Blindness in Richard Wright's Native Son

854 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: The role of black in the novel native son

Blindness in Richard Wright's Native Son

Does it seem sometimes as if people are ignorant to other feelings? Have you ever had a friend get away with something or toy with someone's thoughts to benefit him or her? Similar types of blindness occur in the novel Native Son by Richard Wright (1940). The story starts in the Great Depression with a poor black family waking up to a foot long rat in their one room apartment. Bigger, the main character, and his younger brother Buddy narrowly kill it without bodily harm. Bigger is supposed to start a job for a rich white man as a chauffeur. Bigger has never really interacted with white people before and is not wanting to be there. After an accident on his first day, he kills the man's daughter and throws her body into their furnace, severing her head from her body to make it fit. He acts like he didn't do anything and slyly puts the blame on Jan, her communist boyfriend, while leaving a ransom note. It almost works until the media finds remnants of her bones in the ashes of the fire. Bigger believes that he will be blamed and runs away with his girlfriend, who he also ends up killing. He ends up being cornered by a mob of white people and taken to jail. His trial is fast and unjust, but he is convicted regardless of the surprising help of Jan and his lawyer. During the course of the novel, there are many instances where people were blinded by the actions of others or did not realize that their actions were negatively affecting their own lives. The following will better explain and demonstrate this.

When Bigger first meets Mary, he instantly hates her for her ignorance in prodding him when all he wants is to be left along. Her blindness about his thoughts and feelings makes him hat...

... middle of paper ...

...nd pray because she thinks she is only drunk. This is may be considered somewhat ironic. However, Bigger could also be considered 'blind' in this situation because he doesn't see what he is doing and how it will eventually end his own life.

There are other instances where Richard Wright uses 'blindness' as a symbol. Bigger considers the whites 'blind' of blacks and blacks 'blind' of freedom after he kills. During the entire story, the reader senses that Bigger is lost in life. He never understand why he acts the way he does until his lawyer, Max, explains to him why whites seclude blacks and why blacks naturally push back. In the end, everyone is 'blind' for one reason or another.

Work Cited

"Native Son" Native Son Richard Wright. 30 April 2004. Barnes & Noble. <http://www.sparknotes.com/>

Wright, Richard. Native Son. New York: Harper & Row, 1966.

Show More
Related

  • Theme Of Blindness In Tangerine

    907 Words  | 2 Pages

    The author Edward Bloor utilizes blindness to symbolize how Paul may be visually impaired but can see social injustice, while Erik and his parents’ can see but are blind to the emotional harm they inflict on Paul and others, and the townspeople are blind to their environment and social prejudice. He has been bullied most of his life for being visually impaired. Paul is used to being judged by others. The injury to his eyes supposedly occurred while looking at a solar eclipse, but there is more to this story.

    Read More

  • Literary Devices in Carver's Cathedral

    1505 Words  | 4 Pages

    The narrator is biased against the blind from the beginning. For instance, he stereotypes all blind people thinking they ...

    Read More

  • To Kill A Mockingbird: A Story of Empathy

    738 Words  | 2 Pages

    Have American’s lost the ability to show empathy? Although a novice reader may struggle to see how a book written over 50 years ago bears any connection to our modern world, Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird could not be any more relevant. The citizens of fictional Maycomb County acknowledge their flawed legal system and unfair social castes as unfortunate truths of life, of which all you can do is accept it as fact. The sole exception is lawyer Atticus Finch, who is in charge of defending the accused in court. After seeing all too many men receive a sentence simply because of the color of their skin, Atticus embarks on a quest to teach Jem and Scout, his children, that prejudice can be fought. By understanding and exposing ourselves to different people, we can free ourselves from prejudice.

    Read More

  • The Importance of the Cat in Native Son

    1357 Words  | 3 Pages

    Through the cat, Wright foreshadows the murder of Mary. Bigger's reaction to the cat, being stone-still, could be easily used to describe Bigger's reaction when Mrs. Dalton walks in the room, and how he felt...

    Read More

  • Let There Be Light: Did Punk Rock Really Make a Difference

    3161 Words  | 7 Pages

    The music industry can trace its roots to the 18th century when classical composers such as Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart sought commissions from the church or aristocracies by touring to promote their music (Boerner). By the early 20th century, recorded collections of songs were available for purchase for home listening. Towards the middle of the century, record album production had become the norm for getting new music to the masses and album sales had replaced sheet-music sales as a measure of popularity, with the first gold-recor...

    Read More

  • Invisible Race and Gender in Invisible Man, by Ralph Ellison

    2387 Words  | 5 Pages

    One of the major motifs in Invisible Man is blindness. The first time we’re shown blindness in the novel is at the battle royal. The blindfolds that all of the contestants wear symbolize how the black society is blind to the way white society is still belittling them, despite the abolishment of slavery. When he arrives at the battle, the narrator says “I was told that since I was to be there anyway I might as well take part in the battle royal to be fought by some of my schoolmates as part of the entertainment” (Ellison 17). Although, the white men asked him to come to the battle royal in order to deliver his graduation speech, they force him to participate in the battle royal, where the white men make young black men fight each other as a form of entertainment for them. When the black men put their blindfolds on to fight in this battle, they are blind, both figuratively and literally. They can't see the people they are fighting against, just as they can't see how the white men are exploiting them for their own pleasure. Shelly Jarenski claims “the Battle Royal establishes the relationship between white power, male power, and (hetero)sexual power, the “self-grounding presumptions” of dominant subjectivity” ...

    Read More

  • The Greed of Music Industry Executives and Declining Record Sales

    5423 Words  | 11 Pages

    “The Record Industry is in trouble,” says Jann S. Wenner in an editorial appearing in a recent issue of Rolling Stone Magazine. “Album sales are now down almost 20% from two years ago, and the record business is facing the biggest retail slide since the Great Depression” (Wenner). People are buying less and less products released by the recording companies. “Nobody doubts that the music business is in trouble. Last year, global sales of CDs were down by 5% from 2000, the first fall since the format was launched” (NAPSTER R.I.P). The Nielsen SoundScan, used to report final sales to consumers, revealed some of its figures in a September 2002 issue of Billboard Magazine. “Nielsen SoundScan reports that overall music sales compared with the year before were off by 12.6%…while album sales were off by 9.8%. Total first-half units sold fell to 317.7 million units from 363.4 million; the number of albums sold slipped to 311.1 million units from 344.8 million – an 8.1% drop” (Garrity). Even the number of albums that become hits is...

    Read More

  • Perceptions of Aging in Today's Society: An Interview Study

    1976 Words  | 4 Pages

    Many do not like to talk about their age and their aging process, because to some, chronological aging has much more meaning than just the number of years that they have lived (Hooyman et al., 2015). Age really is just a number. There are centenarians and super-centenarians, like Flossie Dickey, who are still going strong at and living their daily lives with minimal restrictions (Hooyman et al., 2015), and people who struggle at the age of 80, it is all about aging successfully (Hooyman et al., 2015). What it means to age in society is a constantly changing concept, and now that the baby-boomers are starting to reach their older adult stages, maximum life spans are continuing to rise (Hooyman et al., 2015), and we see more centenarians and super-centenarians and skipped generation households (Hooyman et al.,

    Read More

  • Sympathy for a Murderer in Richard Wright's Native Son

    1011 Words  | 3 Pages

    The simplest method Wright uses to produce sympathy is the portrayal of the hatred and intolerance shown toward Thomas as a black criminal. This first occurs when Bigger is immediately suspected as being involved in Mary Dalton’s disappearance. Mr. Britten suspects that Bigger is guilty and only ceases his attacks when Bigger casts enough suspicion on Jan to convince Mr. Dalton. Britten explains, "To me, a nigger’s a nigger" (Wright 154). Because of Bigger’s blackness, it is immediately assumed that he is responsible in some capacity. This assumption causes the reader to sympathize with Bigger. While only a kidnapping or possible murder are being investigated, once Bigger is fingered as the culprit, the newspapers say the incident is "possibly a sex crime" (228). Eleven pages later, Wright depicts bold black headlines proclaiming a "rapist" (239) on the loose. Wright evokes compassion for Bigger, knowing that he is this time unjustly accused. The reader is greatly moved when Chicago’s citizens direct all their racial hatred directly at Bigger. The shouts "Kill him! Lynch him! That black sonofabitch! Kill that black ape!" (253) immediately after his capture encourage a concern for Bigger’s well-being. Wright intends for the reader to extend this fear for the safety of Bigger toward the entire black community. The reader’s sympathy is further encouraged when the reader remembers that all this hatred has been spurred by an accident.

    Read More

  • Elderly Driving Tests

    960 Words  | 2 Pages

    I believe that people over the age of 75 should not be allowed to drive without taking an agility test. Those who do not pass this test have their driver’s license taken away from them. Initially all beginning drivers are required to take an agility test along with an eye exam before we are issued a driver’s license. As we age our vision and agility skills may diminish. Therefore all elderly drivers should be have to take an agility test in order to keep this license.

    Read More

  • Alienation

    705 Words  | 2 Pages

    ...eads to him killing Mary and Bessie. He has no remorse because white society has none for him. He knows he was dead the minute he was born. Bigger realizes what the blind people surrounding him do not! He knows he can do nothing; he might as well go out fighting.

    Read More

  • Technological Amazon, Inc.: The Business Concept Of Amazon

    923 Words  | 2 Pages

    Strategic management is a business concept that consists of decision-making, analysis and actions an entity undertakes with an aim of creating and maintaining an upper hand. This concept involves three processes; analysis, decisions and actions. It involves the analysis of strategies and the internal or external environments of the entity. After the analysis, strategic decisions are made, covering local and international operations. Using of strategies requires proper allocation of the important assets.

    Read More

  • Walgreens Strategic Management

    923 Words  | 2 Pages

    Generally, strategic management is a set of managerial decisions and actions that determines the long-term performance of a company, involving both internal and external environmental scanning, strategy formulation, strategy implementation, and evaluation and control. According to the study of strategic management, the corporation should concentrate on monitoring and appraising outside opportunities and threats based on an organization’s strengths and weaknesses (Thomas Wheelen and David Hunger, 2012).

    Read More

  • Bigger Thomas In Native Son

    899 Words  | 2 Pages

    ...event that leads Bigger’s destiny to failure. Because Bigger knows if he gets discovered in her room he will be accused of trying to rape her and will jailed and very likely executed just because he is black. His only other choice was to do what he did, but unluckily he unintentionally kills Mary making his path to failure even greater. All of this happens because Bigger is afraid. Bigger faces fear all throughout the story and his fear comes from him feeling that white people are out to oppress him and he can not doing anything about it. Richard Wright uses Bigger in his story to show how society of that time period put fear into black society. Bigger’s fear is what takes him down the path of the dooms which eventually causes him to harm, his friends, other black people, and kill to young girls one being his girlfriend and the other the daughter of his employer.

    Read More

  • Music Industry Essay

    1018 Words  | 3 Pages

    The music business entered a dramatic change in the 21st century. These changes appear in the way of how people access and consume music. According to Hull, Hutchison and Strasser (2011) the music business has developed throughout three stages. While moving from the agricultural age, where the music business made its revenues through live performances, troubadours and patronage, the industrial age introduced new innovations that were assumed to be associated with long-term economic growth. Commencing the year 1950 sound recordings experienced a drastic raise in sales by an average of 20% a year (Krasilovsky and Shemel, 2007). While the music industry was dominated by six major record lables (Time Warner, Disney, Vivendi Universal, Viacom, Bertelsmann, and News Corp.) (Hull, Hutchison and Strasser, 2011), further growth in the industry has been recorded in the 1970’s, where record sales “rose from less than $2 billion at the beginning of the decade to over $4 billion in 1978”, which took a sharp turn entering the Depression around the middle of the 20th century (Krasilovsky and Shemel, 2007:5).

    Read More

More about Blindness in Richard Wright's Native Son

Open Document