NON-AFRICAN PROSE RICHARD WRIGHT: Black Boy What are the causes of Richard's problems with Aunt Addie?

Answer Details

In Richard Wright's Black Boy, the conflict between Richard and his Aunt Addie is one of the sharpest of his many clashes with his family. It arises from a combination of religious rigidity, misunderstanding, injustice and Richard's own fierce independence.

Religious fanaticism. Aunt Addie is a devout Seventh-Day Adventist and a teacher in the religious school Richard is made to attend. Her faith is narrow, joyless and severe. She expects unquestioning obedience and piety, but Richard, a natural sceptic who cannot swallow doctrine he does not understand, resists her attempts to force religion upon him. This fundamental clash of temperament, her dogmatism against his questioning mind, poisons their relationship from the start.

The injustice over the walnuts. The decisive quarrel breaks out in Addie's classroom. Smelling walnuts and seeing shells on the floor near Richard, she accuses him of eating in class. In fact the culprit is another boy sitting in front of him, but Richard refuses to inform on his classmate. Addie, convinced of his guilt, tries to beat him. Richard, knowing himself innocent, feels the injustice keenly and resists. The false accusation and the unfairness of being punished for another's offence turn dislike into open hostility.

The confrontation with the knife. Later Addie attempts to whip Richard at home for the same supposed offence. This time Richard fights back, seizing a knife to defend himself and warning her not to touch him. The violence of this confrontation shows how deep the antagonism has grown. Richard's willingness to arm himself against an adult relative reveals both his desperation and his refusal to submit to what he regards as tyranny.

Richard's independence and pride. Underlying the specific incidents is Richard's unbreakable sense of self. He will not lie, will not betray a classmate, and will not accept punishment he has not earned. His pride and his hunger for fairness make him incapable of the meek submission Addie demands. To her, this is arrogance and wickedness; to Richard, it is simple justice.

Conclusion. The problems between Richard and Aunt Addie spring from her harsh religious fanaticism, the injustice of the walnut accusation, her attempts to beat him for an offence he did not commit, and Richard's proud, independent refusal to submit or to betray others. The conflict is one more example in the novel of how Richard's individuality sets him at war with a family and a society that demand conformity.