Free summary and analysis of the events in Richard Wright's Native Son that won't make you snore. We promise. ... The novel opens as Bigger Thomas, the protagonist, faces down and fights a huge rat that has invaded the Thomas' one-room apartment. We are instantly assailed with the family's poverty and lack of options. read more
Native Son (1940) is a novel written by the American author Richard Wright. It tells the story of 20-year-old Bigger Thomas, an African American youth living in utter poverty in a poor area on Chicago's South Side in the 1930s. While not apologizing for Bigger's crimes, Wright portrays a systemic inevitability behind them. read more
Richard Wright's Native Son is the story of a crime, though not so much the story of the crimes of the book's protagonist, Bigger Thomas, the directionless, impoverished amoral black youth eking out an existence in a cold and dark Chicago in the late 1930s. read more
A summary of Themes in Richard Wright's Native Son. Learn exactly what happened in this chapter, scene, or section of Native Son and what it means. Perfect for acing essays, tests, and quizzes, as well as for writing lesson plans. read more
Each week in Bookends, two writers take on questions about the world of books. This week, Ayana Mathis and Pankaj Mishra discuss James Baldwin’s reaction to Richard Wright’s “Native Son,” which was published 75 years ago. By Ayana Mathis. I don’t imagine many black people would have embraced such a grotesque portrait of themselves. read more