Who authored The Souls of Black Folk?

• A. W. E. B. Du Bois
• B. Booker T. Washington
• C. Antonia Novello
• D. Rachel Carson

Answer: (A)

The question tests your knowledge of authors of a landmark work in Black thought. The Souls of Black Folk, published in 1903, was written by W. E. B. Du Bois, a pioneering African American scholar and civil rights advocate. Du Bois combines social analysis with powerful essays, introducing ideas like double consciousness—the sense of looking at oneself through a gaze that devalues Black identity—and arguing for full civil rights and political equality. This work helped shape later civil rights discourse and critiques of racial injustice in America. The other names are known for different contributions: Booker T. Washington wrote Up from Slavery and emphasized vocational education and gradual change; Antonia Novello is a physician and public health official; Rachel Carson wrote Silent Spring about environmental issues. So the author of The Souls of Black Folk is W. E. B. Du Bois.