Black Boy Questions

Lauren DePoint
AP Literature
Mrs. Tucker
Set 2
Black Boy Questions
1. The first two chapters contain three lists of impressions. The first
list follows the account of Richards illness after the severe
beating his mother gives him. The second list follows the beating
at Grannys The third list follows Richards attempt to sell his dog
Betsy. Describe the lists and how they affect the structure of the
book.
All of the lists contain extremely descriptive and sensory images. In
each one, Wright connects a specific scenario with a powerful emotion.
The first is a very sentimental reflection of his experiences in the world
in which he lived in during his childhood. The second utilizes the
senses more, describing tastes and sounds that happen around Richard
as he grows up and begins to notice the racial segregation and poverty
around him. The third is a questioning of faith, a list of superstitions
omens and mini-rituals that would bring about good fortune. As
Richards childhood continues and life becomes more and more of a
struggle, he recognizes that the world is bleak and bare, and he
searches longingly for excitement and magic, so to speak. He has
resorted to living in fantasies in which anything is possible. These lists
illustrate Richards changing mental state throughout his young life.
2. At the end of chapter one, there is a jump from the past life of
the child Richard to the present life of the man that Richard
becomes. Describe this shift in time and identify its purpose.
The main purpose of the time jump is to show contrast between the
nave and innocence of kid Richard and the well-versed, knowledgeable
and intuitive man he becomes. Even though he started out humbly, he
will not end up like his father, who lived out the rest of his years barely
scraping by. Richard will grow to strive for excellence and thirst for
knowledge instead of succumbing to the pressures of the society
around him.
3. What is the reason for Wrights use of hunger in the novel?
Wright uses hunger throughout the entire novel, starting from the very
first chapter. Richard grew up with long periods of hunger due to his
social class. At some points, it is all he can think about, and the quest
for food becomes the sole purpose of Richards life while he is young.
Gradually, though, his priorities shift, and the problem of his perpetual
hunger becomes less important than the inhumane, racist practices

happening everywhere he went. Physical hunger transforms into a
hunger for knowledge; books, art, and understanding of the society in
which he lived. The emptiness Richard feels due to either of these
hungers is constantly used as a symbol for hardship. He is able to pull
himself through the struggles of his daily life because of his deeplyrooted desire to have a better, more successful life.
4. Black Boy explores the theme that victims become victimizers.
How does the incident with the Jewish people in West Helena
carry out this theme?
In the Jim Crow South, blacks receive horrible treatment from white
people due to something they cannot control: the color of their skin.
Being looked down upon by whites for something they cant change
about themselves tends to make them resentful and angry, especially
while hey are young. In order to feel better about themselves, black
boys cling to the label of Jew and use the stereotypes theyve picked
up on to create nasty songs to sing at Jewish people as they play in the
street. Here, the victims of social discrimination become the victimizers
of another minority.
5. A major theme that emerges for Black Boy is that words have
undeniable power. Describe that Richard learns about the power
of words in major incidents of the novel.
Richard initially learns that words have power while his mother and
father are still together. At one point, he acquires a cat, and after
playing with it for a while, is told that he needs to get rid of it. Actually,
his father literally tells him to kill it. Despite his brothers protests,
Richard kills the cat, and is punished for it by his mother. However,
Richard views this as a victory over the authority figure of his father,
and recognizes that his father will now be much more careful of the
words he says. Another example is when Richard is paid by drunks to
say dirty words at the local saloon. Through simply saying the words
the men wanted him to say, he received laughter and positive
attention, though he was unable to deduce that it was for all the wrong
reasons. Also, during Richards stay at Grannys, a schoolteacher
named Ella is renting a room there. When asked what books she was
reading, she describes to Richard the fantastical world of Bluebeard
and His Seven Wives. Richard is amazed that books are not just for
school, not just boring textbooks with boring words, but also can be a
great adventure, their pages full of colorful words that can remove
Richard from his dismal surroundings for a time. However, just as the
schoolteacher gets to the good part of the story, Granny yanks the
potential entertainment away from him she aligns fiction with sin.
6. Discuss the images in Black Boy that symbolize confinement,

escape and freedom.
Racism gives this whole book an overwhelming sense of restriction
and confinement. Richard is simply not afforded a proper childhood
due to his living in the South; he cannot get a good meal, let alone a
good education or job. Another huge symbol of confinement in Black
Boy is religion. When Richard and his mother move in with Granny and
Aunt Addie, the street-smart adolescent Richard is shoved into a world
of strict routine and piousness. His instinct to do what is necessary to
survive is suppressed by the religious convictions of his grandmother
and aunt. In another way, Richards sudden involvement with the
church through his family places another burden on his shoulders
guilt. He is constantly called a sinner, a failure, and a demon child due
to his reluctance to accept Jesus/Gods gift.
Richard moves an absurd amount of times during his childhood. He
goes from living with both parents, to living with one, to the
orphanage, to his aunts, to Grannysand it never seems to end.
However, each time he does move, Richard does gain a sense of hope
that where he is going next will be better for him and his family. Maybe
there will be less hunger, a new job, or a better home. When that
doesnt happen, Richard finds an escape through knowledge and
learning. He loves school and thoroughly enjoys reading, especially
once he is introduced to fictional stories. He even begins to compose
ones of his own, though his Granny does not approve, and eventually
they become published. Richards push to become more
knowledgeable of the world in which he lives in despite the racial
tensions of the South signifies his desire to escape. And, eventually,
when he saves up enough money, he does indeed flee from Memphis
to Chicago with his mother.
7. By the time he is twelve, Richard has formed a view of life, a
view symbolized by his mothers suffering. Describe how it
becomes a symbol.
Richards mother is hardy character with a very firm parenting style
that included beating her kids (to almost an inch of death at points)
and good Christian morality. Though her violence seems unorthodox at
times, Richards mother truly does care about her sons, taking on
several jobs to provide for them when their father abandons them,
leaving her with nothing. Though the rest of Richards family does not
care for him, his mother remains involved in his life. She is the closest
to a model adult that Richard has, yet she is plagued by paralytic
episodes and is seen as physically weak. However, she is an extremely
strong character emotionally, mentally, and morally. Her illnesses are a

reminder that life simply isnt fair.
8. In chapter nine, Richard realizes that south represents a culture
and not a civilization. From this point on, the south is referred to
as a culture. How does the south symbolize a culture? Why isnt
it a civilization?
Though they seem to be synonyms, culture and civilization are two
completely different terms. A civilization is a bigger unit than culture is,
and there can be multiple cultures within a civilization. Culture can
exist on its own, but civilizations cannot exist without culture or
cultures. Civilization is tangible it is the cities we build and the
countryside we irrigate and farm. Culture is much less tangible and can
be passed along through communication and language, something a
civilization cannot do. The south symbolizes a culture because of their
language and ways of life. By all other standards, it is part of the
civilization labeled internationally as the United States, known for cities
like Memphis and its other small towns. The regular mentality and
language of the south is very different than that of the north. The most
obvious example of the difference between the two is that blacks have
it easier in the north when it comes to finding jobs and keeping them.
The racist mentality of the south as compared to the north is marked
as a culture simply because it is not tangible cities further north still
operate under the same government and their society functions
similarly to that of the south.

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Lauren DePoint

hunger becomes less important than the inhumane, racist practices

6. Discuss the images in Black Boy that symbolize confinement,

strong character emotionally, mentally, and morally. Her illnesses are a

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