Personality Defects Of The Black People In A Pathological Society

Richard Wright is one of the most acclaimed African American writers who is praised as the "father of Modern Afro-American Novel" by the Western critical world. He has made indelible contribution to the maturity of American black literature. Native Son is Wright's masterpiece that is thought of as the landmark of American black literature. After its publication, the novel shakes the American literary circle and American society as well.The critics mainly focus their study of the novel on its themes and writing techniques.This thesis, by applying Karen Horney's psychoanalytic theories to analyze the black Americans especially Bigger's personality defects generated from the pathological society.This thesis consists of three parts:the introduction, the body and the conclusion.The introductory part makes a critical review of Richard Wright and his masterpiece Native Son,explains why the author of this thesis chooses the perspective of psychoanalysis and Native Son as the research topic, and introduces the questions discussed in this thesis.The body of this thesis includes three chapters.Chapter One explains the generation of neurosis of the black people in Native Son. The pathological environments make people feel helpless and insecure in a hostile world, such a feeling is defined by Horney as the basic anxiety. In this novel, the adverse environments arouse the basic anxiety of the black people, which generate their neurosis.Chapter Two mainly analyzes the three kinds of neurotic personalities.To cope with their basic anxiety, to search for security and to revolt against the pathological society, the neurotic black people form three kinds of neurotic personalities: compliance (move toward people), aggression (move against people) or detachment (move away from people).Mrs.Thomas is obedient and humble, craving affection and protection from others;Bigger is tough and brutal, trying to keep everything under his control;while Vera tries hard to avoid having contact with others, hoping to escape conflicts.Chapter Three studies the black people's neurotic selves—the idealized self and despised self. A neurotic person will create an idealized self for himself:Mrs.Thomas develops an idealized image of herself as loving and being accepted;Bigger images himself to be powerful and triumphant; and Vera thinks she is perfect while being aloof, who is a "hermit on the top of the mountain".When the neurotic people's idealized self comes under attack, they will turn to create a despised self to undervalue themselves, resulting in their personality defects.This thesis draws a conclusion that the black Americans'personality defects are the production of pathological environments. To change the hostile society to a harmonious one is not only the best assurance, but also an effective way to remedy the personality defects of the blacks.