Native Son: Racial Stereotypes and Ethnic Profiling - Essay Example

Download file to see previous pages The novel “Native Son” by Wright identifies the cost of racial oppression, by enlightening on the cultural consideration, which supports inequities and hatred (Wright, 17). The text focuses on US racial discrimination and segregation before the Civil Rights Movement. There are many instances in the novel where ethnic paradigms depicted as heuristic devices, bring about an apprehension of boundary formation, especially racial segregation and enslavement. Hence, Wright being a critique of essentialist conception of cultural identity with ethnicity pays so much attention to ethnic and social stereotypes, as an outcome of class and gender disparities, internal disparities in power, position and migration. Furthermore, the naturalist viewpoint in the novel is evident through Wright use of crucial aspects of naturalism and determinism, in particular fear, abhorrence, as well as mob mentality. The aim of this paper is evaluate racial stereotyping and cultural identities through ethnic relations as depicted in the text Native son. Discussion To begin with, the novel embodies the foundation of social reality at that time, since both blacks and whites believed and lived a flight of the imagination, regarding the exact nature of their relationship. Hence, segregation along with group stereotypes transmitted the black phenomenon through their cognitive outcome on white elites. The simplification of social stereotyping in the novel helps to observe that the cognitive shortfalls are not owing to the white skin color, genes, or even mythical racial quintessence, but purely due to their conditional social alignment as a segregated plus advantaged social group. That is why the wealthy and the poor, natives and immigrants, the whites and disadvantaged racial groups, subsist in dissimilar neighborhoods, attended dissimilar schools, and participated in dissimilar churches or voluntary associations. Wright seems to visualize a world whereby Bigger belonging to ethnic minority groups, are entrapped in a sea of injustices without any hope of escaping. This feeling of despair and hopelessness is evident in Bigger when he was thinking about his family situation “ He hated his family….he knew that….they were suffering and that he was powerless to help them…the shame and misery of their lives…he would be swept with fear and despair” (Wright, 10). Bigger like most Black men was overwhelmed by the attacks and betrayals from his community and white people, and this created some sort of amnesiac walls and which provided a separation from his dreams and hopes. The only way for escaping such traumas was by hiding in fear and despair, which in the end concealed his strengths, talents, as well as abilities that he could have put into good use. Fundamentally, every racial stereotype strengthens preconceived perceptions, and this limit interethnic communication, as well as distorting reality. The racial stereotypes as presented by Wright in “Native Son” form barriers which block prospects and communications, resulting in unfortunate consequences. Such stereotypes help to explain why language and modern imagery play a greater influence in public opinion. The ethnicity standards just like race paradigm often focus on deeds within the nation instead of community levels. Hence, ...Download file to see next pagesRead More