Native Son Book One Blog Q&A

I came home from Model UN in Chattanooga and sat down to update my blog. Here are the first few questions and answers for Book One: Fear of Native Son!

At the beginning of the novel, we are introduced to the Thomas family. Describe this family and the conditions in which they live? Be descriptive and use concrete details!The Thomas family lives in poor conditions.  All four: Bigger’s mother, sister, brother, and he, live in one single tiny room.  His mother and sister Vera share one cot while Bigger and his brother Buddy share another.  There is “a narrow space” between the two beds.  There are rats living in the walls of the room and often come out in search of food.  Bigger’s mother is very loud and expresses what she thinks.  For example, when a rat appears in the room, her eyes become “round with fascinated horror” and screams at Vera to “get up here on the bed!”  Vera is described by Bigger as “a sappy girl” not having “any more sense than to believe everything she was told.”  Buddy is “tough, plenty” and Bigger doesn’t worry too much about him.  As for Bigger himself, he is depicted by Wright as having a tough exterior which he doesn’t like to break to his friends or to himself.

The title of Book One is Fear, how is this title symbolic and prophetic at the same time? What was Wright's intention with this title?
Fear is symbolic of black people’s fear of the white oppressor at the time the book was written.  In the rat scene, we find a parallel between Bigger and the rat.  Bigger traps the rat by getting Buddy to block the hole in the wall and cuts off its only means of escape.  The rat is trapped with no escape.  Like it, Bigger is trapped.  He has very limited choices as to the jobs he can take, the places he can go, and the things he can say.  The rat is also described as being fearful; its “belly pulsed with fear.”  Bigger is also afraid, except he is afraid of the consequences of upsetting a white man. 

What initial event happens in the beginning of the novel that is clearly a foreshadowing of events to come?
The initial event is the killing of the rat.  Just as the rat was trapped and eventually killed by Bigger, Bigger is also trapped with no means of escape and will die with or without the support of a white lawyer.  The “thing” trapping him is the oppression and racism against African Americans.

--Maria