The Unbearable Blackness of Being: De-Signifying the Signified in Richard Wright's Native Son

Abstract

Native Son dramatizes Bigger's struggle against the inhuman, deleterious cycle of white racism which effectively transforms blacks into their own negative stereotypes of blackness. He revolts against his socially constructed image and a socially assigned role that deny him identity and dignity. His self-perception is governed by the racially prejudiced images imposed on him. Throughout his life, he suffers for being black. The infamy of blackness darkens his existence, making him a victim of white oppression and white racist ideology. With his diminished capacity and depleted sense of self, he tries in vain to disentangle himself from the crippling impact of ideological and racial dominance. The significance of blackness changes for Bigger with the accidental killing of a wealthy white girl. Bigger's personality assumes a new self and his life takes a new turn after the murder, as he attaches new meanings to his black skin. The paper aims to explore Bigger's attempt to attain freedom from the negative self-image by subverting white people's definition of blackness and gain a potential self-hood and meaningful existence.