I believe that society shouldn't receive the blame for Bigger's actions. Even though Bigger has grown up in a world where blacks and whites are separated, society doesn't govern the lives of its inhabitants. To me, "society" is a man-made perception, for which it can alter peoples minds and motives. And while the the dominance of white culture may have made Bigger fearful and angry, it didn't force him to kill. When Bigger murdered Mary, he wasn't acting out of rage or against oppression. Mary's death was an accident, made by a frightened man who's only thought, at the time, was for the safety and security of his job. In that moment, when Bigger realized what he had done, he did not see Mary has a white women, he saw her as a person. In the end, society does control the outcome of the situation (based off prejudice), but Bigger's actions are solely responsible to himself.
-Tyler Palmese
1 comment:
Yes, society can be somewhat responsible for how people react in certain environments. Bigger has lived in a world filled with oppression and hatred, so naturally he is going to notice the bad side of humanity first. However, that does not give any human the right to pin their actions on someone/something else. In the first moments after he killed Mary, Bigger had realized what he had done through "human eyes". Only after the fact did he start to involve race (pg 87 "black murderer").
Post a Comment