Introduction
This is a study guide to Black Boy written by Richard Wright.
Wright views the written word, and at times the spoken word as well, as all-powerful. Stories represent an escape from the harsh realities that surround him. His first taste of fiction leaves him with a longing for more of these tales of adventure and fantasy, and throughout his childhood and adolescence he pursues reading material and even produces it for others as a way of liberating himself from an unsatisfactory life in the non-fiction world. In both Jackson and Memphis Wright finds work in optical shops, hoping to learn a useful trade.
Perhaps coincidentally, the apprenticeship pertains to enabling and improving sight, the key sense in reading, which happens to be not only Richard’s favorite pastime but his passion and reason for living. Although he is bitterly discouraged by colleagues in both places, it seems that sight and the ability to read the word and the world are so important in Richard’s personal and professional life that he nevertheless remains willing to maintain this connection. Please click on the links for the study guide literary analysis category you wish to be displayed. Back and Next buttons can guide you through all the sections of Black Boy or you can choose to jump from section to section using the links below or the links at the left.
Author: Richard Wright
Published: April 29, 2008
Pages: 448 pages
ISBN#: 0061443085
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