Outsiders' View of Place in Society

In Simmel's "The Stranger," the sociologist proclaimed that identity was irrevocably linked to one's state in society. The stranger is defined by his status as both a part of society and apart from it, both near and far, a contradiction that is an integral part of his essence. This contradiction has been felt by all minorities in society, who though they may form part of society's fabric are nevertheless apart and the same, near and far from the norm. W.E.B Du Bois, Charlotte Perkins Gilman, and Anna Julia Cooper all believed that their identities were defined by their place in society, and that their status as outsiders within the confines of a shared society gave them a unique, and objective, perspective on the world.

W.E.B. Du Bois, in his landmark book The Souls of Black Folk, also believed that an individual's place in society defined their identity. In this case, he was referring to the black man's status as a marginalized member of society somehow both Negro and American, separate but equal. Dubois struggles to find his identity, feeling the contradictory aspects of his status as a Negro and an American, with "two thoughts, two unreconciled striving

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Category: Literature - O