Native Son - Richard Wright

 

I learned about this novel when I was researching Percival Everett's Erasure and discovered that the story-within-a-story in that novel was loosely based on this book. While Everett's was a commentary on stereotypes that still exist in our media, Wright's 1940's story was groundbreaking for its depictions of the lives of Black Americans at the time. 

Wright was a highly talented writer, giving the fairly unlikeable lead character, Bigger Thomas, a multi-faceted personality, who understood far more than his limited education would indicate - and far more than mere "street smarts", although none of this really helps him as he is trapped in poverty in the 1930's. Even Chicago - comparatively liberal in race relations - was quite segregated and highly racist at the time and there were little choices for young Black men. But Bigger also has a chip on his shoulder, even with his friends, and his life whirls out of control at least partially because he cannot - and feels he should not have to - control his feelings. Wright balances his characters' emotions and ingrained intellect deftly, and Bigger sometimes completely understands his situation and sometimes simply feels that something seems wrong without being able to define it - even if it's his upbringing causing him to be somewhat paranoid.

This actually gets the best of him early on when a white couple attempts to befriend him and this makes him uncomfortable enough that he later - albeit by accident - kills the young woman. The rest of the tale comprises of him trying to see if he can get away with it and outsmart the white establishment - maybe even make some money from it - and when he gets caught, how he handles his incarceration and punishment.

Of course, the racism is blatant and constant in the story and is sometimes even used in Bigger's favor, although, naturally, killing a white woman means that ultimately nothing will save him and white society will assume that it was a crime of passion.

His incarceration gives him time to reflect and, with the aid of a white lawyer who seriously tries to help Bigger by asking about his life and background, he gains a little bit of an understanding of his own feelings, and maybe some reasons for why he is who he is. The lawyer gives an impassioned plea in his closing argument in Bigger's near-mock trial, depicting the life that Bigger and his brethren live as a reason, not an excuse, although it is ultimately to no avail.

Sadly, so many of these issues exist to this day and I, as an older white man, cannot really comment on these plights, but maybe can learn a bit even from these decades-old stories.