Is Richard Wright Pale?

Early on in the semester, we looked at the poem To the Pale Poets by Ray Durem. The message let the readers know that literature should be direct and powerful, truly reflecting the nature of whatever is being discussed. Specific to African-American subject matter for poetry, Durem expresses the need for honest wording to really show that “Blood is blood and murder’s murder.” The poem is addressed to the “pale poets” because Durem doesn’t appreciate the watery messages dressed up with flowery language. He challenges these said poets to “Come on with your effervescent jive explain to him why he ain’t alive” (referring to a dead black boy). I think he is right to say that literature should be strong and non-evasive, after all, isn’t the point of literature to make a social argument? And what is an argument if it is not confident enough to potentially stand against opposing opinion? We read this poem after a few days discussion on Native Son, so it made me wonder – how does Wright successfully make the problems presented in his novel clear and public enough?

It is justifiable to say that Native Son is a protest novel, and the arguments Wright puts forth are both numerous and strong. The core event/content Wright uses – the messy murder of a white girl – is pretty much set up to be shocking. So even at face value it is agreeable that Wright is not holding back, in fact the only thing he refrains from is being “pale” in his novel. Then, looking at the different themes that Wright intertwines, it is plain that the novel is extremely direct and confrontational about discussed issues.

There are plenty of critiques that he provides in Native Son, but the most frequent and possible important theme that I glean is that of Bigger’s limited options and almost predetermined life situations. By simply looking at his tight living conditions and family financial status, the picture is not positive. He has little to work with and ultimately has nowhere to go but crime and aggression. With all of the general pressure on his life from being poor and oppressed going to his friends and making trouble is what he is funneled into doing. The event of the actual murder was also something that society norms pushed him towards. Think about it: if Bigger was a white man, there would never have been a murder. First off, the uncomfortable interactions would not have occurred in the car and at the restaurant. Secondly, when Bigger was dropping off Mary in her room, he would not really have had to been so desperate to hide himself from Mrs. Dalton if he were white. Being murdered by a pillow is not exactly normal, and such an extraordinary situation only happened because society placed restrictions on Bigger. It seems like Wright was making it so out of the ordinary that he was proving the point that the murder would not have happened if Bigger were white.

Another large protest Wright is making is directed towards the corruption of the justice system. In Book III we see a lot of the internal struggle Bigger has every time he reads a newspaper describing how he raped Mary which is not true. The media makes too many assumptions based on racism, and this is unfortunately what the court uses to speed up the process. To be fair, the media should not have a real effect in the decision making, but the skewed system allows it to move the people and therefore the process. A specific issue within the justice system is the fact that a decision has already been made before the trial. Max actually makes legitimate points when defending Bigger, but nobody listens, not the judge, jury, or Buckley. Bigger himself actually thinks several times of how he would rather just have the officials shoot him then go through the entire process, and this is because he knows that everything is over before it starts.

One of the very first images Wright provides for us is Bigger and Buddy working to rid their living space of a nauseatingly large rat. The analogy of the rat trying to survive translates to Bigger struggling to catch a breath of a free life. The themes, events, and issues Wright brings to the table for discussion make this overall message clear, and I think Durem would agree that Wright is nowhere near being considered as “pale.”