Richard Wright Black Boy Analysis

American history has demonstrated that various groups of people have faced and continue to face the struggles of gaining equality. Such struggles have been publicized throughout mediums of artistic expression including literature and film- exposing the obstacles and triumphs people have gone through. The strife and determinism of gaining equality in society has significantly guided the formation of American identity. While numerous facets make up the American identity, one of the most effective ways of directing change for the American people has been the equality of creative expressionism. Creativity has embedded itself into American society and the United States has welcomed different forms of art from around the world. Society’s definition

Published in 1945, Black Boy records Richard Wright’s struggles with finding his own identity in a society where people tell him he is inferior and where he does not have as many opportunities to build a life. Richard is discriminated by society for being a black man. In chapter eight , Richard is asked to read a valedictorian speech his principal wrote for him instead of his own. The principal was afraid that Richard would deliver the wrong message about his peers and academics at his high school in front of a predominantly white audience, including the superintendent of the district. Even when the principal threatened to not allow Richard to graduate, Richard still read his speech. This demonstrates to the readers that Richard has his own moral standards and does not blindly follow what other people. Another instance where Richard faced discrimination was in his home with his own family; in chapter five, Richard says “ no matter what I did I would be wrong somehow as far as my family was concerned.” Richard would get into fights in school with white children often, upsetting his family who did not want Richard to get involved in racial conflicts. Richard’s family could not understand his lack of control over himself and when he showed signs of being violent towards them, after facing heavy criticism from his aunt, he was shunned from his entire family. This only strained Richard’s relationship with his family and tested his moral standards. Essentially, Richard proves that what he wanted was to find peace in his life with himself and with others. This is described when he says in chapter fifteen, “I wanted a life in which there was a constant oneness of feeling with others.” The fact that Harpers & Brothers published Black Boy in 1945, a time when racial issues