Don't Hate the Player, Hate the Game
Throughout Native Son, I found myself hating Bigger Thomas and the decisions he made. I am aware this is what Wright intended, but it led me to question Bigger's choices more thoroughly. While it is clear he killed Mary, can we really blame Bigger? Aside from his appalling actions with Bessie and his overall awfulness as a person, how much of his actions were really his fault? Are we supposed to hate Bigger himself, or hate his environment that contributed to the way he is? Richard Wright specifically portrays Bigger Thomas as a terrible person. Even before Bigger killed anyone, Wright makes it obvious he's awful. From the opening as he taunts his sister with a dead rat and makes her uncomfortable watching her change, we are meant to hate him. This "a-hole" demeanor is only strengthened when we see him start a fight with Gus, and threaten to kill him. As the book progresses, Bigger's actions become more and more severe. While I am aware the actual killing of Mar...