Notes of a Native Son | Style
Narrator
Baldwin uses a variety of narrators in his essays. Sometimes he prefers to use the first person singular, such as in ‘‘Autobiographical Notes’’ and ‘‘Notes of a Native Son,’’ the use of which fits the personal topics of these essays. Baldwin changes to a first person plural narrator in ‘‘Many Thousands Gone,’’ using the pronoun we in a somewhat unusual manner. For instance, he writes: ‘‘Today, to be sure, we know that the Negro is not biologically or mentally inferior.’’ In this way, Baldwin removes his personal investment in...
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