Black Scare: Communist Disillusionment in Native Son and Invisible Man
by Staci Miller
In both Richard Wright’s Native Son and Ralph Ellison’s Invisible Man there is a common character: white members of the Communist party promising racial equality if the party rose to power. In both novels, these characters appeal to black men because they know the African-American community is unrepresented politically. Neither of the two major parties in America at the time are willing to commit the political suicide of speaking out for racial equality. The Communists in the novels know that a way to become a recognized political force is to gain the members of the black community which not only increases the party’s numbers but also furthers the idea that the Communist party is the most progressive party and the one that offers the most social change. While Bigger Thomas and our narrator in Invisible Man respond differently when approached by the party, the situation ends similarly for both: disillusionment brought on by the political agenda of those who try to use the race of another to further their cause.
In Native Son, Bigger is made to feel uncomfortable from his first encounter with white Communists he meets. When interviewing for a job with Mr. Dalton, Bigger is asked by Mary Dalton (who comes flippantly waltzing into the office where the interview is being held) if he is a member of a union. For a Communist this question is natural, unions are essential to creating a classless society, but for a black man who is trying to gain employment being a member of a union can be a major hindrance. Later that evening after Bigger has been employed as a driver for the Dalton family he is tasked with driving Mary to a lecture at a university. Of course being the rebellious young girl she is, Mary has made clandestine plans to meet up with her boyfriend and Communist comrade Jan. Jan and Mary force Bigger to sit in the middle of them where he is thigh to thigh with his pretty white employer causing images of lynchings to race through his mind. They then make Bigger take him to a restaurant in his impoverished black neighborhood by explaining to him that they are on the side of his people and that they want to see whites accept blacks as equals. It never occurs to him that the reason Bigger doesn’t want to take them to an establishment his friends frequent is because he will be shunned for being seen with white people. At the end of the night Jan forces Bigger to take a handful of Communist literature to read and then shakes Bigger’s hand. Bigger is terrified of both acts but submits because Jan is a white man.
It is clear that the Communists in Native Son are well intentioned but naive. Bigger knows the fear the ideas of the Communist party instill in the wealthy parents of Mary Dalton so he attempts to frame Jan. While it later becomes clear that Bigger was the murderer, his white prosecutors are convinced that he conspired with Jan as they can’t accept that a black man could commit this crime alone. Jan, however, is forgiving towards bigger and hires a lawyer, Max, to defend him. Bigger’s attorney, obviously also a Communist, blames the murders on the economic disparity and racial inequality Bigger lives in. When Bigger refutes these claims to Max, Max is convinced that Bigger is blind to the plight of his race though Bigger himself knows there is a more personal reason for the murders.
In comparison to the naive Communists in Native Son, the Communist group in Invisible Man (thinly veiled under the moniker The Brotherhood) are terrifyingly cynical. They very openly use the black community in Harlem to advance their party. The Brotherhood coerce Invisible Man into being their Harlem mouthpiece by offering him a large amount of money (upward economic mobility) and a chance to be preened by their brightest members (social equality through education). However it becomes obvious by the end of Invisible Man’s dealings with The Brotherhood that they do not wish to have an actual man as their representative, but rather a black puppet that they can use to sway the largest black community in the city, if not the nation. This becomes very clear when Invisible Man gives a eulogy at the funeral of a prominent black citizen which is not approved by the board that runs The Brotherhood. The Brotherhood express their anger with Invisible Man and make it very clear to him that while their organization is interested in the politics of local issues in order to attract members to the party, the ultimate goal is national recognition and eulogizing funerals is not in a national agenda.
Bigger and Invisible Man are both disillusioned by the party in the same ways. The party sees these black men not as individuals, but as a means to further a cause. The destruction of the individual is a cornerstone of Communist ideology, but for a group of people who are already judged to be the same because of skin color this destruction is even more devastating to the psyche. In both cases, Bigger and Invisible Man end up performing violent acts ignited by this destruction. Because the Communists in these novels see these men not as individuals but rather as gateways to an influx in membership, the party others the men until they cannot truly know who they are themselves.
by Staci Miller
In both Richard Wright’s Native Son and Ralph Ellison’s Invisible Man there is a common character: white members of the Communist party promising racial equality if the party rose to power. In both novels, these characters appeal to black men because they know the African-American community is unrepresented politically. Neither of the two major parties in America at the time are willing to commit the political suicide of speaking out for racial equality. The Communists in the novels know that a way to become a recognized political force is to gain the members of the black community which not only increases the party’s numbers but also furthers the idea that the Communist party is the most progressive party and the one that offers the most social change. While Bigger Thomas and our narrator in Invisible Man respond differently when approached by the party, the situation ends similarly for both: disillusionment brought on by the political agenda of those who try to use the race of another to further their cause.
In Native Son, Bigger is made to feel uncomfortable from his first encounter with white Communists he meets. When interviewing for a job with Mr. Dalton, Bigger is asked by Mary Dalton (who comes flippantly waltzing into the office where the interview is being held) if he is a member of a union. For a Communist this question is natural, unions are essential to creating a classless society, but for a black man who is trying to gain employment being a member of a union can be a major hindrance. Later that evening after Bigger has been employed as a driver for the Dalton family he is tasked with driving Mary to a lecture at a university. Of course being the rebellious young girl she is, Mary has made clandestine plans to meet up with her boyfriend and Communist comrade Jan. Jan and Mary force Bigger to sit in the middle of them where he is thigh to thigh with his pretty white employer causing images of lynchings to race through his mind. They then make Bigger take him to a restaurant in his impoverished black neighborhood by explaining to him that they are on the side of his people and that they want to see whites accept blacks as equals. It never occurs to him that the reason Bigger doesn’t want to take them to an establishment his friends frequent is because he will be shunned for being seen with white people. At the end of the night Jan forces Bigger to take a handful of Communist literature to read and then shakes Bigger’s hand. Bigger is terrified of both acts but submits because Jan is a white man.
It is clear that the Communists in Native Son are well intentioned but naive. Bigger knows the fear the ideas of the Communist party instill in the wealthy parents of Mary Dalton so he attempts to frame Jan. While it later becomes clear that Bigger was the murderer, his white prosecutors are convinced that he conspired with Jan as they can’t accept that a black man could commit this crime alone. Jan, however, is forgiving towards bigger and hires a lawyer, Max, to defend him. Bigger’s attorney, obviously also a Communist, blames the murders on the economic disparity and racial inequality Bigger lives in. When Bigger refutes these claims to Max, Max is convinced that Bigger is blind to the plight of his race though Bigger himself knows there is a more personal reason for the murders.
In comparison to the naive Communists in Native Son, the Communist group in Invisible Man (thinly veiled under the moniker The Brotherhood) are terrifyingly cynical. They very openly use the black community in Harlem to advance their party. The Brotherhood coerce Invisible Man into being their Harlem mouthpiece by offering him a large amount of money (upward economic mobility) and a chance to be preened by their brightest members (social equality through education). However it becomes obvious by the end of Invisible Man’s dealings with The Brotherhood that they do not wish to have an actual man as their representative, but rather a black puppet that they can use to sway the largest black community in the city, if not the nation. This becomes very clear when Invisible Man gives a eulogy at the funeral of a prominent black citizen which is not approved by the board that runs The Brotherhood. The Brotherhood express their anger with Invisible Man and make it very clear to him that while their organization is interested in the politics of local issues in order to attract members to the party, the ultimate goal is national recognition and eulogizing funerals is not in a national agenda.
Bigger and Invisible Man are both disillusioned by the party in the same ways. The party sees these black men not as individuals, but as a means to further a cause. The destruction of the individual is a cornerstone of Communist ideology, but for a group of people who are already judged to be the same because of skin color this destruction is even more devastating to the psyche. In both cases, Bigger and Invisible Man end up performing violent acts ignited by this destruction. Because the Communists in these novels see these men not as individuals but rather as gateways to an influx in membership, the party others the men until they cannot truly know who they are themselves.