Together, they had eight other children. James Baldwin never knew his biological father and his relationship with his stepfather was arguable, even violent. David Baldwin was an unforgiving man with a terrible temper, who eventually ended up being committed to a psychiatric hospital. In the middle of all the chaos in him home, James Baldwin discovered an appetite for literature (Als 139). When he was fourteen, he joined the Baptist ministry which was, more than likely, against his will. Growing up in Harlem, New York, Baldwin experienced the unpleasantness of poverty. His parents could barely make enough money to support their nine children and themselves. The Baldwin's lacked many of the comforts of life (Parni 1). In addition, James Baldwin was a frequent victim of racism. He felt as though he was discriminated against more often than the rest of his family because of his much darker complexion. However, these struggles influenced the storylines in many of his writings (Als 139). .
Every writer is influenced differently. James Baldwin's influences varied. Growing up during the Harlem Renaissance, James Baldwin was aware of his surroundings. The Harlem Renaissance was an era that experienced the flowering of African-American literature in the 1920's. This mainly occurred in the Harlem district of New York City. Harlem was an area where many African-Americans resided. This was why many of them had migrated to the North from the South (Brach 1-2). Although known mainly as a literacy movement, the Harlem Renaissance was a period of strong creativity in music and the visual arts. Many of the literacy works, of this time frame, incorporated folk material and the elements of the blues tradition. African-Americas made themselves known during the Harlem Renaissance with sophisticated explorations of their life and culture ("Harlem Renaissance" 1-2). Moreover, James Baldwin's struggles as an African-American "living in a white society" influenced his writings more often than any other conflict or event in his life.