Event Host: Department of Philosophy
Short Description: Chike Jeffers, associate professor of philosophy at Dalhousie University, presents "Du Bois' Theory of the Talented Tenth: Critical Evaluations and Re-evaluations."
Chike Jeffers, associate professor of philosophy at Dalhousie University, presents "Du Bois' Theory of the Talented Tenth: Critical Evaluations and Re-evaluations."
One of W.E.B. Du Bois' most controversial ideas is his notion of the Talented Tenth, an elite to be cultivated through higher education and empowered to lead African Americans. I will consider how not only later thinkers like Cornel West and Joy James but also Du Bois himself raised critical questions about the justice and plausibility of this social and political vision. Some think Du Bois not only raised critical questions but abandoned the ideal in later life, but I will show that he raised critical questions early on and never fully abandoned the ideal, seeking only to appropriately recognize complexities and challenges.