1. What are some of the reasons that Bigger begins to trust Jan and Boris Max?
2. Why does Bigger attack Reverend Hammond and discard the cross Hammond has given to him?
3. What two incidents in the novel indicate that the author believes that the psychiatric profession has contributed to racism?
1. There are many reasons why Bigger begins to trust Jan and Boris Max. First of all, Jan told Bigger that he would defend and try to help him even though he had killed the woman he had loved. Moreover, before the actual trial when Jan was being questioned, he never said anything that might make Bigger’s situation worse. Additionally, Boris Max did everything in his power to make sure Bigger got the life sentence, not the death sentence. It can be concluded that Bigger begins to trust Jan and Max more when they did everything they could to protect him.
ReplyDelete2. There are two main reasons why Bigger attacks Reverend Hammond and discards the cross Hammond has given had given him. Through the years Bigger has had religion forced upon him and has seen that it does not help. He says that all people do is pray instead of trying to do something to make the situation better. It can be concluded that because Bigger attacked Reverend Hammond and discarded the cross because he was tired of something he sees as worthless being thrust upon him.
3. There are two incidents in the novel which indicates that the author believes that the psychiatric profession has contributed to racism. The first is when a black man who is considered insane by the white authorities is put into Bigger’s cell. The man may have been unstable, but what he kept on rambling on about it true. The other incident is when Bigger reads an article in which psychologists articulate African-American men unable to resist white women and see them as more attractive than their own women.
Comment By:
Leah Eisenberg
1. There are many reasons why Bigger begins to trust Jan and Boris Max. First of all, Jan told Bigger, “I just wanted to come here and tell you that I’m not angry,” (Wright 287). He also told him that he would defend and try to help him even though he had killed the woman he had loved. Moreover, before the actual trial when Jan was being questioned, he never said anything that might make Bigger’s situation worse. Additionally, Boris Max did everything in his power to make sure Bigger got the life sentence, not the death sentence. It can be concluded that Bigger begins to trust Jan and Max more when they did everything they could to protect him.
ReplyDelete2. There are two main reasons why Bigger attacks Reverend Hammond and discards the cross Hammond has given had given him. Through the years Bigger has had religion forced upon him and has seen that it does not help. He says that all people do is pray instead of trying to do something to make the situation better. Moreover when Wright writes, “It gripped him: that cross was not the cross of Christ, but the cross of the Klu Klux Klan. He had a cross of salvation ruing his throat and they were burning one to tell him that they hated him,” (Wright 338), it can be seen clearly that Bigger no longer sees the cross as a good thing meant to comfort him. It can be concluded that because Bigger attacked Reverend Hammond and discarded the cross because he was tired of something he sees as worthless being thrust upon him.
3. There are two incidents in the novel which indicates that the author believes that the psychiatric profession has contributed to racism. The first is when a black man who is considered insane by the white authorities is put into Bigger’s cell. The man may have been unstable, but what he kept on rambling on about it true. The other incident is when Bigger reads an article in the newspaper which states, “Professional psychologists at University of Chicago pointed out this morning that white women have an unusual fascination for Negro men. ‘They thing,’ said one of the professors who requested that his name not be mentioned in connection with the case, ‘that white women are more attractive than the women of their own race. They just can’t help themselves,’” (Wright 366). Wright makes it very clear that the psychiatric profession has contributed to racism.
Comment By:
Leah Eisenberg
1. There are many reasons why Bigger begins to trust Jan and Boris Max. First of all, Jan told Bigger, “I just wanted to come here and tell you that I’m not angry,” (Wright 287). He also told him that he would defend and try to help him even though he had killed the woman he had loved. Bigger believes his because he had, “an honest face,” (Wright 289). Moreover, before the actual trial when Jan was being questioned, he never said anything that might make Bigger’s situation worse. Additionally, Boris Max did everything in his power to make sure Bigger got the life sentence, not the death sentence. Moreover, Bigger saw that, in a way, Max agrees with him that Mr. Dalton donating a lot of items does not prevent people from being killed, and does not make up for the incredible difference in his and Bigger’s social and economic status. It can be concluded that Bigger begins to trust Jan and Max more when they did everything they could to protect him.
ReplyDelete2. There are two main reasons why Bigger attacks Reverend Hammond and discards the cross Hammond has given had given him. Through the years Bigger has had religion forced upon him and has seen that it does not help. This can be seen when preacher forcefully gives him a cross, he felt as though, “the preacher had trapped him,” (Wright 338). Everybody around him seems to be trying to trap him with religion. He says that all people do is pray instead of trying to do something to make the situation better. Moreover when Wright writes, “It gripped him: that cross was not the cross of Christ, but the cross of the Klu Klux Klan. He had a cross of salvation ruing his throat and they were burning one to tell him that they hated him,” (Wright 338), it can be seen clearly that Bigger no longer sees the cross as a good thing meant to comfort him. It can be concluded that because Bigger attacked Reverend Hammond and discarded the cross because he was tired of something he sees as worthless being thrust upon him.
3. There are two incidents in the novel which indicates that the author believes that the psychiatric profession has contributed to racism. The first is when a black man who is considered insane by the white authorities is put into Bigger’s cell. The man may have been unstable, but what he was rambling about was true. The man tells everybody in the jail, “I’ll tell’im you make us live in such crowded conditions on the South Side that one out of every ten of us is insane,” (Wright 344). Wright writes, “They unlocked the cell and grabbed the yelling man, laced him in a strait-jacket, flung him onto the stretcher and carted him away,” (Wright 344). The man believed that it was his professor who told the police to put him in the jail. The other incident is when Bigger reads an article in the newspaper which states, “Professional psychologists at University of Chicago pointed out this morning that white women have an unusual fascination for Negro men. ‘They thing,’ said one of the professors who requested that his name not be mentioned in connection with the case, ‘that white women are more attractive than the women of their own race. They just can’t help themselves,’” (Wright 366). Wright makes it very clear that the psychiatric profession has contributed to racism.
Comment By:
Leah Eisenberg
The first incedent of pychiatric profession was when the Negro man was brought into the same cell with Bigger. They believed the black man was insane and mentally unstable because he was writing a book about how blacks were treated bad and why they were treated bad. They think that he's crazy because he thinks he can take power over the whites if he can get to the President. They were both thought crazy because of the reason that they both went against the white oppression and thinking they could overcome.
ReplyDelete- Desiray Williams
1.Bigger begins to trust Max and Jan because they prove to him that they are on his side and are tring to help him. Max defends Bigger and becomes his lawyer to help not only Bigger but more african americans that are also under the same tension Bigger was.
ReplyDelete- Desiray Williams
1. Bigger begins to trust Jan and Mr. Max because he knows that they’re his only hope. He’s learning that not all white people are trying to hurt him and that some of them have good intentions. Bigger likes the feeling of having someone to talk too. He enjoys being able to confide to someone. No one has ever really taken the time to get to know Bigger Thomas. He used to being judged from his skin not from what’s inside of him and the way he thinks. Bigger tells Mr. Max the truth because he took the time to know who Bigger really was.
ReplyDelete2. I think that Bigger attacked Reverend Hammond because he didn’t want to believe in God. I think that he had tried to give up on God a long time before he got into all of that trouble. Throughout Bigger’s life he saw many blacks suffer and die, including his father. In times like the ones that Bigger endured it’s hard to believe that there is a higher being that’s supposed to protect him from all harm and danger.
3. The psychiatric profession has contributed to racism because in the book, psychologists went as far as saying that it’s impossible for a black man to control himself around white women. This sends of the impression that black men are like animals and not civilized human beings. This also sends off the message that black women are less fragile, delicate, and important as white women. Accusations like these make black women seem unattractive, unappealing and less than human as well. The second event would be when Bigger had too share a cell with another black man that was considered
- Kirsten Webb
1. Bigger begins to trust Jan and Mr. Max because he knows that they’re his only hope. He’s learning that not all white people are trying to hurt him and that some of them have good intentions. Bigger likes the feeling of having someone to talk too. He enjoys being able to confide to someone. No one has ever really taken the time to get to know Bigger Thomas. He used to being judged from his skin not from what’s inside of him and the way he thinks. Bigger tells Mr. Max the truth because he took the time to know who Bigger really was. Quoted from the text, “I know I’m going to get it. I’m going to die. Well, that’s all right now. But really I never wanted to hurt nobody. That’s the truth, Mr. Max.” Bigger spent his whole life hiding behind a wall. He did this in order to protect himself from the harsh words and treatment that was thrown at him every day. For the first time in his life he let down this wall, and Mr. Max was the first a person saw the real Bigger Thomas.
ReplyDelete2. I think that Bigger attacked Reverend Hammond because he didn’t want to believe in God. I think that he had tried to give up on God a long time before he got into all of that trouble. Throughout Bigger’s life he saw many blacks suffer and die, including his father. In times like the ones that Bigger endured it’s hard to believe that there is a higher being that’s supposed to protect him from all harm and danger. The book reads, “He had killed within himself the preacher’s haunting picture of life even before he had murdered Mary; that was his first murder.” Bigger didn’t believe the picture the preacher tried to paint him because he didn’t believe in the life after death that he was hearing about.
3. The psychiatric profession has contributed to racism because in the book, psychologists went as far as saying that it’s impossible for a black man to control himself around white women. This sends of the impression that black men are like animals and not civilized human beings. This also sends off the message that black women are less fragile, delicate, and important as white women. Accusations like these make black women seem unattractive, unappealing and less than human as well. The second event would be when Bigger had too share a cell with another black man that was considered crazy. It sounds like the jail wanted to keep the two “crazy” inmates in the same cell. The ironic thing is, every one kept saying that Bigger Thomas was not crazy.
- Kirsten
1. Bigger begins to trust Jan and Mr. Max because he knows that they’re his only hope. He’s learning that not all white people are trying to hurt him and that some of them have good intentions. Bigger likes the feeling of having someone to talk too. He enjoys being able to confide to someone. No one has ever really taken the time to get to know Bigger Thomas. He used to being judged from his skin not from what’s inside of him and the way he thinks. Bigger tells Mr. Max the truth because he took the time to know who Bigger really was. Quoted from the text, “I know I’m going to get it. I’m going to die. Well, that’s all right now. But really I never wanted to hurt nobody. That’s the truth, Mr. Max.” Bigger spent his whole life hiding behind a wall. He did this in order to protect himself from the harsh words and treatment that was thrown at him every day. For the first time in his life he let down this wall, and Mr. Max was the first a person saw the real Bigger Thomas. Mr. Max saw how defenseless Bigger was, how innocent he could have been, and how much potential he truly had.
ReplyDelete2. I think that Bigger attacked Reverend Hammond because he didn’t want to believe in God. I think that he had tried to give up on God a long time before he got into all of that trouble. Throughout Bigger’s life he saw many blacks suffer and die, including his father. In times like the ones that Bigger endured it’s hard to believe that there is a higher being that’s supposed to protect him from all harm and danger. The book reads, “He had killed within himself the preacher’s haunting picture of life even before he had murdered Mary; that was his first murder.” Bigger didn’t believe the picture the preacher tried to paint him because he didn’t believe in the life after death that he was hearing about. Bigger felt like he had went through his whole life without knowing God and he didn’t want to get to know him now.
3. The psychiatric profession has contributed to racism because in the book, psychologists went as far as saying that it’s impossible for a black man to control himself around white women. This sends of the impression that black men are like animals and not civilized human beings. This also sends off the message that black women are less fragile, delicate, and important as white women. Accusations like these make black women seem unattractive, unappealing and less than human as well. The second event would be when Bigger had too share a cell with another black man that was considered crazy. It sounds like the jail wanted to keep the two “crazy” inmates in the same cell. The ironic thing is, every one kept saying that Bigger Thomas was not crazy. Honestly I don’t think the man they put him in the cell with was crazy either. I think they were afraid that he knew too much and it could have led to an uprising. An officer said, “He went off after studying too much at the university. He was writing a book on how colored people live and he says somebody stole all the facts, he’d found.” I think the man was being set up and calling him crazy was an easy way to make his complaint unbelievable.
-Kirsten
1. Bigger starts more to trust Jan and Max because they are both on his side and try to help him. Max offers to help him so that he can provide a voice for more people like him. He wants to show the court that the racism is the reason that Bigger has done this. He believes that if they don’t stop that more other like Bigger will end up in the same situation as him. Also Jan is a communist so his intentions of a revolution to end racism show he cares even if his approach is wrong. They are trying to help Bigger make it through this situation and get the jury to understand why he committed this crime. They also want them to see the big picture which is that this oppression young African American boys face lead them down the same path.
ReplyDelete2. Bigger discards the cross that the reverend gave to him because he felt like God could no longer be of assistance. He felt powerless and started to lose all hope and faith. He decided that because he was caught and they were trying to pin other false accounts of criminal records on him that he was going to die no matter what happened. He also begins to realize that the cross he had once deemed as a symbol of God had turned out to be a symbol of death from the eager members of the Klu Klux Klan. This made him even more reluctant to take this and try to have the faith that he could make it out of this.
3. The scholar that is in the cell with Bigger is called crazy because he say he has found evidence to why racism is in place. The officers took all his evidence and papers and threw him in jail. This could be considered a cover up because if he was truly crazy he should have psychiatric help instead of being incarcerated. Another form of ‘psychiatric profession’ is when the newspaper article was by a scientist making statements towards Bigger about not being able to resist white women. They tried to boost up their women and portray them as a rare and precious item. For Bigger to have done this to a white woman he had to have been mentally unstable.
- Desiray Williams