Could Bigger be one single character meant to represent the entire American black community, during the 1930s? Why do you think Richard Wright gave these certain qualities, of fear and anger to Bigger, and why did he choose specifically a man with cowardly actions and no self-confidence? What exactly is Wright's point in trying to connect the reader with a killer? What do you feel about the way he killed Mary?
By the way, has anyone thought of how Mary's name could be a biblical reference to Virgin Mary? Her reappearance, according to Bigger's view, on page 89, could have a stronger meaning than the whiteness of her skin, since all he saw was blur. Or maybe I am just way off...let me know what you think.
Let me know what you think of the novel, so far as well!
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Fear, lack of self-confidence, and cowardly actions were common attributes for the black american community. It's what the white american community wanted them to feel. With those traits, it would be less likley for the african americans to do damage on the white community. This could be seen in Biggers gang. They were too scared to rob from Blum because he was white. Anger comes from the oppresion that the blacks face. It arises from the resentment the whites make the blacks feel towards their skin color. By connecting an african american with the murder of a white, Richard Wright is addressing a common fear that the white community had. The whites were terriefied of a rebelion becuase they wanted to protect their property, opportunity, and life. That's why John Brown wanted to arm the blacks with arsenal from Harpers Ferry. In other words, the enviroment of containment made by the whites for the blacks won't work. These emotions that the whites thought would protect them, would actually be the catalyst to the monster that the whites didn't want.
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ReplyDeleteI think that Bigger is the outcast of the African-American community. He is not what I would consider, in history but especially in the book a main stream character. Bigger, fears outward change. This is seen in his control of his gang, his possessive attitude towards Bessie and his hate towards Mary and Jan, who do not wish to oppress him. I do not think though Bigger is a coward in a physical sense, but is very apprehensive and fearful of confronting his own emotions. At the beginning I could have agreed that Bigger had no self-confidence, a mere dreamer, but now as he committed the crime, he has a sense of pride to him. Richard Wright may have made the protagonist a killer, to be able to affirm to society that the oppressed in order to achieve greatness will take the roads that are least blocked, like crime instead of college education. The allusion of the Virgin Mary, may have been Bigger’s own liberation from religion (his mother) or the killing of anything pure in him, indicating a metamorphism that we have been seeing take place after the killing, and probably will continue further into the story.
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