The Striking Issues that Gave Light to Richard Wright’s

Issues on rebellion, racial discrimination, and social hierarchy have been considered as the finest works in the field of literature and history.  Stories that portray the truth behind the raging diversion between the whites and the blacks have always been a topic of speculation that writers and scholars considerably digest inside the situation.  It does not only come in handy—especially in narrative anecdotes—but it also serves as a “by hook or by crook” schema in the aide of social and political instances in the contemporary society.

Numerous scholars even reprimanded Wright’s works as to be a mere social document rather than that of a novel in the catalogs of literature.  Debates have sprouted and critics commenced deliberative studies on the credibility of the author’s works (Kinnamon).

Personal experience and observation—these are the customary perceptions regarded by a milieu of academia; and that  no matter how rigid Wright’s arguments are on introducing his work as a “fiction,” the social circumstances which have been brought upon by the readers tingled the minds of skeptics all the more.

Charles I. Glickberg even theoretically stresses that the representation of Bigger Thomas is the author himself, and that the experiences and the events which occurred on the story are in point of fact the author’s own lifep familiarity. As James Baldwin articulates, “no American Negro exists who does not have his private Bigger Thomas living in the skull,” crazed to be logically the same from one another, the audience have spotted the similarities.  From geographical representation, to familial connection—mother in the most awful slums of the Black Belt of such locale—characteristics with regard to motivation in overcoming fear and detestation, the temperament of being rebellious and the explosion of violence as triggered by the environmental and societal experiences diverged on to.

Further, in the Southern custom, the portrayals in Bigger’s role all proved several connotations of the realistic sense in the crowd where the author actually lives.  Supplementary to that, all of them were mutinous colleagues of the Jim Crow order, “they were shot, hanged, maimed, lynched, and generally hounded until they were either dead or their spirits broken,” all these were the exact depiction of Chicago’s timid, twitchy, glum disturbed, estranged, vicious youths besieged for survival individuals.  The reality, which has been established in the story dwells on the analogy that Richard Wright’s intentions in producing the book follows the idea of “telling the truth.” (Kinnamon)

The climax of the story is apparently seen on the last part, where he stood and expressed what has been boggling on his mind.  As Bigger stated, “. . .I speak for my own people, but I speak for America too,” such striking phrase makes the readers realize that the story does not only tackle the negative descriptions of the discrimination that Negroes are experiencing, but rather the events came in a domino effect with pious misunderstandings between both sides of the coin.

“Bigger” can be considered as a hero and as a model to the Americans (Kinnamon).  In a broader perspective, it implies that change has to be done for the betterment of all.  Hence if the act has been a second later, the predicament of the whole situation never would have been saved, or redeemed.

Undeniably, the twists of the story complete its whole package.  It does not only take readers into a whole new dimension in the arena of fictional stories, but because of Wright’s indirect representation of its characters, it has captivated the hearts of the masses.   Others make be cynical on the relevance of reading the book—looking on the inconsiderate part of course—but those who well understood the theme and the manifestations which has been introduced by the author even until the very end of the story, it mystifies one’s thoughts and belligerently makes a certain bookworm think, “have I been a good citizen?”  That then make be deemed as a perfect mixture of thrill and admiration.  It may be ideological in the immediate time, but no one knows where the Native Son shall settle next.

Work Cited

Kinnamon, Keneth. “Native Son: The Personal, Social, and Political Background.” Phylon

(1960-) 30.1 (1969): 66-72.