions at Hampton are discussed in this chapter, as well
as Washington's first trip home from school. He returns early from
vacation to aid teachers in the cleaning of their classrooms. When
Washington returns the next summer, he is elected to teach local
students, young and old, through a night school, Sunday school, and
private lessons. This chapter also gives the first mention of groups
such as the Ku Klux Klan.
Chapter 5
"The Reconstruction Period (1867-1878)": Washington paints an image of the South during Reconstruction Era
of the United States, with several assessments of Reconstruction
projects including: education, vocational opportunities, and voting
rights. He speaks of the Reconstruction policy being built on "a false
foundation." He seeks to play a role in forming a more solid foundation
based upon "the hand, head, and heart."
Chapter 6
"Black
Race and Red Race": General Armstrong calls Washington back to Hampton
Institute for the purpose of instructing and advising a group of young
Native-American men. Washington speaks about different instances of
racism against Native Americans and African Americans. Washington also
begins a night school at this time.
Chapter 7
"Early
Days at Tuskegee": Once again General Armstrong is instrumental in
encouraging Washington's next project: the establishment of a normal
school for African Americans in Tuskegee, Alabama. He describes the
conditions in Tuskegee and his work in building the school: "much like
making bricks without straw.
Washington also outlines a typical day in the life of an African
American living in the country at this time.
In May 1881, General Armstrong told Washington he had received a letter
from a man in Alabama to recommend someone to take charge of a "colored
school" in Tuskegee. The man writing the letter thought that there was
no "colored" person to fill the role and asked him to recommend a white
man. The general wrote back to tell him about Washington, and he was
accepted for the position.
Washington went there and describes Tuskegee as a town of 2,000
population and as being in the "Black Belt" of the South, where nearly
half of the residents were "colored" and in other parts of nearby
counties there were six African-American people to one white person. He
explains that he thinks the term 'Black Belt' originated from the rich,
dark soil of the area, which was also the part of the South where slaves
were most profitable.
Once at Tuskegee, his first task was to find a place to open the
school and secured a rundown "shanty" and African-American Methodist
church. He also travelled around the area and acquainted himself with
the local people. He describes some of the families he met and who
worked in the cotton fields. He saw that most of the farmers were in
debt and schools were generally taught in churches or log cabins and
these had few or no provisions. Some, for example, had no means of
heating in the winter and one school had one book to share between five
children.
He goes on to relate the story of a man aged around 60. He told
Washington he had been sold in 1845 and there had been five of them:
"There were five of us; myself and brother and three mules." Washington
explains he is referring to these experiences to highlight how
improvements were later made.
Chapter 8
"Teaching
School in a Stable and a Hen-house": Washington details the necessity
of a new form of education for the children of Tuskegee, for the typical
New England education would not be sufficient to affect uplift. Here is
also the introduction of long-time partners, George W. Campbell and Lewis Adams, and future wife, Olivia A. Davidson;
these individuals felt similarly to Washington in that mere
book-learning would not be enough. The goal was established to prepare
students of Tuskegee to become teachers, farmers, and overall moral
people.
Washington's first days at Tuskegee are described in this chapter, as is
his method of working. He demonstrates a holistic approach to his
teaching in that he researched the area and the people and how poverty
stricken many were. His visits also showed how education was both a
premium and underfunded, and therefore justifies the setting up of this
new facility.
Tuskegee is also seen to be set in a rural area, where
agriculture was the main form of employment, and so the Institute's
later incarnation as an industrial school that was fit for teaching its
students skills for the locale is justified.
He encountered difficulties in setting up the school, which he opened on
July 4, 1881, and this included some opposition from white people who
questioned the value of educating African Americans: "These people
feared the result of education would be that the Negros would leave the
farms, and that it would be difficult to secure them for domestic
service."
He describes how he has depended on the advice of two men in
particular and these were the ones who wrote to General Armstrong asking
for a teacher. One is a white man and a former slave holder called
George W. Campbell. The other is a "black" man and a former slave called
Lewis Adams.
When the school opened they had 30 students and these were
divided roughly equally between the sexes. Many more had wanted to come,
but it had been decided that they must be over 15 and have had some
education already. Many who came were public school teachers and some
were around 40 years of age. The number of pupils increased each week
and there were nearly 50 by the end of the first month.
A co-teacher came at the end of the first six weeks. This was Olivia A. Davidson
and she later became his wife. She had been taught in Ohio and came
South as she had heard of the need for teachers. She is described as
brave in the way she nursed the sick when others would not (such as
caring for a boy with smallpox). She also trained further at Hampton and
then at Massachusetts State Normal School at Framingham.
She and Washington agreed that the students needed more than a
'book education' and they thought they must show them how to care for
their bodies and how to earn a living after they had left the school.
They tried to educate them in a way that would make them want to stay in
these agricultural districts (rather than leave for the city and be
forced to live by their wits). Many of the students came initially to
study so that they would not have to work with their hands, whereas
Washington aimed for them to be capable of all sorts of labor and to not
be ashamed of it.
Chapter 9
"Anxious
Days and Sleepless Nights": This chapter starts by stating how the
people spent Christmas drinking and having a merry time, and not bearing
in mind the true essence of Christmas. This chapter also discusses the
Institute's relationship with the locals of Tuskegee, the purchase and
cultivation of a new farm, the erection of a new building, and the
introduction of several generous donors, mostly northern. The death of
Washington's first wife, Fannie N. Smith, is announced in this chapter.
He had a daughter named Portia.
Chapter 10
"A
Harder Task Than Making Bricks Without Straw": In this chapter,
Washington discusses the importance of having the students erect their
own buildings: "Not a few times, when a new student has been led into
the temptation of marring the looks of some building by lead pencil
marks or by the cuts of a jack-knife, I have heard an old student remind
him: 'Don't do that. That is our building. I helped put it up.'"
The bricks reference in the title refers to the difficulty of forming
bricks without some very necessary tools: money and experience. Through
much labour, the students were able to produce fine bricks; their
confidence then spilling over into other efforts, such as the building
of vehicles.
Chapter 12
"Raising
Money": Washington travels north to secure additional funding for the
Institute with which he had much success. Two years after a meeting with
one man, the Institute received a cheque of $10,000 and, from another
couple, a gift of $50,000. Washington felt great pressure for his school
and students to succeed, for failure would reflect poorly on the
ability of the race. It is this time period Washington begins working
with Andrew Carnegie,
proving to Carnegie that this school was worthy of support. Not only
did Washington find large donations helpful, but small loans were key
which paid the bills and gave evidence to the community's faith in this
type of education.
Chapter 13
"Two Thousand Miles for a Five-Minute Speech": Washington marries again. His new wife is Olivia A. Davidson, first mentioned in Chapter 8. This chapter begins Washington's public speaking career; first at the National Education Association.
His next goal was to speak before a Southern white audience. His first
opportunity was limited by prior engagements and travel time, leaving
him only five minutes to give his speech. Subsequent speeches were
filled with purpose: when in the North he would be actively seeking
funds, when in the South encouraged "the material and intellectual
growth of both races." The result of one speech was the Atlanta Exposition Speech.
Chapter 14
"The Atlanta Exposition Address": The speech that Washington gave to the Atlanta Exposition
is printed here in its entirety. He also gives some explanation of the
reaction to his speech: first, delight from all, then, slowly, a feeling
among African Americans that Washington had not been strong enough in
regards to the 'rights' of the race.
In time, however, the African-American public would become, once again,
generally pleased with Washington's goals and methods for
African-American uplift.
Washington also speaks about the African-American clergy. He
also makes a much disputed statement about voting: "I believe it is the
duty of the Negro – as the greater part of the race is already doing –
to deport himself modestly in regard to political claims, depending upon
the slow but sure influences that proceed from the possession of
property, intelligence, and high character for the full recognition of
his political rights. I think that the according of the full exercise
of political rights is going to be a matter of natural, slow growth, not
an over-night, gourd-vine affair. I do not believe that the Negro
should cease voting…but I do believe that in his voting he should more
and more be influenced by those of intelligence and character who are
his next-door neighbors…I do not believe that any state should make a
law that permits an ignorant and poverty-stricken white man to vote, and
prevents a black man in the same condition from voting. Such a law is
not only unjust, but it will react, as all unjust laws do, in time; for
the effect of such a law is to encourage the Negro to secure education
and property. I believe that in time, through the operation of
intelligence and friendly race relations, all cheating at the ballot box
in the South will cease."
Chapter 15
"The
Secret Success in Public Speaking": Washington speaks again of the
reception of his Atlanta Exposition Speech. He then goes on to give the
reader some advice about public speaking and describes several memorable
speeches.
Chapter 16
"Europe": The author is married a third time, to Margaret James Murray.
He speaks about his children. At this time, he and his wife are offered
the opportunity to travel to Europe. Mixed emotions influenced their
decision to go: Washington had always dreamed of traveling to Europe,
but he feared the reaction of the people, for so many times had he seen
individuals of his race achieve success and then turned away from the
people. Mr. and Mrs. Washington enjoyed their trip, especially upon
seeing their friend, Henry Tanner,
an African-American artist, being praised by all classes. During their
time abroad, the couple was also able to take tea with both Queen Victoria and Susan B. Anthony. Upon arriving back in the United States, Washington was asked to visit Charleston, West Virginia, near his former home in Malden.
Chapter 17
"Last
Words": Washington describes his last interactions with General
Armstrong and his first with Armstrong's successor, Rev. Dr. Hollis B.
Frissell. The greatest surprise of his life was being invited to receive
an honorary degree from Harvard University, the first awarded to an African American. Another great honor for Washington and Tuskegee was the visit of President William McKinley to the institute, an act which McKinley hoped to impress upon citizens his "interest and faith in the race." Washington then describes the conditions at Tuskegee Institute and his resounding hope for the future of the race.
Context
The
America of the 1880s and 1890s was one of white hostility toward African
Americans. There was also the belief that the African American race
would not have been able to survive without the institution of slavery.
Popular culture played in to the ideas of "black criminality and moral
decline" as can be seen in the characters Jim Crow and Zip Coon. When
Washington began his writing and public speaking, he was fighting the
notion that African Americans were inherently stupid and incapable of
civilization. Washington's primary goal was to impress upon the audience
the possibility of progress. Furthermore, living in the Black Belt,
Booker T. Washington was vulnerable to mob violence and was, therefore,
always mindful not to provoke the mob. As would be expected for a man in
such precarious position, when violence erupted, he tried to stem his
talk of equality and progress so as not to exacerbate the situation.
Lynching
in the South at this time was prevalent as mobs of whites would take
the law into their own hands and would torture and murder of dozens of
men and women, including white men. The offenses of the victims
included: "for being victor over a white man in a fight;" "protecting
fugitive from posse;" "stealing seventy-five cents;" "expressing
sympathy for mob's victim;" "for being father of boy who jostled white
women." It is clear that any white person to show sympathy or offer
protection for African-American victims would be labeled complicit
himself and become vulnerable to violence by the mob. In 1901, Reverend
Quincy Ewing of Mississippi charged the press and pulpit with uniting
public sentiment against lynching. Lynching would continue into the
1950s and 1960s.
Some blame Washington's comparatively sheepish message upon a
lack of desire for true African-American uplift. But for some, taking
into account the environment in which he was delivering his message,
support Washington for making any public stance at all. His strategy of
garnering sympathy and speaking realistically, encouraged many in
staunch opposition to consider the possibility of civil rights and
liberties.
April 1, 1901, The Washington Post describes Up From Slavery
quite plainly: [Mr. Washington's] book is full of practical wisdom and
sound common sense. It may be read with profit by white and black
alike." This assessment of the book makes Washington accessible to both white and black audiences.
The relationship between Washington and his critics
Since publishing, Up From Slavery
paints Booker T. Washington as both an "accommodationist and
calculating realist seeking to carve out a viable strategy for black
struggle amidst the nadir of race relations in the United States." While
more contemporary ideas of black civil rights call for a more
provocative approach, Washington was certainly a major figure in his
time. Most critiques of him target his accommodationism, yet his private
life was very much aimed at opposition through funding. The Atlanta
Exposition speech shows his dual nature, giving everyone present
something to agree with, no matter their intention. Washington deserves
praise for "seeking to be all things to all men in a multifaceted
society."
Many do argue against his being characterized as an accommodationist:
"He worked too hard to resist and to overcome white supremacy to call
him an accommodationist, even if some of his white-supremacist southern
neighbors so construed some of his statements. Having conditions forced
on him, with threat of destruction clearly the cost of resistance, does
not constitute a fair definition of accommodation." Historians are thoroughly split over this characterization.
W. E. B. DuBois initially applauded Washington's stance on racial
uplift, at one point he went as far as to say of the Atlanta Exposition
speech: "here might be a real basis for the settlement between whites
and blacks in the South." DuBois, in his book The Souls of Black Folk,
congratulates Washington for accomplishing his first task, which was to
earn the ear of the white southern population through a spirit of
sympathy and cooperation. He also acknowledges the unstable situation in
the south and the necessity for sensitivity to community feelings, yet
he believes that Washington has failed in his sensitivity to African
Americans. DuBois asserts that there are many educated and successful
African Americans who would criticize the work of Washington, but they
are being hushed in such a way as to impede "democracy and the safeguard
of modern society." This is where their paths would diverge: Washington
with his "Tuskegee Machine" and DuBois with the "Niagara Movement."
In 1905, the Niagara Movement issued a statement enumerating
their demands against oppression and for civil rights. The Movement
established itself as an entity entirely removed from Washington in
conciliation, but rather a new, more radical course of action: "Through
helplessness we may submit, but the voice of protest of ten million
Americans must never cease to assail the ears of their fellows, so long
as America is unjust." For a time, the Movement grew very successfully,
but they lost their effectiveness when chapters began to disagree with
one another. Eventually, the Movement's efforts translated into the
development of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP).
Of course there were other participants in this discussion of the
future of the African-American race, including that of W. H. Thomas,
another African-American man. Thomas believed that African Americans
were "deplorably bad" and that it would require a "miracle" to make any
sort of progress. As in the case of Washington and DuBois, Washington
and Thomas have areas of agreement, though DuBois would not so agree:
that the best chance for an African American was in the areas of farming
and country life. In some respects, it is hard to compare the two as
each has different intentions.
Similarly, Thomas Dixon, author of The Clansman
(1905), began a newspaper controversy with Washington over the
industrial system, most likely to encourage talk of his upcoming book.
He characterized the newfound independence of Tuskegee graduates as
inciting competition: "Competition is war…. What will the [southern
white man] do when put to the test? He will do exactly what his white
neighbor in the North does when the Negro threatens his bread—kill him!"
In popular culture
In September 2011, a seven-part documentary television and DVD series was produced by LionHeart FilmWorks and director Kevin Hershberger using the title Up From Slavery. The 315-minute series is distributed by Mill Creek Entertainment. This series is not directly about the Booker T. Washington autobiography Up From Slavery,
but tells the story of Black Slavery in America from the first arrival
of African slaves at Jamestown in 1619 to the Civil War and the
ratification of the 15th Amendment
in 1870, which prohibits the government from denying a citizen the vote
based on race, color, or previous condition of servitude (i.e.,
slavery), the third of the Reconstruction Amendments which finally ended the legitimacy of slavery in the United States.
