>> because he has been so enormously influential on african-american political thought. and on more generally speaking, discourse about public policy, about black identity, relating to a contemporary politics impose the importance of dubois? the turn of the century. >> what the book focuses on is what has his best known book, and that is most influential. but in many ways not well understood book. ..

the influence idea that more than any other 20th-century african-american thinker dubois is five, you asked about it. he has cast a shadow over the other african americans the risk of but more generally beyond just the world of african-americans, but just a shadow over anyone who has thought about african-american identity. part of the idea's going back to the canine and engaging to block

-- dubois political thought, if we arrive at some of the assumptions and our own thinking about many of these issues. >> in the west 113 years are so, what practical effect has dubois had? where is his lineage? >> of course he was one of the great inspiration's of the civilized movement. i think it is well known that john mearsheimer is deaf. i used that, roger wilkinson. the announcement of du bois as an epigraph. and he says there, you know, there is one thinker whose double overshadows both the movement happening here today is

du bois. so real connection in between not only what is going on the level of contemporary writers. there is thinking about these issues, is used to my income having to do with identity, conflicts in the aftermath of segregation, the aftermath of obama, but also the voice has had an enormous impact on activists. >> what was his relationship, professor, with bush -- booker t. washington. >> that, of course, is an important thing in the book and something that has been talked about at great lengths in the literature and also is important. when one thinks about the history, activism and african-american political thought, john mearsheimer devotes an entire chapter to washington. so washington, of course, was the most prominent and influential african american political force at the time.

and he really did, which is why john mearsheimer thought he had to take washington on. so i mean, to summarize, washington got that african american social progress really required that african americans developed virtues appropriate and that they could put aside this struggle. the response by du bois, you cannot put aside the struggle. and in essence -- in essence he argued against washington. there will be no success if african-americans, you cannot separate these agendas. there is a deeper issue which is often ignored which is the issue related to the struggle over lead. what is the leader or group that is going to emerge as the

leaders of the struggle for african-american equality. and the way, one of the interesting things about the way in which du bois friends that their chapter is that he possesses both himself and douglas with reference -- both himself and washington with reference to protect list. it has had so many african american. pitching deck contest between him and washington with respect to deficits and the narrative. in effect what he is saying in this chapter. mimosas of africa, frederick douglass, has passed away. the question is it will be the new leader? washington has emerged. he has emerged as the new joshua. here first to washington as this joshua man. but as it turns out, washington

is not the militant leader the joshua was. militant leader. and du bois is presenting himself as the more opprobrious successor, the more appropriate joshua. >> host: well, that said, what was the relationship from john mearsheimer and the larger white community. >> guest: well, very much involved, one of the founding members of the afc t. one can talk about the larger communities in a number of different ways. one can talk about him again with respect to the n.a.a.c.p., african-americans. activism. the point that i try to stress is what's du bois was about intellectually. a judge to open up the space for thinking, not only about the

engagement of du bois throughout appropriations, contemporary american bankers, but to think, too, about, for example, but his time in germany. so, for example, not only interesting because he was a student. also interesting because he was the first students of gustav mahler in germany in because he was engaged with late 19th century german debate about the relationship between the human side and a natural site and others should think about race and the perspective of the national science of the human science. for example, a very famous discussion of double consciousness involving an important and interesting and complicated illusion. possibly his favor palm of william wordsworth. so you think about john mearsheimer in the large la -- would want to stress is very

talk about not only his relationship to white activists who were involved in the founding the n.a.a.c.p., but also talked about the intellectual horizon not only on american intellectual horizon. but also the wide range of readings and very importantly, profoundly neglected, his engagement in late 19th century german debate. >> host: not knowing what you do, would he be surprised that ended thousand a black president was elected? >> guest: that is interesting. probably as much as anyone. i was surprised. i think a lot of people were surprised when a bomb was elected. i think that's part of the reason why cannot left the united states.

so given that pessimism i think if you ask du bois, you know, would we have an african-american president. even before 1964, civil-rights activists, the housing. he had not seen them and of jim crow. for him to imagine the possibility to move for him to imagine the possibility of an african american president is also unimaginable. >> host: robert gooding-williams, what do you teach? >> guest: political theory, a variety of courses, some having to do with the american political thoughts. i also teach more systematic courses. nineteenth century german

philosophy, and right now. seminars. >> host: social. i just finished teaching a course on the cali an african american jewish political thought. next year i'm teaching another course on heidegger. so a range of courses. most of them have to do with either political thought in manson century german political pot or having to do with african-american critical thought. >> host: also the author of another book. >> guest: a collection of essays present representations of race in film. a few other essays as well. so, for example, i have an essay on representation of race.

a movie that many of us saw long time ago. i have an essay on the representations of race during the rodney king piece that was originally published. also an interesting piece engaging another philosopher, stanley gold, around his reading of the fred astaire movie. it is on like. it is of engagement an attempt to reconstruct the in particular thinker. again, it has more to do with race than contemporary culture and representations'. >> host: who is similar to du bois today? >> guest: i think there is no one. i think that -- i think -- what

i would say to my guess what i would want to say about that, adding the question, kind of looking for, you know, one person who might to represent the current tendency of african american political thought. i don't think that there is one person. i'm not even sure there was one person. in days with debating with booker t. washington. a number of other members. nothing that today you find, it's interesting. a great deal of diversity of opinion. the much everything going on. that's reasonable. how we should think about the obama presidency. so i think what we have is kind of a mistake to think i'll hysterically or currently of african-american political thoughts as homogeneous. i am very sympathetic to those

who recently appreciate, which is good for african american political life. >> host: professor robert gooding-williams, what is your next book? >> guest: un entirely sure. beginning to do some work. often the father of black nationalism. and so i began doing research. did a short paper. it may evolve into a monograph. >> host: well, robert gooding-williams, and the current book, "in the shadow of dubois: afro-modern political thought in america." professor robert gooding-williams teaches at the university of chicago. >> you're watching 48 hours of nonfiction authors and books on book tv. >> host: university of chicago professor john mearsheimer, who

do politicians like to? >> guest: basically to two audiences. one, they lied to foreign audiences. other leaders and their publics. to, they lied to their own people. >> host: to him today tell the truth? >> guest: they rarely lied to foreign audiences and rarely lied to their own people. if you think about it it makes sense. it would not make any sense to live. lying is most effective when you don't do it very often. so therefore europe are in a position to catch people off guard. >> host: you put some examples on my leader's line about american presidents. some specific examples.