DuBois, Gillman, and Tocqueville on American Freedom and Equality
This paper examines critiques of American ideals of freedom, liberty, and equality through the works of W.E.B. DuBois, Charlotte Perkins Gilman, Frederick Douglass, Benjamin Franklin, and Zitkala-Sa, framed against Alexis de Tocqueville's moral assessment of American greatness. It explores how DuBois's concept of "double consciousness," Gilman's feminist fiction, Douglass's slave narrative, and Zitkala-Sa's Native American storytelling each expose systemic racism, sexism, and social hierarchy as contradictions of America's founding ideals. The paper argues that true American greatness requires dismantling institutionalized inequality and amplifying the voices of all citizens, not just those privileged by race, gender, or class.
- Tocqueville, DuBois, and Gilman on American Ideals: Tocqueville's moral view versus American social critics
- Double Consciousness and Gender Inequality: DuBois and Gilman map paths to a better America
- Paine, Franklin, and Douglass on Social Institutions: Paine's rejection of inherited hierarchy and its limits
- Race, Privilege, and Self-Reliance: Franklin's white privilege versus Douglass's lived struggle
- Zitkala-Sa and Native American Storytelling: Folktales as tools for cultural empowerment and visibility
- Identity, Assimilation, and Double Consciousness: Zitkala-Sa's memoir and Native American double consciousness
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What makes this paper effective
- The paper synthesizes multiple canonical American texts across race, gender, and class to build a unified argument about the gap between American ideals and lived realities.
- It uses Tocqueville as a framing device, allowing the student to measure each subsequent author against an established benchmark of American "greatness."
- The recurring concept of "double consciousness" ties DuBois's framework to Zitkala-Sa's experience, demonstrating thematic coherence across disparate texts.
Key academic technique demonstrated
The paper demonstrates comparative textual analysis, drawing on multiple primary sources to identify shared thematic patterns — particularly the tension between American democratic ideals and institutionalized social hierarchies based on race, gender, and class. This technique is strengthened by the student's ability to connect authors across different historical moments and genres, from political essays to autobiographies to fiction.
Structure breakdown
The paper is organized into three distinct response sections, each addressing a separate prompt. The first compares DuBois and Gilman in relation to Tocqueville's moral vision. The second contrasts Franklin and Douglass through the lens of Thomas Paine's rejection of inherited social institutions. The third examines Zitkala-Sa's dual role as storyteller and activist, connecting her work to DuBois's concept of double consciousness. Each section builds the overarching argument that American greatness requires confronting, rather than concealing, systemic inequality.
Tocqueville, DuBois, and Gilman on American Ideals
Alexis de Tocqueville makes a moral assessment of America, arguing that the "goodness" inherent in American values like freedom and liberty is what makes the nation "great." The term "great" refers to the nation's power, status, and enduring prestige. However, social critics throughout American history have endeavored to point out the gross shortcomings in the country's policies and its hypocritical practices. In The Souls of Black Folk, W.E.B. DuBois discusses the ongoing problem of racism in America to show that the values of freedom and liberty have not been fulfilled. Charlotte Perkins Gilman's novel Herland offers a scathing critique of the patriarchal and sexist values and norms that persist in American society in spite of the façade of offering "liberty and justice for all." Both DuBois and Gilman provide road maps to a better America — one that recognizes the essential equality of all human beings.
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