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Native Son

 

            I found the book Native Son by Richard Wright an intriguing view of Afro-American life in the 1930's. The account of Bigger Thomas is very graphic and I think because it was written by an African-American man it is most near a true account of what would happen to a black man in a white society. I really liked how Wright portrayed the black society. The society was very crude and rough unlike that of the white folks. Even the planning of robbing a store owned by a white person, the sexual gestures of Bigger and his friend Jack when they are at the movies, and the crude language used by Bigger and his friends display the rudimentary laws of black society in the 30's. The use of language in the book also portrays a good difference between the two different societies. The Africans use more basic language that almost has its own vernacular while the white people use their proper English. The way Wright portrayed Bigger was also impressive. While he seemed immature and "average- as a black man, he was actually quite intellectual in most of his thinking. The only two things in the book that did not appeal to me were the language and graphic violence. However, these are very minor since they are very good in describing the uneducated black race at that time.
             The end of the book is very predictable, but well thought out, and very appropriate to the rest of the book. Throughout the beginning of the book it is obvious that Bigger Thomas is going to run into some type of trouble. When the "gang- of Bigger and his friends decide to rob a white man's store they are asking for trouble. Since Bigger is the one who though of the possibility of robbing the store his thoughts are in depth and he is ready to go for anything that breaks out of the natural run of things. Bigger's character is portrayed as the average poor and uneducated black man in Chicago during the 1930's. However, throughout the book it is evident that Bigger hides his emotions and feelings of anger, fear and frustration behind a tough fazade.


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