Fear's Role in Native Son
Whilst reading Native Son, you might have found yourself asking: "Why was Bigger doing this?" "Why did he commit such horrific crimes?" "Why would he sacrifice his livelihood and the livelihood of his family for the sake of a fleeting moment of freedom?" Despite the obvious, Bigger's primary motivation throughout the novel can be summed up with one emotion: fear.
We are first introduced to Bigger Thomas, the protagonist of "Native Son" by Richard Wright, in Book 1, titled "Fear." Within the first few pages, we witness Bigger and his family screaming at the sight of a large rat in their home. Bigger is tasked with killing the rat, and in doing so experiences a heightened sense of fear. Wright uses phrases like "Bigger looked round the room wildly," "Bigger crept on tiptoe towards the trunk with the skilled clutched stiffly in his hand," and "He paused and, without moving an eye or muscle," to express Bigger's emotions in this scene (Wright, 4-5). In this scene, fear plays an almost paralyzing role in Bigger's life. He is so consumed by his fear of the rat, that Bigger loses control of his own body.
Later, as Bigger and his friends Gus, Jack, and G.H, make plans to rob a white man, Bigger begins to second-guess his decision to go through with it. Out of fear of the repercussions associated with committing such a crime, especially against a white individual, Bigger initiates a fight against Gus. In doing so, Bigger successfully thwarts their plan, "Yes; they could have robbed the stone and could have gotten away. Hoped the fight he had had with Gus covered up what he was trying to hide" (Wright, 41). In this scene, what Bigger is "trying to hide" is his fear, and this same fear is so potent that is causes him to last out violently against one of his own friends.
Perhaps the most evident role of fear in Bigger's life, is the moment when Bigger kills Mary. After helping an intoxicated Mary up to her room, Mrs. Dalton walks in concerned, asking for Mary. Out of fear of being caught alone in such a compromising situation, Bigger presses a pillow up against Mary's mouth in an attempt to muffle any noise, "Mary's body surged upward and he pushed downward upon the pillow with all of his weight, determined that she must not move or make any sound that would betray him" (Wright, 85). However, through this action, Bigger suffocates Mary, killing her. In this scene, fear causes Bigger to act without thought, and at the expense of an individual's life.
Throughout Native Son we see that many aspects of life are a source of fear for Bigger. Combined with an overall feeling of resentment and anger for the injustices he's faced, Bigger's fear often results in violent tendencies. Fear can be an extremely powerful emotion, and in Native Son, it is one that leads to Bigger's eventual demise.
I really enjoyed your interpretation of the role of fear Native Son! I especially was enlightened by your analysis of how fear was the true motivation of Mary's death, instead of other similar themes such as guilt or anger. While writing a notebook prompt earlier, I also thought about how fear was the one constant and primal emotion that really made Bigger who he was, and what characterized his story, so your post was very engaging to read!
ReplyDeleteHi Mariam, your post about how nearly all of Bigger's actions can be traced to fear was really fascinating to read, especially with the evidence you cited throughout the post. I've actually never thought this much about how throughout the story, Bigger himself is feeling fear. I also really liked how you showed how his feelings combined with the oppressive system around him compounds which lead to the horrific events in the book. Great job!
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with your emphasis on fear driving Bigger to make decisions that on the very shallow surface, seem spontaneous and unexplainable. I think Richard Wright wanted to make the important role of fear in Bigger's life very clear, indicated by his decision to name Book 1 "Fear," as you mentioned. I also find your connection of the first scene to fear interesting, since I have never thought of that scene in that way. Your interpretation greatly impacted how I saw the significance of fear in Native Son. Wonderful post!
ReplyDeleteWOW! I love the way you connected different events from the 3 sections of the book to connect to an overarching theme, that being fear. I agree with all the points you made about how fear consumes Bigger, causing him to be somewhat paralyzed by this emotion. I think it should be noted that fear may be a large part of what led Bigger to commit the crimes he did, but it is not the only element. Awesome post!
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with what you are saying about Bigger's relationship with fear and its impact on his personal life. Pretty much every action that Bigger makes is rooted in fear. I really enjoyed how you noted that, "Fear can be an extremely powerful emotion," because it is easy to think the opposite. Fear can push us to feel and do many other things, so I think that the examples that you used from the book were great examples of the number of ways that fear presents itself.
ReplyDeleteI love this deeper look into the fear in Bigger's story! You really took these scenes apart and squeezed every bit of evidence of fear out of the text! Most of these quotes are ones I had casually skimmed over, and I'm glad you brought them to our attention. I totally agree with the points you make about Bigger's fear and how it affects the course of his life. His fear definitely overtakes him in certain situations to the extent that it sometimes even controls his body; making him do the unthinkable without even realizing.
ReplyDeleteI agree that fear played a huge role in Bigger's decision making. It is obvious that his fears are legitimate based on the history of racism and violence in the united states. Whether conscious or unconscious fear dictates his life.
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