FREE ESSAY ON BLACK BOY

BLACK BOY

Growing up as a Negro in the South in the early 1900's is not that easy, for some people
tend to suffer different forms of oppression. In this case, it happens in the
autobiography called Black Boy written by Richard Wright. The novel is set in the early
part of the 1900's, somewhere in deep Jim Crow South. Richard Wright, who is obviously
the main character, is also the protagonist. The antagonist is no one person in
particular, for it takes many different forms called oppression in general. The main
character over comes this oppression by rebelling against the common roles of the black,
Jim Crow society. Richard Wright's character was affected in early childhood by the
effects of societal oppression, but he became a great American author despite these
negative factors in his life.
Today everyone encounters some form of oppression. One of the forms Richard is
encountering is called societal oppression. As an example, after Richard sees a black boy
whipped by a white man, he asks his mother why did the incident happen. His mother says, 
'The white man did not whip the black boy...He beat the black
boy, ' (31). This quote is showing racism, which is one way of society keeping Richard
Wright, and all other blacks in the South down. Another example is when is at the rail
road station with his mother, and as they are waiting for the train, he sees something he
has never seen, ...for the first time I noticed that there were two lines of people at
the ticket window, a white line and a black line, (55). This excerpt is demonstrating how
this scene of Jim Crow laws is keeping a certain group of people apart, which is also
another form of societal oppression. Societal oppression occurs again when Richard is
hanging out with his friends, and their conversation with each other leads on to the
subject of war. One of his friends really get into the subject and says,  'Yeah, they
send you to war, make you lick them Germans, teach you how to fight and when you come
back they scared of you,' (90). This quote means that the white people put the black
people on the front line to defend our country, and when they come back, they can not
accept them, therefore they oppress them in different ways, which is societal oppression.
The last example happens when Richard wants to borrow a library card, and so he thinks
about asking his boss. After thinking about it for a while, he knew he could not ask him,
for he knows the boss is a Caucasian Baptist, and Richard thinks that he would not be
able to accept the fact of a black boy, such as Richard, would want to read and cultivate
his intelligence. This would be considered societal oppression, for he knows his boss
does not want Richard to be enlightened with books, in turn keeping Richard away from the
light of knowledge. These are examples of societal oppression that Richard Wright
overcomes and rises to the top on his own.
Internalized oppression is a hard thing to overcome. One of the ways Richard Wright is
confronted with internalized oppression is when he sees a black boy being beaten by a
white man, so he automatically thinks that the white man is the boys father. ...Did not
all fathers, like my father, have the right to beat their children? A paternal right was
the only right, to my understanding... (31). This excerpt is showing internalized
oppression, for he thinks it is okay for a parent to abuse their child, in turn having
the child think that beating a child is okay, and only a parent can do the beating, which
is completely wrong. Another case of internalized oppression occurs when Richard says a
bad word, and then his Aunt Jody lectures him by saying,  'Richard, you are a very bad,
bad boy,' (108). Later in the passage, he also says that he does not care that he is a
bad boy. That states that Richard believes that he is a bad person, which means he is
experiencing internalized oppression. Later in the novel, after Richard read some books,
he then wants to use the words he has learned as weapons, but he could not, because by
him using the words it frightened him. This is internalized oppression, for Richard
thinks of the words as something sacred only white people can use. If he did use the
words, he feels as though he may get into trouble. Later in the novel, Richard tries to
identify himself with a book, but he feels guilty when he does so. Therefore he acts in
way so the whites will not dislike him. It is an internal oppression, for he is keeping
himself down by not physically expressing his feelings that he has received from the
books he has read. All of the above, are examples of which later in the novel, Richard
Wright conquers are of internalized oppression.
The way Richard Wright overcomes this abstract oppression is reflected upon his
personality, which helps him become that great American author. One of the examples to
prove this true, occurs when it was Richard's first day of school. During that noon hour
I learned all the four-letter words describing physiological sex functions, and
discovered that I had know them before...A tall black boy recited a long, funny piece of
doggerel, replete with filth, describing the physiological relations between men and
women, and I memorized it word for word after having heard it but once, (32). This quote
is showing how smart and quick-to-learn Richard is, which is a part of his personality
and ability to understand . Another example happens when his Uncle Tom is about to whip
Richard, so he shows the razors to his uncle. In a low voice Richard says,  'If you touch
me, I'll cut you! Maybe I'll get cut too, but I'll cut you, so help me God,' (175). This
passage is revealing that Richard is rebellious by standing up for himself and
confronting his uncle for something he did not do. Further on, when Richard is confronted
with the fact that white people like Negroes who stole from them, than to know their own
true self-worth. Richard is thinking, But I, who stole nothing, who wanted to look them
straight in the face, who wanted to talk and act like a man, inspired fear in them,
(219). This passage is demonstrating how bold and brave Richard is, for he wants to stand
up for himself against a white man who looked down on him. Later in the novel, Richard is
pondering on what he should do in his life. He knows he can not stay in the South and
willingly be kicked as Shorty had done. He would rather die, then do what Shorty has
already submitted to. This is showing how much strength and pride Richard has. These are
all examples of Richard Wright's character, that has helped him become the great author
that he is.
Societal oppression and internalized oppression has affected Richard Wright in his early
childhood years. The negative factors he has overcame throughout his life, has
contributed to his rise as a great American author. One of the many themes, in the novel
is if you follow what you feel is wrong, then you may not be able to rise to the top. In
Black Boy, Richard Wright did just the opposite. Instead of submitting, like everyone
else, to the low life, Jim Crow laws were intended for, he has risen above those who
already has submitted. Another universal theme is that if you believe that you can
achieve in anything, most likely you will achieve in many things in life. In the novel at
first, Richard did not believe he can do anything to improve his life. Once he started to
believe he can do things on his own, he moved out of the South to become that great
American author. These are the themes in the novel Black Boy, that can be used for
everyday life, universally.