The veil comes to serve as both a liberating and diminishing factor to the black race in the South. While it was a form of oppression, it was also the only window to the outside world into the black experience. In ‘The Souls of Black Folks’, the word ‘veil’ is mentioned at least once in every chapter. Although the word ‘veil’ isn’t explicitly stated in ‘Marrow of Tradition’, the concept of there being two separate worlds is still very much evident. In Chesnutt’s novel, it is clear that there is a veil present, but unlike W.E.B. Du Bois’ book, it is told in a way that paints a more explicit picture of the struggles of black folk.
In ‘The Souls of Black Folks’, W.E.B. Du Bois brings to light the moment he realizes that the veil is undeniably a part of his life. “The exchange was merry, till one girl, a tall newcomer, refused my card, – refused it peremptorily, with a glance. Then it dawned upon me with a certain suddenness that I was different from the others; or like, mayhap, in heart and life and longing, but shut out from their world by a vast veil. I had thereafter no desire to tear down that veil, to creep through; I held all beyond it in common contempt, and lived above it in a region of blue sky and great wandering shadows” (Du Bois, 2). Du Bois being from a mostly white Massachusetts town wasn’t exposed to the horrid life the South had in store for a black man. It wasn’t until he was exposed to it that he was introduced to what the veil was and what it meant. It is later that Du Bois finds a sense of community in that small world of misfortune. “For two summers I lived in this little world; it was dull and humdrum…I have called my tiny community a world, and so its isolation made it… and, above all, from the sight of the Veil that hung between us and Opportunity” (Du Bois, 67). He uses this passage to indicate that he feels at home with his people, despite the fact before them was “a half-awakened common consciousness, sprung from common joy and grief, at burial, birth, or wedding; from a common hardship in poverty, poor land, and low wages” (Du Bois, 67-68). He is now aware of the world outside of the veil. Opportunity stands right outside of it, and yet it is still unattainable to him. “‘Oh’, thought I, ‘this is lucky’; but even then fell the awful shadow of the Veil, for they ate first, then I—alone’ (Du Bois, 63). Du Bois was thrilled and hopeful when he was asked to stay for dinner by the white commissioner and white teacher, thinking that they saw him as their equal. It was when they requested that he eat alone after they had eaten, he realized once again that there was the veil that stood between them. Du Bois’ attempt to bring awareness to the black folks’ oppression through this novel was evident. He wanted white people to take a look through the black side of the veil by way of this book, there is no other way to do so. The black-and-white world is like an interrogation room. The veil is like a one-way mirror, where one side is a reciprocal mirror and the other side is see-through. White folks are on the mirrored side, while blacks are on the side looking in. “Between me and the other world there is ever an unasked question: unasked by some through feelings of delicacy; by others through the difficulty of rightly framing it. All, nevertheless, flutter round it. They approach me in a half-hesitant sort of way, eye me curiously or compassionately, and then, instead of saying directly, ‘How does it feel to be a problem?’ they say” (Du Bois, 1). W.E.B. Du Bois in the beginning of the book notes that whites are aware of our oppression in a way, but doesn’t seem to care.
This double-sided veil can make the black man cripple in a way, causing them to hang on to the white folks’ coat hem. In ‘Marrow of Tradition', Jerry is well aware that he will only have a leg up in the world if he stuck with the white folks. He was known amongst the black community to kiss up to the upper-class white society. “I got ter keep my eyes open an' keep up wid w'at's happenin'. Ef dere's gwine ter be anudder flood 'roun' here, I wants ter git in de ark wid de w'ite folks, - I may haf ter be anudder Ham, an' sta't de cullud race all over ag'in' (Chesnutt, 39). Some blacks were always striving to triumph over this game of survival of the fittest, remaining dependent on their oppressors at all times. They recognized this was the only way that they could stay alive. There was only one instance that the black man and the white man were seen as equal. It was during the demise of both races. “One of the two died as the fool dieth. Which was it, or was it both?” (Chesnutt, 309). In Chesnutt’s ‘Marrow of Tradition’, both Josh Greene and Captain McBane died at the hands of the other. No one won. This action didn’t help the situation and did nothing to improve the conditions of black and white folks. It wasn’t until the end of the novel that there was an acceptance from the outside of the veil. Earlier in the book, Dr. Miller was invited to operate on Carteret’s son but was denied by Mr. and Mrs. Carteret. Major Carteret, the stereotypical white male of that time, and his wife only ‘accepted’ the black man when they needed him to save their child’s life. “It is my child, Dr. Miller, my only child. I brought it into the world at the risk of my own life! I have nursed it, I have watched over it, I have prayed for it, —and it now lies dying! Oh, Dr. Miller, dear Dr. Miller, if you have a heart, come and save my child!” (Chesnutt, 324). Mrs. Carteret not only cried out a prayer in a plea, but she also threw herself down at the feet of Dr. Miller and begged him. Unfortunately, the only time that blacks received any credit for anything was when they were needed for something. Olivia confesses everything to Janet Miller in hopes of convincing her husband that she and her husband were deserving of his help. “‘Listen, sister!’, she said. ‘I have a confession to make. You are my lawful sister. My father was married to your mother. You are entitled to his name, and to half his estate’” (Chesnutt, 327). But should that be enough? Does this tragedy finally break the barrier of the veil between the two worlds?
‘The Souls of Black Folks’ and ‘Marrow of Tradition’ gives our generation a snapshot of the way things were in the South many, many years ago. Du Bois mentions the veil as this barrier between the two worlds. Sadly, the veil is still present today. It may be a bit more transparent, but it is undeniably here. We still have many struggles and situations that others outside of the veil could never understand. From police brutality to having our first black president, equality is still something we strive to reach. The veil is still essential to our daily lives because we still use it to remind us of what our ancestors went through keeping us grounded, but it also still cripples us in a way. Sometimes the veil causes us to underestimate ourselves because we are aware of it. It comes to serve as both our savior and our destruction in the lives of black folks today.