1/31/16

After reading parts one and two of Native Son, along with some of the final part, I have come to realize that the characters in the novel are extremely complex, and that they are all driven by different factors. These factors can partially explain why some of the characters do the shocking things they do, or even say. We can start with one of the more obvious factors that drives Bigger, and that is fear. His violent tendencies are all rooted from the fear he has had his entire life, and this is because he was born into fear. He was born into oppression, so the fear that was caused by his oppression almost became a part of Bigger. This fear led him to being an overall violent person, whether it was physically fighting his friends or getting in trouble with the law in the past. The reasons that fear led to violence were unclear in the beginning of the novel, but they get clearer and clearer as I read on. Bigger figures that the only way to deal with his fear is to physically fight it, and this leads to the murder of two people. The first one being out of fear from getting caught by Mrs. Dalton, or getting fired from his job, but the second one being out of fear from getting caught by the police, or death (although another reason for the rape and murder of Bessie was dominance and control). Although it’s true that fear is the psychological reason for these occurrences, it doesn’t make the murders any more reasonable. His actions were still extremely irrational, and that may conclude that Bigger has the tendencies of a sociopath. Along with fear, his oppression and the society that he lives in directly affects Bigger’s actions. Due to his oppression, he strives to be above his oppressors, and this may be why he kills Mary – to get a glimpse of the white world, even if it means killing an innocent girl. We also see how society’s beliefs and expectations of black people manifest itself into reality in Bigger’s life. He is accused of intentionally raping and murdering Mary, which is untrue (if you call that murder accidental), but this turns into a truth when he intentionally rapes and murders Bessie. His motives are very complex and almost confusing, but his actions were so impulsive and violent that they need some type of explanation. Along with Bigger, Jan’s character is also fairly complex. Although he does not play a huge role in this book, I noticed his genuineness when he visited Bigger in jail. In the beginning of the novel, I thought he was extremely fake because I assumed he was being nice to Bigger just to help the Communist party. Part of me still believes this, but when he spoke to Bigger in the beginning of part three, I saw the good in him. It was almost unrealistic, because Jan forgave Bigger for killing the girl he loved. His authenticity is hard to believe, but it is there when Jan says he wants to help Bigger. Jan’s motives also come from oppression. Not his own, but the oppression of black people. Jan sees how Bigger falls into the equation of racism at the time, and he believes that helping Bigger may help the cause for an end to the inequalities. Also, Jan’s motives were partially selfish, but not in the negative sense. Jan is doing what he is doing to make him feel better about himself, which is completely reasonable. I’m not sure how the book will conclude, but I do know that the character’s complex motives may have something to do with what will happen in this final part.