John Brown

by W. E. B. (William Edward Burghardt) Du Bois

"John Brown" by W. E. B. Du Bois is a biography published in 1909 about the white abolitionist John Brown. Du Bois traces Brown's journey from his Christian rural upbringing through failed business ventures to his radical war against slavery. The work portrays Brown as a biblical figure—prophet, revolutionary, and martyr—whose devotion to abolition was sparked by witnessing brutal treatment of an enslaved boy in his youth. Du Bois examines Brown's significance as a white abolitionist and explores themes of socialism and social Darwinism.