Final answer:
W. E. B. Du Bois rallied black writers to push for racial equality and to articulate African-American experiences in their work, aiming to lead and uplift through intellectual advancement and creating a self-reliant black culture.
Step-by-step explanation:
W. E. B. Du Bois called on black writers to advocate for racial equality and to express the complexities of African-American life through their literary works. He encouraged writers to be part of what he called "the talented tenth," a group destined to lead African Americans through a rigorous art and academic achievement. In his own works, such as "The Souls of Black Folk," Du Bois promoted the idea of a double consciousness, addressing the duality of being both African-American and American, a theme that ought to be central to the literary contributions of black writers. He critiqued Booker T. Washington's approach and rejected the notion that black education should focus solely on vocational skills, instead pushing for a higher education that would empower black leadership and creation of a sophisticated black culture. Through his efforts with the NAACP and as an orchestrator of the Harlem Renaissance, Du Bois was instrumental in encouraging the growth of an independent black culture and advocating for civil rights, themes that were reflected in the works of other key writers of the time like Langston Hughes, Zora Neale Hurston, and Claude McKay.