Up from Slavery by Booker T. Washington

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On reading Booker T. Washington's classic autobiography, Up From Slavery, Langston Hughes noted "[Washington's] story of himself, as half-seen by himself, is one of America's most revealing books."

"I was born a slave on a plantation in Franklin County, West Virginia. . . . My life had its beginnings in the midst of the most miserable, desolate, and discouraging surroundings." So begins the famous autobiography which helped make Booker T. Washington the most prominent black spokesman of his time. Simple in its style and anecdotal in its approach, Up From Slavery, published to great acclaim in 1901, vividly recounts Washington's birth into slavery, his yearning for education, and his single-minded vision of building an educational center for black students, the Tuskegee Institute. A shrewd diplomat and a tireless promoter of the importance of education for black Americans, Washington cut a controversial figure in his own day. Balancing public acceptance of white accomodation with behind-the-scenes lobbying against disenfranchisement, Washington helped advance the cause of racial equality and brought a rational and respected voice to the boiling question of how America should treat its black citizens.

Synopsis
Illustrating the human quest for freedom and dignity, Booker T. Washington's American classic recounts his triumph over the legacy of slavery, his founding of Tuskegee Institute, and his emergence as a national spokesman for his race. All royalty earnings from the Collector's Editions will be used to preserve and support the collections of The New York Public Library .

Vividly recounting Washington's life--his childhood as a slave, struggle for education, founding and presidency of the Tuskegee Institute, and meetings with the country's leaders, this book reveals the conviction he held that the black man's salvation lay in education, industriousness and self-reliance.

The life of ex-slave Booker T. Washington embodied the rise of the American self-made man, and his autobiography gives prominence to the voice of a group which has had to pull itself up from nothing. From behind the mask of the humble schoolmaster come hints that reveal Washington as the ambitious, tough-minded analyst who had to balance the demands of blacks with the constraints imposed by whites.

 

 

 

 

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