The Symbolism Of Color In Richard Wright's Native Son

The colour white is a symbol used in many pieces of literature, representing purity, peace and innocence. Native Son by Richard Wright follows the story of Bigger Thomas, a young black man from Chicago during the 1930s, who accidentally kills a white woman and must deal with the repercussions. In this passage, Mr. Dalton, the father of the girl who Bigger killed, is being interviewed by the media, and the colour white repeatedly shows up. This reoccurring colour shows the innocence and blindness of the people it appears on, and shows how easily Bigger can stain his image if he makes a single mistake.

In this passage, Mr. Dalton is said to be “…white faced, holding a piece of paper in his fingers.” (Wright 189) Mr. Dalton is fearing for Mary, his
Dalton, Mary’s mother. Mrs. Dalton is blind, with white eyes, and pale skin. Wright says,” Then, suddenly, so suddenly that all the men gasped, the door behind Mr. Dalton filled with a flowing white presence.” (189). While Mrs. Dalton caused Bigger to kill Mary, her blindness symbolizes the blindness of those without experiences. Mrs. Dalton’s blindness requires her hand to be held, and for her to not sense what is right in front of her. Since Bigger has had “experience” by killing Mary, he sees the rest of the world as blind, and as him the only one who can see what society is truly like. The flashing lights of the press can also be a symbol of blindness in the passage. The press takes photos of Mr. and Mrs. Dalton with flashing white lights and blinding them at the same time. With the white lights, it shows that the brighter something is, the less likely one is from seeing the truth. The white cat on Bigger’s shoulder shows the blindness of those surrounding Bigger. The cat sits on Bigger’s shoulder while Mr. Dalton is being interviewed by the press about Mary, Bigger “feeling that the cat had given him away” (190). Yet, nobody suspects anything about the