Racial prejudice in post-civil war America : historical realism in Charles Chesnutt's the colonel’s dream

الملخص EN

This paper aims to shed light on the racial prejudice and violence of post-civil war America throughout critical analysis of Charles Chesnutt‟ novel the colonel’s dream.

Chesnutt's novel does not only represent an attempt to criticize the racial history of white American's, but an attempt to dissolve the color line in the south to achieve equality between the people of different races.

the incessant racist practices of the whites in the south, Chesnutt implies, will only lead to destruction, and consequently hinder the dream of success and prosperity of the American people.

Chesnutt suggests throughout his novel that amalgamation in the south or moving to northern free-slavery states are solutions to achieve social, economic and political equality between blacks and whites.