Hunger In Richard Wright's Memoir, Black Boy
Black Boy, a memoir written by Richard Wright, contained some of the most impactful memories from his childhood. From the start, it appeared that Wright struggled through a difficult childhood. He dealt with a great amount of racial discrimination and prejudice because he grew up in the Jim Crow South. He also struggled with the issue of extreme poverty. When his father left, his mother could barely get food on the table and bounced from job to job. Richard would constantly mention his physical hunger, but there was also this metaphorical hunger inside of him telling him that he must do something more with his life. Richard’s struggle with emotional hunger made him yearn for what he did not and could not have, specifically because he grew up
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Many blacks accepted this societal culture; however, this caused Richard to be even hungrier for freedom: “ I dreamed of going to the North and writing books, novels. The North symbolized to me all that I had not felt and seen…”(168). Richard, fully aware that he had not experienced everything due to this lack of freedom, strongly desired to change this. After realizing that limits existed in his life, he craved going to the North where he would be allowed to pursue his passions and have much more freedom. This hunger for freedom appeared once again when Richard began reading the novels by M.L. Hencken: “In buoying me up, reading also cast me down, made me see what was possible, what I had missed…I seemed forever condemned, ringed by walls” (251). By reading these books, Richard further realized the limitations that existed. He read about a variety of “possibilities” that he did not have access to, due to the great amount of restrictions this society had. Unfortunately, Richard felt almost claustrophobic and unable to live his life in the place he sadly called home. Living in a society where he was constantly restricted and told how to act, ultimately catalyzed Richard’s interest in moving to a place where he could pursue his passions and gain the freedom he
Many blacks accepted this societal culture; however, this caused Richard to be even hungrier for freedom: “ I dreamed of going to the North and writing books, novels. The North symbolized to me all that I had not felt and seen…”(168). Richard, fully aware that he had not experienced everything due to this lack of freedom, strongly desired to change this. After realizing that limits existed in his life, he craved going to the North where he would be allowed to pursue his passions and have much more freedom. This hunger for freedom appeared once again when Richard began reading the novels by M.L. Hencken: “In buoying me up, reading also cast me down, made me see what was possible, what I had missed…I seemed forever condemned, ringed by walls” (251). By reading these books, Richard further realized the limitations that existed. He read about a variety of “possibilities” that he did not have access to, due to the great amount of restrictions this society had. Unfortunately, Richard felt almost claustrophobic and unable to live his life in the place he sadly called home. Living in a society where he was constantly restricted and told how to act, ultimately catalyzed Richard’s interest in moving to a place where he could pursue his passions and gain the freedom he