The Quest of the Silver Fleece

When two young people are given a life-changing opportunity they encounter moral and systemic challenges that are directly tied to their racial and economic backgrounds. In The Quest of the Silver Fleece, W.E.B. Du Bois confronts covert discrimination in contemporary America. Cotton, also known as “silver fleece,” is still a prized possession in the early-twentieth century. It continues to generate massive profits that are barely distributed amongst its predominantly Black workforce. Zora is a child of the South, and Bles, is a man with Northern sensibilities—yet, they both feel the weight of oppression. Set in Alabama and Washington D.C., The Quest of the Silver Fleece examines the struggle for upward mobility and the compromises to sustain it. As a sociologist, Du Bois explores the ongoing effects of racial inequality in both the North and South. With The Quest of the Silver Fleece, he highlights the glaring disparity between the white establishment and African American labor. It's an explicit indictment of continued oppression in a post-slavery society. With an eye-catching new cover, and professionally typeset manuscript, this edition of The Quest of the Silver Fleece is both modern and readable. Since our inception in 2020, Mint Editions has kept sustainability and innovation at the forefront of our mission. Each and every Mint Edition title gets a fresh, professionally typeset manuscript and a dazzling new cover, all while maintaining the integrity of the original book. With thousands of titles in our collection, we aim to spotlight diverse public domain works to help them find modern audiences. Mint Editions celebrates a breadth of literary works, curated from both canonical and overlooked classics from writers around the globe. "Shaped by the author's belief that capitalism inexorably led to the exploitation of Southern farmers during Reconstruction, 'The Quest of the Silver Fleece' dramatizes the economic conflict between cotton growers and Northern capitalists. W.E.B. Du Bois uses Miss Sarah Smith's controversial school for Southern black children as the fictional device that links wealthy cotton planters, their exploited black laborers, and the interests of Wall Street and Washington"--Page 4 of cover. A novel reflecting the prejudices of Americans at the dawn of the 20th century. Cotton, the silver fleece, could be the answer to Zora and Bles' prayers for overcoming poverty. While attending school in rural Alabama, they lovingly nurture their crop. But the white aristocracy is determined to control the price of cotton and monopolize the market. Can these two lovers prevail despite the daunting obstacles before them?