Masculinity In Richard Wright's Native Son

597 Words2 Pages

Question:
As Wright portrays it, how does Mrs. Dalton’s blindness ultimately hinder Bigger Thomas’ masculinity?

Intro Paragraph:
Bigger Thomas, the protagonist in Richard Wright’s novel Native Son (1940), is a 20-year-old African American youth who grew up in segregated America during the 1930s. Throughout the novel we see Bigger trying to proclaim his masculinity. Unfortunately, for many men of color the search to proclaim manhood is a constant battle. Within Native Son we see that there are many different representations and situations where Bigger’s masculinity is challenged. Particularly, the female he interacts with represents a challenge to his masculinity. As we see it, none of the female characters in Native Son have any real importance …show more content…

Dalton is a huge representation of how his masculinity is challenged. Within the text it is highlighted where Bigger Thomas is placed in a dangerous situation where his male authority is compromised.
It was Mrs. Dalton. He wanted to knock her out of his way and bolt from the room. Bigger held his breath…He knew that Mrs. Dalton could not see him; but he knew that if Mary spoke she would come to the side of the bed and discover him, touch him. He waited tensely, afraid to move for fear of bumping into something in the dark and betraying his presence. (Wright 80)
Bigger murdering Mary Dalton in front of Mrs. Dalton clearly illustrates where his masculinity is challenged. We see that when Mrs. Dalton came into the room, Bigger doesn’t know how to react properly. Bigger ultimately reacts like a child by killing Mary in the presence of a white woman who is blind. It is known throughout the novel that Bigger places fences and defends himself in anyway that he can. He isn’t able to truly be a man within his own household. Ms. Thomas, Biggers’ mother, is represented as the male authority in the household. Bigger isn’t able to truly claim his masculinity in the household so in search of that he results to violence and hostility, which is due to his own insecurities. Ultimately, Bigger wasn’t able to handle the situation like a man. Mrs. Dalton’s literal blindness also serves as a metaphor for white people’s social and

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