Native Son (1940) is a novel written by the American author Richard Wright. The story revolves around 20-year-old Bigger Thomas, an African American youth living in extreme poverty in the “South Side” of Chicago in the 1930s. Wright portrays a systemic inevitability behind Bigger’s crimes, despite Bigger never apologizing for them. Bigger’s lawyer, Boris Max, makes the case that there is no escape from this destiny. This is because Bigger, or any other black American for that matter, is a necessary product of the society that formed them and told them since birth who exactly they were supposed to be.

Wright’s exploration of Bigger’s psychological corruption gives us a new perspective on the oppressive effect racism had on the black population in America in the 1930s. Bigger’s psychological damage originates from the constant barrage of racist propaganda and racial oppression he faces while growing up. The movies he sees depict whites as wealthy and sophisticated , while the blacks are depicted as jungle savages. Bigger and his family live in cramped and squalid conditions. They endure socially enforced poverty and have little to no educational opportunities. Bigger’s attitude toward whites in response to this is a volatile combination of anger and fear. He believes “whiteness” is an overpowering and hostile force that will forever be set against him. Just as whites fail to conceive of Bigger as an individual, he fails to distinguish between whites as individuals. To him, they are all the same, frightening and untrustworthy. Because of his immense hatred and fear, Bigger’s accidental killing of Mary Dalton does not leave him with guilt. Instead, he feels an odd jubilation because, for the first time, he has established his own individuality against the white forces that have conspired to destroy it.

Written by F. Scott Fitzgerald and published in 1925, The Great Gatsby is an American novel that follows a cast of characters and their experiences living in the wealthy Long Island town of West Egg in the “Roaring Twenties.” The story is primarily based on the extravagant, but also mysterious, life of a millionaire named Jay Gatsby.

The story takes place in the summer of 1922. Gatsby, who was in his thirties, threw lavish parties and was extremely popular in West Egg. This would change when his treacherous past is resurfaced upon meeting his former lover, Daisy Buchanan. It is discovered that Gatsby’s motivation for achieving such great wealth was in fact Daisy. Gatsby grew up in an impoverished family in rural North Dakota. However, his path to success was neither clean nor legal; he participated in organized crime, specifically the illegal distribution of alcohol and trading stolen securities. Upon his return from serving in World War I, Gatsby was determined to achieve wealth and success in order to win over Daisy, regardless of what rules he broke. Of course, nobody in West Egg knows Gatsby’s corrupt background, and so he is seen as an icon and celebrity. In reality, he is a solitary man who lives in his own personal bubble, trying to relive the past. When his friends try to help him better himself, he cannot because he is too caught up in his own world and refuses to change. He fails to accept the truth, which is that Daisy is now married to Tom and that he has essentially lived a lie. Gatsby’s theatrical approach to life would come back to haunt him when he accidentally runs over and kills Myrtle with his car. Gatsby becomes so much of a problem that Wilson goes to his mansion and shoots him.

Julian West, the narrator of this novel, was born into a wealthy aristocratic family in 19th century Boston. An insomniac, he built a sleeping chamber beneath his house to block out the various loud or distracting noises of the city streets. One night, a skilled mesmerist named Doctor Pillsbury assisted him in falling asleep. Julian’s house burns down while he was asleep, but is protected by his underground chamber. At the time, he was assumed to have died in the fire. A century later, Julian is discovered by Doctor Leete, who was preparing the site for the construction of a laboratory. Julian did not age at all due to being in suspended animation. He found himself in an entirely new and different world; this world no war and no poverty. With the help of Doctor Leete, Julian learns how these problems and conflicts were solved. Leete explains to him that the economy is based on the public instead of private capital. In comparison to the 19th century, the new world is an astonishing utopia to Julian. Everyone lives with  higher standards, technology is more advanced, and the economy is much more efficient than the one that Julian was used to.

A question to consider: What would the world seem like to us if we went back in time from 2018 to 1887?

The Red Badge of Courage is a war novel written by American author Stephen Crane. The story follows Henry Fleming, a young private of the Union Army, who flees from the battlefield during the Civil War. Overwhelmed with a feeling of shame, he searches for a “red badge of courage,” like a wound during battle, to counteract his cowardly actions. When his regiment engages the enemy again, he becomes the standard-bearer and carries a flag.

In the first chapter of the novel, Crane illustrates Henry’s initial fear of participating in battle. It also establishes that the predicament he’s in is less a matter of war than of knowing himself and his own worth. Until that point in time, Henry had been a youth of comfortable assumptions. He believed that war was meant to create heroes. He also believed that men, when transformed into soldiers, are guaranteed a kind of honor that grants them social and historical prestige. The purpose of The Red Badge of Courage is not to convey a message such as the transformation from an average man to a brave soldier. Crane’s goal is to chart Henry’s psychological growth as he learns more about himself and tests out different types of behaviors, some of them courageous, some cowardly. The Red Badge of Courage challenges Henry’s most basic assumptions: the courage that he finally discovers crucially depends on rewriting his own laws of life in order to understand the world in an entirely new way and know his place in it.

Written by Harriet Beecher Stowe and published in 1852, Uncle Tom’s Cabin is an American anti-slavery novel that is believed to have helped lay the foundation for the Civil War and fuel the abolitionist movement. A native of Connecticut, Stowe was an abolitionist herself. She wrote this novel to show the reality, brutality, and horrors of slavery in America at the time. Not only that, she also proved that Christian faith and love can overcome anything, even human slavery.

In chapter 18, Uncle Tom tries to get the abused and enslaved Prue to become a Christian and believe in God, for doing so will reward her with a place in heaven. Prue responds by saying, “‘I looks like gwine to heaven,’ said the woman; ‘an’t thar where white folks is gwine? S’pose they’d have me thar? I’d rather go to torment, and get away from Mas’r and Missis’” (Stowe, 225). From Prue’s perspective, slavery and racism were inevitable and unalterable truths about life, as she was seemingly programmed to comply with it by her master and his wife. Because of this, Prue thinks that if she accepts Christianity and reaches heaven, she will be a slave there as well. She unintentionally states that she would rather go to torment (hell) than be a slave in the eternal afterlife. Directing the novel at a primarily Christian audience, Stowe wrote these lines in particular to make the reader aware of just how miserable it was to be a slave during that time period.

The Pioneers is a 19th century historical novel written by James Fenimore Cooper. At the time the story takes place, America and its people are just starting to come into their own. The country is expanding westward, with people similar to those in The Pioneers searching for discovery and successful lives somewhere unfamiliar to them. The novel’s plot revolves around a group of pioneers living in Templeton, a settlement in the state of New York. They plan to explore the American frontier, and eventually begin to do so by the end of the novel. Using a definition appropriate for the novel, a frontier is the land or territory that forms the furthest extent of a country’s settled or inhabited regions. The frontier is unknown and unestablished land to the pioneers. However, it has a deeper significance. It represents opportunity, change, and progress for a young but rapidly growing nation. The 19th century pioneers of America were fearful of how their journey across this uncharted territory would turn out, but at the same time were optimistic of the promising opportunities that lie ahead.

A prime example of change is when Leatherstocking’s close friend, the Mohican Indian Chingachcook, dies. His death represents America’s fear for the displacement, and potential eradication, of the Indians. For over almost two centuries, European-Americans had been establishing states and territories from present-day Maine to Georgia and as far west as what is now Michigan, Illinois, and Mississippi. Pioneers were continuously advancing west, gradually phasing out Native American tribes. Since Indians had no concept of owning land and Americans did, they struggled to find common ground during this time of expansion in the late 18th century and well into the 19th century.

A question to think about:

Can the idea of the frontier be applied to modern-day America?

A Dialogue Between and Englishman and an Indian can be seen as a condensed, more personal version of Rowlandson’s Captivity and Restoration. The supposedly more civilized and sophisticated Englishman has a one-on-one conversation with the less civilized and savage Native American. The Englishman and Rowlandson share the same thoughts and ideas on Native Americans in general. It is not until the last line of dialogue that the Englishman has a change of heart in regards to his views on the Indian. What may have played a factor in this is how the Indian turns the tide on the Englishman by saying, “I know we are an uncultivated and unpolished people; but I am inclined to think there are some among the Europeans, and their descendants, as bad as we are, on many accounts.” After speaking with the Indian, the Englishman, like Rowlandson, finally realizes that Europeans really are not so different in terms of violence and cruelty. Rowlandson and the Englishman were ignorant people initially, firmly believing that their people and culture could do no wrong. What they were missing was that Native Americans are not savages and are in fact quite friendly and respectful people once they understood them. The Englishman is completely shocked by how well-spoken, and somewhat correct and reasonable, the Indian is. He and Rowlandson both admit that they had been mistaken and reject their prejudiced views of Indians.

Mary Rowlandson’s general view of the Indians that captured her are that they are uncivilized savages. She immediately gives a violent description of how the town of Lancaster was invaded by these “barbarous creatures” (9). They stormed through the town with guns blazing, burning down houses and attacking anyone in sight. A father, mother, and small child were beaten, while the other two members of the family were taken alive. The “murderous wretches” (4) shot and killed anything that moved. Another man tried to escape, but was quickly shot down. Terrified, he begged for mercy, offering the Indians money. The Indians rejected his offer, beat him, stripped him naked, then ripped out his insides. Mary witnessed this massacre unfold, all while being captured. The townspeople were either killed or captured, with their blood all over the streets and houses. Just twenty-four people, including Mary, were to be held captive, lucky to still be alive.

Before the invasion, Mary said she would rather be killed by the Indians than captured. However, when she actually encountered them, she changed her mind. She “chose rather to go along with those ravenous beasts, than that moment to end my days; and that I may declare what happened to me during that grievous captivity” (8). At that moment, Mary realized that people of her time and of future generations needed to know just how ruthless and barbaric these Indians were. Had she been killed, there would be one less account of personal experiences being captured by these perceived savages. It is important to know what life was like for people such as Mary to live in colonial times during the 17th century. The colonists had to live in constant fear of the Indians, hoping that a day so dreadful and brutal, like the one that is vividly described in Captivity and Restoration, would never occur.

A question to think about is this: How much of Rowlandson’s account is true? Could she be exaggerating her experiences in order to confirm the barriers of mutual understanding between the Europeans and Native Americans?