Native Sons

     In the 1930's, racism and discrimination was commonplace. White people looking down on minorities especially Blacks was the norm. The Black people were thought to have been sub-human, dumb beasts who couldn't comprehend a simple education. There were many views that belittled the Blacks. And when one was accused of a crime, especially one against a White, the utmost prejudice was used to prosecute them, all in the name of justice. In Native Son by Richard Wright, Max, a communist lawyer, defends Bigger Thomas, a black man accused of rape and murder. 

     Max believes that Bigger might have been the one who killed Mary Dalton and Bessie but it was the Whites who were the ones who drove him to do it. Max argues that the white society has conditioned the Blacks to fear and even resent the Whites. Is it true? I would say so. The white people during this time seem to have this sort of superiority complex, one in which they would go to extreme lengths just to make themselves feel dominant. They constantly bashed and underestimated black people and this would be one of the reasons they couldn't figure out that Bigger was the killer until he ran away. 

     Max says that Bigger never had a life before he killed Mary; this is true. Bigger felt that after he killed Mary, his life finally meant something. All his life, the white people kept driving the idea that his life and the lives of other Black men and women meant nearly nothing compared to a life of a white man. And by taking the life of a white girl, Bigger finally feels some power over them, those who have always looked down on him. So is really to blame, Bigger or society? Technically speaking, it's Bigger, but does this mean that society had nothing to do with it? No, society had a major role in it no matter how much Buckley tries to direct the hate toward Bigger. Is it not true that all men are equal before the law? Society back then has been plagued by hate, racism, and discrimination. They have biased views on the whole matter and they are mad. They are mad because, just like what Max said, they are mad because they know they are what drove Bigger to commit the murder.