ABSTRACT
Wright blew his readers away with the opening scene, the rest of Book One, and much that follows in Native Son. As we begin reading, we immediately hear an alarm clock clang in a darkened room, then in a flood of light see and hear "a black boy," a younger black boy, a "brown-skinned girl," a woman who is evidently their mother. Their names are quickly learned; also, since the boys must turn their backs while their mother and sister dress, it is clear that they live in one room, and this is soon made explicit. Relations among them are expressed in terms of impatience, surliness, and shame, as the mother berates the boys: "Bigger, shut that tiling off!"; "I got a big washing on my hands today and I want you-all out of here." No adult male figure—here's a "female-headed household" with typically hard female work. Without a break we confront the now famous scene with the huge rat, which is vividly described before being killed by Bigger. It is over a foot long, with pulsing belly and yellow fangs, and the family's reactions are understandable—the mother's screams, Bigger's wild and fierce pursuit and blows. Fear and violence surge: "Hit 'im, Bigger!", his brother Buddy shouts; "Kill 'im!", cries his mother. Bigger crushes the animal's head, "cursing hysterically."
