If you have read the book "Native Son" by Richard Wright...?

Question

Why did the author choose that title? What is its literal/symbolic meaning in relation to the book?

Answer 1

Territory: The very title of the novel, Native Son, invites the reader to think about ideas of "nativism" and "territory." From the opening scene of the novel, where Bigger is killing the rat-invader, to Bigger's execution at the novel's end, there is a tension between Bigger's "native" status and his lack of political rights. Bigger was born in Mississippi, not Chicago, and the idea of a "native son" applies more to Bigger's status as an American as opposed to his status as a Chicagoan. Indeed, for all of the squalor of the Black Belt, Wright continually presses the argument that Bigger would be no better off in Mississippi or in Harlem. As America's "native son," Bigger is born an American, but perhaps more important, the Bigger that he becomes, is a product of America's native soil. The novel continually presents Bigger's "trapped" feelings and his lack of personal, physical freedom. While this seems to contradict Bigger's title role as a "native son," Wright ultimately makes the argument that poverty and American racism has remade Bigger into the "native son" that he has become. When Wright presents a detail that seems particular to Chicago or the Black Belt, there is usually a larger argument or ideology that is attached to it. One example is the fact that Mr. Dalton is Bigger's employer and landlord. While this might have been a common occurrence, Wright fashions this detail within the rubric of Marxism. In this regard, Mr. Dalton is evidence of the essentially feudal relationship (property-owner vs. laborer) that is masked by and intertwined within capitalism. In his treatment of the "property" theme, Wright argues that capitalism and racism reify one another, conspiring to insure Bigger's poverty and misery.