Native Son by Richard Wright Analysis

Double consciousness is the internalized conflict felt by those who are oppressed in the society they are apart of. Richard Wright demonstrates how double consciousness can dictate what a person can achieve and drive them to do whatever is necessary to survive. 

The way that Bigger is perceived limits the things he can achieve. Bigger’s dream is to fly. He longs to go to flight school and pilot his own plane. However, black people were not allowed any higher education at this time. Gus brings Bigger back into reality by stating, “‘If you wasn’t black and if you had some money and if they’d let you go to that aviation school, you could fly a plane…’” (Wright, 17). All of the ‘ifs’ that Gus mentioned are limits placed on Bigger. He is seen as nothing more than a poor boy and is defined by his black skin. The thing he wants most in the world he knows he can never have. He has been put into a box and has to stay within the four walls society has drawn around him to keep order and please the white man. Bigger accepts this fate and works as a chauffeur boy for the very man who owns the building in which he and his family live. In court, Mr. Dalton is asked why he only rents homes to black people in a certain area. He replied,  “...I don’t think they’d like to live any other place… I think Negros are happier when they’re together” (Wright, 327). Mr. Dalton’s superiority complex affects how he acts towards black people. He thinks he knows what is best for a community he is not a part of and rarely interacts with. Bigger was limited on the places he could go and the things he could do. The oppressor dictates what happens to the oppressed and prioritizes first their comfortability. 

The society that created Bigger is the same society that destroyed him. When Bigger is questioned by Max about the night of the murder, he erupts with a wave of emotions. He felt as though Mary’s actions created a bigger divide between them rather than uniting them as she intended. When Bigger was driving Mary through town, she continually used segregating language. It was always “you people” or “them” versus “us” and “our”. When driving past the apartment complexes rented out by black people, she says, “...I’ve long wanted to go into these houses… and just see how your people live” (Wright, 69). She’s talking as if black homes are an exhibit for her to walk through and observe. The imaginary grid lines placed over the map kept Mary Dalton and Bigger strangers even though they lived ten blocks apart. Bigger only knew white people to take money from his family for rent and exploit the black community to win a political election. He later admits, “We live apart… I acted toward her only as I know how” (Wright, 350). Society prevented Bigger from learning how to appropriately interact with white women particularly. However, he did know that being in the presence of a white woman alone was an automatic death sentence.  He was so scared of being found in Mary’s room that he smothered her to prevent Mrs. Dalton from asking questions. Did he mean to kill her? No. But he did what he thought he had to do to keep his job and more importantly, his life. 

Bigger’s actions were influenced by how society perceived him, and how he perceived society. The labels placed on him, though some untrue, began to be how Bigger defined himself. Double consciousness ultimately hindered Bigger’s overall dream and affected his motives for survival.