Native Son (Magill’s Survey of American Literature, Revised Edition)
At a glance:
- Author: Richard Wright
- First Published: 1940
- Type of Work: Novel
- Genres: Long fiction, Social realism
- Subjects: African Americans, Justice, Self-discovery, United States or Americans, Communism or communists, Politics, Racism, Murder or homicide, Midwest, Antiheroes, 1930’s, Poverty or poor people, Capital punishment, Trials, Law or legislation, Fear, Fate or fatalism
- Locales: Chicago, IL
Native Son triggered Wright's emergence into the foreground of American literature; the book became a best seller and was selected as the first Book of the Month Club offering by an African American. It immediately initiated controversy: Many within the black bourgeoisie condemned its depiction of a violent, white-hating black youth as the embodiment of white racist fantasies about the Negro “threat.” Wright's fellow Communists disliked its racial preoccupations and reactionary emphasis upon the misdirected rebellion of a lone individual.
The novel also garnered high...
[The entire page is 1871 words long]
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