Springer

Isaac Springer
Ms. Smit
12 AP Lit/Comp
3 November 2014
Blacks, Whites, and Reds:
Reading Native Son through a Marxist Lens
The power struggle presented in Native Son by Richard Wright is the central problem
faced by Bigger Thomas. A Marxism lens looks at a piece of literature with the main aim
of finding who is in power and how they keep that power. In this case, the Marxist lens
will be used to analyze the power struggle between the three main social groups
presented in the book: the poor, oppressed blacks, the capitalist and powerful whites, and
the communist reds.
In the beginning of the novel, the living conditions of the main character, a black
boy named Bigger Thomas, can be seen. He lives in a small, one-bedroom apartment
with his two siblings and his mother, where they survive on mere dollars per week.
Contrasting, when Bigger goes and takes the chauffer job at the Daltons, he witnesses a
large-scale mansion with multiple bedrooms, and the Dalton familys millions of dollars.
It can be seen right from the start that these two classes have a clear power difference.
The blacks are forced into one small area of the city where entire families must share
single apartments, while the whites enjoy the privileges of space and excessive money to
use on luxuries. The power struggle can even be more clearly defined when the readers
learn that Mr. Dalton, the man employing Bigger, essentially owns the properties of the

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blacks on the South Side. This is the force that keeps the whites in power in this society,
or hegemony. The whites can control the Blacks by controlling where they live.
The money is the defining factor, which separates the power that these two classes
have. But the money stems from pre-determined stereotypes surrounding race. No one
wants to hire a black man for fear of him stealing or ruining something of value. These
stereotypes prevent the blacks making any significant amount of money, creating a
ceiling for the amount of power they can achieve as a class. This leads to some of the
blacks, such as the ones that are in a gang with Bigger, to steal for their money, enforcing
the stereotype, and letting the whole thing move in a cycle.
The second major power struggle is between the capitalist whites and the
communist reds. The novel takes place in a period where the reds are gaining a following
in America, and they wish to destroy the current capitalism system of government and
replace it with the emerging idea of communism. Jan is introduced as a member of the
Party, and is dating the daughter of Mr. Dalton, Mary. For fear of being disbanded, the
reds are forced to meet in secret places such as dark buildings. They must be careful in
the actions that they take so that they can remain safe from annihilation from their
capitalist rivals. To the capitalists, the communists represent unneeded change and a
resemblance of the U.S.s rival at the time, the communist U.S.S.R. Thus, the capitalists
do everything they can to keep the communist party out of power, forcing them to hold
meetings in secret and hideaway. The strength of the capitalists in this case seems to be
in numbers, as most of the general public resides on their side.
There is, however, interesting interactions between the blacks and the reds as
well. When Bigger first meets Jan, he is surprised that Jan tries to treat him like a normal

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person and not a member of a lower social class. Jan explains that they think the black
culture is wonderful and they want to team up and rise against the capitalists together.
He brings up specific events, like the Scottsboro Boys, a group of black boys that were
accused of rape, and how the communist party has helped them. But it is clear to see that
Bigger is very uncomfortable with this treatment. He is confused at why Jan, a white
man who Bigger believes to have superiority, is treating him like an equal. It makes him
uncomfortable and unsure of his opinions toward this entire group. He still feels that they
have power over him because of his skin color. Like a capitalist, however, he is nervous
and unsure about communism, hearing all of the terrible rumors about the reds and what
they are like.
An application of this power structure can be seen in the thoughts of Bigger when
he kills Mary. He seems to feel a heightened sense of self from this action, thinking he
has gotten away without suspicion, planning to blame it on Jan and the reds. He knows
that he has to cover his tracks because the whites will kill him if they found out what he
had done. But he also knows that the whites despise the communists about as much as
the blacks, and in the case of the Daltons, much more. This provides Bigger the
opportunity to attempt to blame the murder on the group that appears to be more
threatening to upsetting the current social hierarchy.
Another interesting change occurs in Bigger after the killing. He conceals the fact
of his guilt away for a time, and during that time he begins to see everyone, despite of
social class, as blind. They are blind because they do not know that he has murdered. He
feels above everyone his family, his friends, and even the Daltons, who have power
over him not only as his employers but also belonging to a different social class. But he

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feels he has gained power that can be put over all classes because of his actions and how
he handles himself after. Self-confidence can act as a power booster; however, it does
not change the actual social classes that exist in the world.