Native Son by Richard Wright - Book Report/Review Example

Native Son - A Review and Analysis A reading of the novel on the surface readily suggests a crime and detective story with poverty, sex and racial discrimination as side spices. Going deeper though will unfold from a micro viewpoint the sociological and political aspects which the author wanted to convey. Speaking of the author himself, his motives are highly questionable taking into serious consideration his own race and ethnicity and his personal leanings on political issues. Without emphasizing, he was a descendant of Negro slaves. It is important to note that the book was written at a time when the black people in America, and in most parts of the world, were literally regarded as inferior citizens. This treatment had led to civil rights movements and radicalism all across the United States. In a way, the implications which were being delivered in the story may no longer fully apply to this day. The incumbent president of the nation is of African-American blood. Albeit some pundits seem to endeavor at reviving the racial divide, the constantly increasing numbers and percentages of the blacks and the semi-blacks in the total population will ultimately wipe out the discrimination factor in the end as a matter of course. The main character in the novel is Bigger Thomas who was sentenced to death for having murdered Mary, the daughter of his white employers. He likewise killed his own girlfriend after the former realized how much information he gave to the latter about the death of Mary. In an ordinary situation, the reader will naturally condemn and despise the acts and misdeeds of Bigger Thomas. Civil societies denounce and despise crime and stand by the position that criminals must be made to answer for their offenses. If the literary piece was merely an ordinary factual account of the incidents involving Bigger and his infractions, the expected conclusion would be that Bigger deserved the death penalty. This was not what the author wanted to pass on. Instead, Bigger is being pictured as the embodiment and symbol of the black populace and culture. He personified the Negro whom the white society hated, disliked and feared. Behind all those perceptions, the reader is led to the root cause of the attitude and behavior in an attempt to justify, rationalize and humanize the wrongful deeds of the murderer. It is as if to say that poverty which drives poor people to commit felonies in order to survive is the fault of the government because the latter has the full responsibility to provide jobs or employment. Except for relatively few exceptions, citizens who are gainfully engaged will not have space in their thoughts to entertain the idea of violating the law for material reasons. Nobody wants to go to jail and be deprived of liberty. In the book, racial inequality is stressed even though in a very discreet and subtle manner which characteristics demonstrate the skill and talent of the author in forcefully giving out the message without being confrontational. Bigger is seen as a victim of discrimination perpetrated by the white people. One fact that exhibited this was the renting out to the Negro tenants the flats which were rat infested and presumably not well and fit for human inhabiting. Outside of those undesirable abodes, the black occupants were not allowed. Bigger lived in one of those places with his family. Incidentally, the landlord was Mr. Dalton who later turned out to be Bigger's employer for whom he worked as a chauffeur. When Bigger was hired as driver for the family of Mr. Dalton, he became totally amazed by the treatment. He was allowed to mix with the members of the household. He was given a room of his own, a privilege that he never had in his life before. His amazement reached a point of confusion. He possibly could not believe that there was a world free of discrimination where a Negro laborer like him would be afforded comfort he did not expect. He never would have thought that equality and uniformity in societies could happen or were likely to happen. Interpreting what was being purported to be the gist or substance of the story within its sociological impact and meaning, reference may be made to Charles Wright Mills, author of The Sociological Imagination, another controversial book on a similar subject. Wills was a poignant proponent of societal equality and uniformity. Back to Bigger Thomas, he accidentally killed Mary, daughter of Mr. Dalton and his blind wife, by suffocation when he tried to cover the mouth of Mary with a pillow. He actually just wanted to conceal what was then happening in one of the rooms of the Dalton house where he brought Mary after a drinking spree. Mary represented the white American society which abhors the blacks. In the further unfolding of the story, the generous gestures of the Dalton spouses were only for show. Mary, on the other hand, espoused communism as an ideology which made her and her boyfriend Jan closer with each other. Jan represented the young radical spirit of the American youth at that time. Going to his girlfriend Bessie for refuge and to pour out his recent unfortunate experience, Bigger found some space by having sex with her. However, having realized that he was telling all to Bessie and that there was grave risk in doing so, Bigger became apprehensive and likewise killed her to assure silence. When Bigger had nowhere to run, he just did what was anticipated by the dominant class of the society of him to do, that is, that he was a dangerous Negro whom everyday hated and was afraid of. He had no choice but one, to do or die. The sociological side of the novel definitely deserves to be appreciated. No less than the great Abraham Lincoln declared that the American forefathers brought forth a nation conceived and dedicated to the equality of all men. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights followed, advising jurisdictions and territories on equal rights and opportunities as the foundation of true freedom. On the legal and moral structures, the truism that crime does not pay must still hold. Read More