The Colonel's Dream

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First published in 1905, this novel portrays the continuing oppression and racial violence prominent in the South even after the Civil War. The economy of the South was doing very poorly and further limited the opportunities for Black people to work their way up the socioeconomic ladder. By presenting life in Clarendon, Chesnutt illustrates how unfairly Black people were treated in the South during this time. The novel follows Colonel Henry French through the difficulty he faces in trying to reform the southern town, as he meets unfair resistance and violence from the racist people of the town. Although the novel ended up a failure, Chesnutt accurately depicts the hopelessness of reforming the South through the story of Colonel Henry French and the Southern town of Clarendon, North Carolina.