The Idea of Naturalism within Native Son by Teo Chemla
Native Son by Richard Wright is a novel published in 1940 about a 20 year old young African American man named Bigger Thomas living in the poor suburbs of Chicago. The novel provides social commentary on systemic racism and how it negatively affects the lives and the choices of African Americans. What happens to Bigger is seemingly a result of the systemic racism that he faces, almost giving a sense of inevitability to the crime that he commits. This is where the idea of naturalism comes into play.
Naturalism is the philosophical belief that that everything happens because of natural causes and that animals and humans react to these natural causes and that leads to the decisions they make. This is perfectly exemplified in the story of Bigger Thomas. Bigger lives in a completely run down and rat infested one room apartment along with his mother, his younger sister, and his younger brother. He is very poor and resorts to crime to make most of his money. Because of his significantly less than ideal conditions he has never had any interaction with the white people and almost views them as a higher entity. White folk are almost in an entirely different world to him, so to him he should treat white folk as higher beings, because that's just how he knows them. So when he meets Mary and Jan, he is completely off thrown and is extremely uncomfortable, which leads to Bigger killing Mary. This is an example of how all these situations and environments Bigger is put in ultimately affects how he reacted, and that he didn't really have a say in what was going to happen. He was kind of just along for the ride, as the environments and situations he was put in heavily affected his actions.
Something that's interesting is that when Bigger was caught and put on trial, his lawyer, Max, actually uses this idea of naturalism as his defense. Max argues to the jury that Bigger did this act because of the conditions and circumstances he was placed in. He argues that Biggers life has almost been completely controlled by his circumstances, along with the white man, which is the cause for his inability to see Mary and Jan as human beings like himself. Max also argues that Bigger's options have been so limited and his life has been so controlled that he had no choice but to hate Jan and Mary, because there was no other way he could've possibly viewed them.
This idea of naturalism in Native Son raises some very important questions for the reader to answer. What would've happened if Bigger was raised in better conditions? Would he had been more comfortable around Jan and Mary if he lived along white folk? Bigger being faced with all these tough situations and environments begs the question that if just one little thing changed for Bigger, would have any of this happened? This makes us question things about today's society, like what would happen if we placed marginalized people in better and less compromising positions? How would the oppressed flourish without oppression? That's why the idea of naturalism is so important to the life of Bigger Thomas, the novel Native Son, and today's society.
Great post! I definitely think naturalism plays a role in Bigger's life. It really plays a role in everybody's life. I like how you followed the idea of how if Bigger was raised in a society where he is told to treat white people the same as black people, he likely would have not killed Mary. I also think all of your questions in the last paragraph are great because they encourage open-ended thinking.
ReplyDeleteHello Teo. Yeah, I think naturalism pretty much parallels one of the main takeaways of the story (that racism is a perceptual cycle of oppression). It's also pretty interesting how you connect the dots between Jan and Mary's awkward interactions with Bigger and the separation of black and white people in Chicago. The idea of wondering if the environment a person lives in affects a person's life is definitely an age-long argument (nature vs. nurture). The story (and history as we know it) would be completely different if racial integration were more prevalent. Good blog Teo.
ReplyDeleteHey Teo, I'm happy to see a blog post focusing on naturalism in Native Son, since it plays such a key role in the novel. I agree that Bigger's motivations behind his decisions, good or bad, all link back to his environment. The questions you pose at the end are interesting to ponder, since it makes me wonder not only about how Bigger's decisions would change if the surroundings of his upbringing had been different, but also how his personality and relationships would be altered. Great post!
ReplyDeleteThis is a really great post. I like how you further dive into the idea of Native Son being a naturalist novel, especially since in class we really only skimmed the surface of it. I thought it was interesting how you connected Max using the idea of the naturalism in Native Son to represent Bigger in court. Lastly, I really liked the questions you thought about and left for the reader in the last paragraph, they help bring a better understanding to the book and your blog post. Great job!
ReplyDeleteThis is a great blog post! Native Son being a naturalist novel has a lot of evidence backing up that argument, in which you discuss some great points. I especially like the fact that you brought up the ways in which Max utilizes naturalism for the case, which in turn establishes Native Son as a naturalist novel. I also love the questions you bring up at the end. We can ask ourselves as readers if Bigger's actions would have changed depending on an alternate set of circumstances and events, but that begs the question: who is Bigger Thomas? The subject may change the answer on whether the alternate events would have made a difference. Great work!
ReplyDeleteI think you're right that Max's argument in court on behalf of Bigger essentially makes the naturalist argument--which has the implication that Bigger is not fully responsible for his actions, since they were shaped so fully by the effects of the environment. Unfortunately, this argument is doomed from the start, as the legal codes for murder (especially with a confession) don't hinge on issues of the accused's social environment--but Max (and Wright) seem to be suggesting that such considerations *should* play a role. Even if the judge ignores these arguments and gives Bigger the death penalty, the *reader* has been presented with the argument, and the novel wants to influence our judgment of the character. And clearly we are intended to acquit because of extenuating circumstances.
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