1. Describe some of the many ways in which Bessie Mears, Bigger's girlfriend, is trapped in a life that is not of her own choosing (use concrete details).
2. Describe the way Bigger is hunted down after he has fled the Dalton home. How would this manhunt have been different if Bigger were white?
3. Mr. Dalton's private investigator, Mr. Britten, alternately expresses his hatred of African Americans and of Communists. After he interrogates Bigger, Bigger thinks to himself that "Mr. Britten was familiar to him; he had met a thousand Brittens in his life." What is it about Mr. Britten's thinking that makes him so easy for Bigger to understand, and how does Bigger intend to use Mr. Britten's prejudices to his own advantage?
Chisom Oraedu (post 1):
ReplyDelete1. Describe some of the many ways in which Bessie Mears, Bigger's girlfriend, is trapped in a life that is not of her own choosing (use concrete details).
Bessie does not choose to help Bigger in his plight to cover up his murder of Mary. Bigger forces her to do it. Bigger does not care that she pleads and begs him to not make her do it. He only cares about the fact that he does not want to be alone in his evasion of persecution. He ponders the idea of bringing Bessie along in his flight: “Maybe, yes, maybe he could, maybe he could use her…Could he trust her? How much could he tell her? Would she act with him, blindly, believing his word?” (Wright 138). Bessie does not realize that Bigger does not trust her and love her as she does to him. Bessie is not only trapped by Bigger, but also by her job. She is very hard-working and toils all day: “…from her room to the kitchen of the white folks was the farthest she ever moved. She worked long hours, hard and hot hours seven days a week, with only Sunday afternoons off; and when she did get off she wanted fun, hard and fast fun, something to make her feel that she was making up for the starved life she led” (Wright 139). After working all day, Bessie feels the necessity to drink, which gives her a sense of numbness that masks the pain that she feels in her life. Her tendency to always get drunk is another way in which Bessie is trapped by Bigger in life. About her drinking, the book says, “He had heard her complain about how hard the white folks worked her; she had told him over and over again that she lived their lives when she was working in their homes, not her own. That was why, she told him, she drank” (Wright 139). Bessie lets Bigger control her because he gives her drinking money. She sells her body for it; in exchange for sex, Bigger gives her the money. This is also a way in which Bessie is trapped. She will never truly leave Bigger, despite his abuse, because she loves drinking too much. Bessie lets her love for drinking and her allegiance to Bigger trap her in her life.
2. Describe the way Bigger is hunted down after he has fled the Dalton home. How would this manhunt have been different if Bigger were white?
The entire white population helps in the hunt for Bigger. The many volunteers and police were adamant in their search for him: “Immediately a cordon of five thousand police, augmented by more than three thousand volunteers, was thrown about the Black Belt” (Wright 243). Upon hearing that a black man had raped and killed a white woman, all of the white people felt that it was their duty to aid in the search for him. By catching Bigger, who is a black man, it perpetuates the racism and stereotypes all blacks as being like Bigger. There is no real logic or intelligence behind racism. Even Britten says, “’Well, you see ‘em one way and I see ‘em another. To me, a nigger’s a nigger…They don’t need a chance if you ask me. They get in enough trouble without it’” (Wright 163). Even a man as smart and educated as Britten is ignorant and stereotypical. This event is able to justify the whites’ racial discrimination. This justification undermines the reality of the situation; it is much more complex than they think. The whites assume that Bigger raped Mary. In reality, this did not occur, but the whites just assume that a black man would be sexually attracted to a white woman. They would not have jumped to this conclusion if he were a white man. Bigger goes to hide among his kind. All the blacks live in small tenement houses, so the area in which Bigger could hide was very small “’If they start after us, where could we hide, Bigger? You know we’s black. We can’t go just anywhere.’ ‘…We could hide out in one of those old building…Nobody ever looks into ‘em’” (Wright 148-149). This makes it easier for the police to find him. If he were white, it would be more possible for him to escape. There is a large area in which the whites can live. If Bigger were white, the manhunt would have been much more difficult for the police.
Chisom Oraedu (post 1 cont.):
ReplyDelete3. Mr. Dalton's private investigator, Mr. Britten, alternately expresses his hatred of African Americans and of Communists. After he interrogates Bigger, Bigger thinks to himself that "Mr. Britten was familiar to him; he had met a thousand Brittens in his life." What is it about Mr. Britten's thinking that makes him so easy for Bigger to understand, and how does Bigger intend to use Mr. Britten's prejudices to his own advantage?
When Britten cross-examines Bigger, he is cruel and unforgiving. He accuses Bigger of being a Communist upon finding the pamphlets in his room: “’You are a Communist, you goddamn black sonofabitch!’” (Wright 161). It is evident that Britten hates Communists. This is because Communists ask black people to do things that white people hate. A Communist is the last thing Bigger thinks that Britten will accuse him of being. Bigger knows that Britten only thinks of him as guilty because he is black: “Britten was his enemy. He knew that the hard light in Britten’s eyes held him guilty because he was black” (Wright 162). Britten does not like black people and sees them all in the same light, whether they are good or not. He stereotypes them all and never gives them a chance to prove that they are different. After being interrogated by Britten, Bigger thinks to himself, “He would know how to handle Britten next time. Britten was familiar to him; he had met a thousand Brittens in his life” (Wright 164). Bigger understands this thinking because he has met many whites who believe that all black people are bad and do not deserve the benefit of the doubt. They just automatically assume that blacks are guilty of any crimes that pop up. Bigger uses Britten’s prejudices and false thinkings against him by then pinning the crime on Jan. He knows that Britten has already exercised the Communist angle on Bigger and that it did not work. Bigger provided a solid reason for why he had the pamphlets: Jan gave them to him. Now Britten’s attention will be diverted away from Bigger and onto Jan. In the end, Britten prejudices worked in Bigger’s favor.
Bessie is trapped in a life that she doesn’t want to be in because first she is a black woman who is living in the middle of racism. So she is constantly being oppressed and being put her through the segregation is already forcing to live this life that she doesn’t want to live. Secondly when Bigger is running away from the town after being guilty of killing Mary, Bessie is now pulled into a part of Bigger’s messed up life. Now she is putting herself in danger and surely she didn’t want to be living without knowing what is going to happen next. So in Book 2 she is trapped in not only a society that only exploits her but she is also living in a world where she is confused and is forced to be dependent and put her trust into Bigger, who recently killed someone.
ReplyDeleteI think that the officer treated bigger as if they were chasing an animal. A name of one of the report the officer put out said “reporters find Dalton girl’s bones in furnace, negro chauffeur disappears. Five thousand police surround black belt. Authorities hint sex crime. Communist leader proves Alibi. Girl’s mother in collapse.” They put out these horrible reports. So while the police men are searching everyone to find bigger, he has nowhere to run. The black towns are very small so he doesn’t have a wide range to hide and white neighborhoods will make him more noticeable. So by the police trapping him and the city being notified it is trapping bigger in his own native land.
How deos bigger intend to use Mr.Britten’s attitude to his advantage?
Mr. Britten is a racist detective that is interrogating Bigger for the murder. In the story Mr. Britten says “ well, you see ‘em one way and I see ‘em another. To me a nigger’s a nigger” he has stereotyped black people and while determining something in the court the judge is supposed to be blind. This blind statue shows how the person should not see that they are black or white, a communist or anything. And Mr. Britten is missing that concept and is seeing bigger and already assumes that bigger killed her because in his mind all black men are the same. They all kill people and are just making their community worse. And bigger can use this racisms to his advantage because he has the opportunity to say that the only reason he is being accused of the murder is because he is black and has a racist detective. Bigger does this in hopes that he will not be seen guilty for the murder.
deidre
Chisom Oraedu (post 2):
ReplyDelete1. Describe some of the many ways in which Bessie Mears, Bigger's girlfriend, is trapped in a life that is not of her own choosing (use concrete details).
Bessie does not choose to be black or born in this time where there is a lot of racism. This minority group is being abused and prejudiced against at the time. She continues in her relationship because she takes what she can get and she feels that she cannot get anyone better than Bigger. She is like Mrs. Thomas in this way with her take-what-you-can-get attitude. Bessie is an extremely hard worker and provides for herself: “She worked long hours, hard and hot hours seven days a week…” (Wright 139). She rarely gets a day off, and when she does, she tries to relax as best as she can; drinking is her main relaxation tool. However, there is a cycle going on in which she keeps working hard, but nothing ever comes out of her hard work. This is because she works in a racist society. Prejudice and racism block the path to what she wants in life. She sees and foreshadows her own demise when she says to Bigger, “’If you killed her you’ll kill me’” (Wright 178). Bessie sees right from the start where she is headed. Bigger was never a good influence on her and she knew it; her life was fine before she met him, and now it is ruined: “’Bigger, please! Don’t do this to me! Please! All I do is work, work like a dog! From morning till night. I ain’t got happiness…I ain’t got nothing and you do this to me. After how good I been to you. Now you just spoil my whole life. I’ve done everything for you I know how and you do this to me’“ (Wright 180). Bigger drags her through hell in his own ploy to escape persecution. Bessie knows that at the end of the road is death. She goes into her demise with open eyes. She sees her weaknesses and knows that it is coming. Bessie is forced to participate in the covering up of Mary’s murder, trapping her in a life that is not of her choosing.
2. Describe the way Bigger is hunted down after he has fled the Dalton home. How would this manhunt have been different if Bigger were white?
Everyone in town knows that Bigger, a black man, killed Mary, a white woman. They automatically assume that it is rape: “’They’ll say you raped her’” (Wright 227). In their minds, any black man is sexually attracted to a white woman. For this reason, there is a full-blown manhunt for Bigger. Bigger cannot hide in one place for too long because the police know that he can only hide in one specific area in Chicago: the South side, occupied by blacks. Bigger and Bessie converse, “’Where can we hide?’ ‘We can stay in some of them old houses for awhile.’ ‘But they might find us there.’ ‘There’s plenty of ‘em. It’ll be like hiding in a jungle’” (Wright 228). This situation would have been different if Bigger were white. For one thing, there would have been a wider range of places for him to hide because whites were not confined to one corner of the city, despite the fact that there were less whites than blacks. Also, if Bigger were white, the police would not have been as aggressive in their search. One of the main reasons why they were so fast to search all of the buildings and find him was because they thought that he raped her because he was black and Mary was white. All whites at the time thought that blacks were capable of doing this to white women. The papers even say “AUTHORITIES HINT SEX CRIME“(Wright 243). Had Bigger been white, the police would not have assumed that he raped Mary. They just do not jump to this conclusion when they think about their own kind. The tables would have been turned in the manhunt had Bigger been white.
Chisom Oraedu (post 2 cont.):
ReplyDelete3. Mr. Dalton's private investigator, Mr. Britten, alternately expresses his hatred of African Americans and of Communists. After he interrogates Bigger, Bigger thinks to himself that "Mr. Britten was familiar to him; he had met a thousand Brittens in his life." What is it about Mr. Britten's thinking that makes him so easy for Bigger to understand, and how does Bigger intend to use Mr. Britten's prejudices to his own advantage?
Britten expresses early on that he harbors a hatred for Communists. On top of this hate is also a deep dislike for blacks. He stereotypes them and sees them all as bad people who do not deserve equal opportunities. In his mind, they should be put down before they have a chance to really rise and succeed. This opposes Mr. Dalton’s viewpoint. They argue, “’…these black boys never get a chance…’ ‘They don’t need a chance, if you ask me. They get in trouble without it’” (Wright 163). It is obvious to Bigger that Britten is his enemy after he accuses him of being a Communist. Bigger handles the situation very smoothly, though. He knows that the ultimate goal is to pin Mary’s disappearance on Jan: “…now was the time to drag Jan in definitely” (Wright 160). He pins it on Jan when he tells Britten that it was Jan who gave him the Communist pamphlets, leading Britten to believe that Jan was the Communist, not Bigger. Bigger sees that Britten does not like blacks and uses this to his advantage. At the very beginning of the interrogation Britten uses up the only card that he has against Bigger: “…he knew that Britten had done all his tricks at once, had shot his bolt, had played all his cards” (Wright 165). Britten is so sure that Bigger is guilty that he immediately accuses him of being a Communist. Bigger has met many whites like Britten who automatically assume that blacks are guilty of any crime. Britten’s prejudice against blacks made him accuse Bigger, and when he was proven innocent, Britten had to look at the only other suspect: Jan. Britten’s prejudice ended up working in Bigger’s favor.
Chisom Oraedu (post 3):
ReplyDelete1. Describe some of the many ways in which Bessie Mears, Bigger's girlfriend, is trapped in a life that is not of her own choosing (use concrete details).
Bigger forces Bessie to help him in his plot to cover up Mary’s murder. This is not the first time that Bigger has dragged her into his own personal problems. Bessie explains their past endeavors: “’But we ain’t never done nothing like this before. They’ll look everywhere for us for something like this. It ain’t like coming to where I work at night when the white folks is gone out of town and stealing something’” (Wright 146). Bessie has had to help Bigger carry out crimes before. Bessie sees that this one is different, larger than the others are. She knows that there are major consequences if they are caught, and she is scared: “’You going to help me? Say yes or no.’…‘But we’ll get caught…They catch people who do things like that.’ ‘If you scared they will catch you’” (Wright 145). Bessie has many fears about carrying out the job, and she tries to convey them to Bigger. He blows them all of, though. He is more concerned with saving himself and does not consider that Bessie does not want to do it. She realizes, however, that she will be more scared if Bigger leaves her alone because then the cops could break into her home and she would be left there alone and defenseless against them. Bessie is very dependent on Bigger: “She would be his; her fear of capture and death would bind her to him with all the strength of her life” (Wright 150). Bessie fear is what really motivates her to help Bigger in the end. If she was not scared, she probably would not have done it. Bessie does not choose any aspect of her life in regards to helping Bigger; he chooses for her. Even before Mary’s murder Bigger controlled Bessie. She did whatever he asked her to do in return for drinking money. Usually, he asked for sex. In this way it is seen that Bessie is, in many ways, trapped in a life that is out of her control.
Chisom Oraedu (post 3 cont.):
ReplyDelete2. Describe the way Bigger is hunted down after he has fled the Dalton home. How would this manhunt have been different if Bigger were white?
When Bigger flees the Dalton house after the press finds the bones, he frantically tries to find somewhere to hide. After killing Bessie, he moves from apartment to apartment, hoping that the police will not find him. The more that he runs, though, the more evident it becomes to him that he will be caught. There are so many police officers out there searching for him, and there are only so many places that he can hide within the black belt. This is the only place where he can be and the police know this. This is what makes it so easy for the police to find him. He is confined to one small corner of the city. The police know exactly where to start looking for Bigger. The headline for a newspaper article reveals this: “FIVE THOUSAND POLICE SURROUND BLACK BELT” (Wright 242). If Bigger were white, the police would have a harder time finding him because there would be a larger area in which he could hide. The whites have a much larger percentage of Chicago in which they can live. As Bigger moves from place to place, he sees that the police are closing in on him. He looks at maps that reveal the places that the police have already searched: “There was another map of the South Side. This time the shaded area had deepened from both the north and the south, leaving a small square of white in the middle of the oblong Black Belt…He was there on that map, in that white spot, standing in a room waiting for them to come” (Wright 255-256). It is only a matter of time before the police reach Bigger’s hiding place; it will be the last place in the city that they have not searched. The police are quick to begin the search and do not respect the black citizens privacy when searching for Bigger: “24-HOUR SEARCH FAILS TO UNEARTH RAPIST…RAID 1,000 NEGRO HOMES” (Wright 255). The blacks are not happy that the white police officers think that they can just barge into their homes in search of one black man. To the police officers, they think that all of the blacks are guilty and that any one of them could be harboring a fugitive. If Bigger were white, there would have been more places for him to hide, making it more difficult for the police to find him.
Chisom Oraedu (post 3 cont.):
ReplyDelete3. Mr. Dalton's private investigator, Mr. Britten, alternately expresses his hatred of African Americans and of Communists. After he interrogates Bigger, Bigger thinks to himself that "Mr. Britten was familiar to him; he had met a thousand Brittens in his life." What is it about Mr. Britten's thinking that makes him so easy for Bigger to understand, and how does Bigger intend to use Mr. Britten's prejudices to his own advantage?
Communists and black people are not to Britten’s liking, which is how it is for all narrow-minded, stereotypical white people of the time. It is ironic that Mr. Dalton would hire a private investigator that is the exact opposite of him. Mr. Dalton is very accepting of blacks and believes in equal opportunity for all: “’…these black boys never get a chance….as long as they do their work, let’s let ‘em be’” (Wright 163). While Mr. Dalton does not like Communists either, he would not outright accuse a black man of being one just because some Communist pamphlets were found his things. Mr. Dalton would be fair enough to consider the fact that maybe they are not his. Britten is not quite as cool-headed as this .He immediately and viciously accuses Bigger upon finding the pamphlets: “He knew now that Britten was trying to find out if he were a Communist…Britten was his enemy. He knew that the hard light in Britten’s eyes held him as guilty because he was black” (Wright 161-162). Not only is Britten prejudiced against Bigger because he finds the Communist pamphlets, but also because he is black. Bigger understands that the fact that he is black is the main reason that he is accused, though. He has seen it many times before; there is a crime and the whites automatically assume that a black man did it. Britten even reveals outright to Mr. Dalton that he does not like blacks: “’Well, you see ‘em one way and I see ‘em another. To me, a nigger’s a nigger’” (Wright 163). Britten is very narrow-minded and stereotypical, which results in him immediately accusing Bigger of Mary’s disappearance. Once Bigger presents Britten with a solid excuse for why he has the pamphlets, he has no choice but to fix his attention on the only known Communist that has associated with Mary: Jan. If Britten had started the interrogation with more of an open mind, he might have discovered that it was actually Bigger behind the disappearance; instead, he let Bigger’s lies convince him that it was Jan.
1. bessie let's bigger control her. by letting him have this much power she is being pulled into his world. and i don't think she wants to be there. when bigger is in the restaurant and Bessie shows up he doesn't even wave back at her. this is showing that bigger doesn't care about her. also while bigger is running away from the police and he bring her with him she is being put into a mess that she doesn't want to be apart of. so after bigger purposly ignores her he puts her life at risk by taking her along. and when she tells him to take her home and says that she doesn't want to be apart of his situation anymore he tells her that she can't that she's already apart of it. so bessie is being pulled into a world that risking her life for a man that barley cares about her. so she is being put into a life that she hasn't chosen and wants to leave.
ReplyDeletethat last post was from deidre
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