Study Questions & Essay Topics
Study Questions
1. Why do you
think Wright titled his autobiography
Black Boy?
2. Why does Richard's
family treat him so harshly? How does this treatment affect our
impression of the family?
3. Discuss the
role of art in Richard's life. How does Richard talk about art?
Does he value art? What significance do Richard's feelings about
art have for an overall interpretation of
Black Boy?
Suggested Essay Topics
1. Describe the evolution of
Richard's attitude toward white people. At what points do we detect
a shift in his attitude?
2. In what ways does Wright,
as an adult writing his autobiography in retrospect, color the description
of events and experiences as they unfold?
3. Discuss Richard's thoughts
on stealing. How does he justify it? Does his justification of stealing
imply a justification for the violent way his family treats him
as a child?
4. Richard's mature character
is formed both by the kind of knowledge only gained through experience
in the world and by the kind of knowledge only gained through reading
books. With respect to Richard, does one of these types of knowledge seem
more important than the other? Why or why not?
5. What role does hunger play
in the autobiography? How does Richard view hunger at the end of
the novel? Has his attitude changed?
