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Summary: Why Bigger hates whites
Review: This novel is important because of what it says not how it says it. Native Son is neither styllish nor eloquent. It is written in a realistic style simmilar to An American Tragedy.Richard Wright courageously portrays his main character as a cowardly and brutal killer. He could have easily portrayed Bigger as a misunderstood youth used and abused by the white establishment. Instead much to the dismay of intellectual blacks, Bigger is cowardly and brutish. The novel is important for the reasons that Bigger did what he did. Hired as a chaufer by a rich and liberal white family, Bigger Thomas is treated warmly by the family. On his first day on the job, Bigger drives the daughter and her lover around town. The two young people treat Bigger as an equal and this terrifies him. Bigger can not understand their actions toward him and his fear turns into hate. Through a series of bad luck and equally bad decisions, Bigger finds himself on trial for a brutal murder. The real meat of the novel appears in the brilliant court room summation made by Bigger's communist lawyer, Max. Max describes to the court and jury the reasons that Bigger behaved as he did and that the real culprit was white America who created hate in Bigger Thomas and millions like him.
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Summary: A SON OF AMERICA
Review: As the author of a debut novel that deals with social inequities in contemporary America, I believe Richard Wright tackled that subject better than any other writer has before or since in NATIVE SON. Mr. Wright tells the story of Bigger Thomas and the world of poverty, discrimination, and desperation in which he is trapped. When he murders a white woman in a moment of panic, there is no way for Bigger to escape his doom. NATIVE SON takes on what America was like in Wright's time, an America eerily similar to the America of today in too many ways.
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Summary: ¿Native Son¿ should be required reading for everyone!
Review: When "Native Son" appeared in 1940, it soon earned the author, Richard Wright, a world reputation. Many white writers had up until then tried to describe the interaction and the contradiction between the black and white people in America, but with only (at best) distant knowledge of what was going on, no one had managed to do so. At least not in a credible way. It wasn't until late-30'ies when Richard Wright started describing the situation of the blacks like he (personally) knew it, the turning-point came for what's know as "the Black American literature". Richard Wright grew up in the South, and so therefore he had the right background and the firsthand knowledge required to describe the consequences from the horrendous and intolerable race politics under which Blacks were suffering. The novel describes a young black boy, Bigger Thomas, whom becomes a murderer, partly through a game of coincidence, but also as a consequence of the terrible conditions, both human and materialistically, in which he has been brought up. I read "Native Son" first time in 1988, but it was first re-reading it as an adult, that the message really got to me. I learned a lot from reading this book, about racism and racial discrimination in the tough American society of that time - issues I certainly don't face everyday. (On a more personal note; it is (at least to me) absurd how the title "Native Son" is translated into "Nigger" for the Norwegian edition. Go figure!) "Native Son" has made a lasting impression in (American) literature.
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Summary: Just as relevant in 2001
Review: I read Native Son, at first skeptically, after I found out it had been written in 1940, but soon discovered that it could just as easily have been written today. The story centers around Bigger Thomas, a 20 year old black man who hasn't done much with his life up to this point. He lives in a one room apartment with his mother, sister and brother without many prospects for the future. He has already spent some time in reform and has been hanging out with the wrong crowd. Finally, a chance comes along that could turn things around for Bigger. He is given the job of driving for a wealthy white family and I was hoping it would work out for Bigger, but the first night on the job things go terribly wrong. Mary Dalton, the daughter of the wealthy white man, has Bigger drive her supposedly to the university in the evening, but instead goes to meet up with her boyfriend, Jan, who is in the communist party. Jan and Mary try to befriend Bigger, but he is confused by this and hates Mary. By the time the night is over, Mary and Jan are drunk and Bigger has to figure out a way to get Mary up to her bedroom without her parents finding out. As things turn out, Bigger ends up murdering Mary, albeit accidently, and to cover up his crime he carries her body down into the basement and chops her head off, then sticks her into the furnace where he hopes she will burn completely leaving no trace of the crime. I actually found myself on Bigger's side, hoping he wouldn't get caught, because it all had been an accident, but of course things get out of control from here. The author has woven a suspensful story, capturing the feel of how it would be to be a black person in 1940 when they weren't welcome in most places, and were hated by white people. As Bigger goes to trial he is defended by a white man who comes to understand why Bigger felt the way he did and helps Bigger come to terms with his execution. This book is an eye-opener for people who can't understand how hard is was (and maybe still is) to be black in America.
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Summary: You won't be able to put this one down
Review: Native Son has become one of my favorite all time books. I am a reader who doesn't enjoy predictability. If you are like me, you will find Native Son to be a book that challanges you. In the middle of the book you will find yourself embracing a character who otherwise deserves reprimanding, not sympathy!
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Summary: Native Son
Review: The book is riveting and paints a great picture in the reader's mind about the plight of the African American living in the big city. In some parts, Richard Wright carrys on, frustrating the reader. However, Wright has many good descriptions in the book and, despite this rambling on, holds the reader spellbound with his raw descriptions and social commentary. Any person interested in the plight of the African Americans and the sociology surrounding their oppressed existence must read Native Son, and should also explore his other works(Black Boy-Uncle Tom's Children and many others).
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Summary: Unique
Review: Wow, I read this book for my English class, and the book was like no other. It was unique and compelling. The first part of the book may not be great, but once you get to the middle and the end, then the book's plot begins to thicken. It's a really great book, gives you an insider's look on how people lived back then, the similarities and differences.
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Summary: An Essential American Novel
Review: This book instantly became one of my favorites and persuaded me to read almost all of Wright's other work. This is probably the most complete of all his novels. The story is of Bigger Thomas, a black teenager growing up in a Chicago ghetto. As Bigger gets invovled with white people, he is led into an absurd murder. Wright was fascinated with the moment of panic and confusion. He saw it as leading to violence and absurd, meaningless actions with high social consequences. Bigger, like Wright's other heroes, stands above his crime, the latter serving merely as a prop that accentuates the problems that lead him to his actions. Through close character study, we see the core of the problem for so many African Americans. Contact with whites is dangerous, and often leads to downfall. Bigger is not a criminal - he is a victim and a hero, in a way. He's a victim of the society that made such instincts as his possible, and a hero because he was man enough to claim his action. Bigger Thomas is an anti-hero, a dark martyr.
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Summary: Understanding Native Son
Review: In Native Son, Richard Wright uses motifs and symbolism to portray violence and to show how Bigger Thomas, the main character, represents the black struggle. Wright's depiction of the oppression that blacks experienced in the 1930's is not to characterize whites as racist or as villains. It is simply trying to show the graveness of the conditions that were then present. First, Wright divides the book into three sections: fear, flight, and fate. Book One introduces the first motif of fear. This is the foundation of Bigger's struggle, because he must overcome fear to prove himself. He and many others in his society fear white people. This is shown by how they are quick to burglarize fellow blacks, but will not dare rob a white man. Also, Through Bigger's fear, he tries to display a hard exterior so that people can not see his weaknesses. He can not "be swept out of himself with fear and despair" (9). He has to maintain an "attitude of iron reserve" (9). Therefore, the only way that he knows how to be hard is through violence. This violence takes the form of mean acts towards family and friends, burglary, and murder. The first action of the story is the ringing of an alarm clock. This is the beginning of the time motif. This element of time is frequent throughout the novel. It draws the reader's attention and signals a warning or foreshadowing. Most importantly, it represents the time Bigger has left to live. From this first Brrrrrrrriiiiiiiiiiiiing, Bigger's life is counting down. The story ends with a ring just as it begins with a ring. As the book closes, Bigger "hears the ring of steel against steel as a far door clanged shut" (359). Early in the novel Bigger kills a rat in his family's one-bedroom apartment. This scene is important because it provides an in-depth view of the conditions that Wright illustrates. The one-room apartment and the rat, which threatens the Thomas family, symbolize poverty. As Bigger fights and kills the rat, his family members are overcome with violence. The rat is hungry, and therefore, attacks the family. Bigger retaliates with violence as well. This struggle parallels Bigger's struggle with humanity. Going deeper, this symbolizes the black struggle. The rat's death introduces the motif of death. Book Two: Flight suggests Bigger's attempt to escape the consequences of his crime. This action is a result of fear. As he flees he resorts to violence because he is somewhat disillusioned. In Book Two: Fate, his violence catches up to him and he must face his fate. Fate represents the motif of death. In this section, Wright uses the character of Max to show the aid that is given to disadvantaged blacks. Max is a communist, like Richard Wright, and he tries to help Bigger even though he himself is white. Wright uses this element because he believed that communism was the solution to the black problem. Furthermore, Bigger's outcome is meant to show how society treats troubled people who cry out for help. It combines with the scenes describing black and white burglaries to address the injustices of African-Americans during this era. These elements show how a person is pursued and brought to justice for a crime against a white person, but not for the same crime against a black person. In conclusion, Bigger Thomas reaches his ultimate goal in the end. Despite his fate, he is able to define his life. Bigger's achievement shows how black's must overcome all adversities to emerge from social bondage to define their lives and their equality.
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Summary: Understanding Native Son
Review: Native Son is perhaps the best book that I have ever read. I can not directly relate to this book, because i have not been exposed to the conditions that are present in this book. However, I can imagine, being an African-American myself, what it was like during the time described in Native Son. In reading this book, I have definately gained an appreciation for the present and for the conditions that I live in. It has also given me a greater apppreciation for literature. Through Native Son, Richard Wright addresses the injustices that African-Americans endured during the 1930's. In reading the book, one must understand that Wright is not trying to portray whites as racist or as villains. He is simply trying to show the graveness of black people's condition and oppression. The purpose of this book is to show the black man's struggle to give meaning to his life despite living in a prejudiced society. He illustrates a troubled man's fear, flight, and fate. Bigger Thomas, the main character, represents the struggle of the black man. He represents the black man that refuses to be tamed by white society. He is an outsider, who, through his "trials" and tribulations, defines his life, finds his place in the world, and establishes his equality. Bigger, however, acheives these goals through violence, because he is surrounded by it; it is all he knows. This character makes up only one of millions of Biggers out their who revolt against the injustices of society. They are the products of American society, and therefore fit their names: "native sons."
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