Throughout the novel, I think that Wright uses communism in Jan and Mary to symbolize part of the American people. Mr. Dalton’s character is placed to represent white corporate America and Jan’s character is placed to represent the more understanding side of America. By bringing up the ideas of communism to a black man in a white society, Wright is trying to show the reader Bigger’s thoughts and fears through his reaction to the white society that surrounds him.
“As long as he and his black folks did not go beyond certain limits, there was no need to fear that white force.” On pages 114-115, Wright tells the reader how Bigger feels towards his black peers and how he wishes it were possible to gather all the blacks together and fight the white force. “As long as they lived here in this prescribed corner of the city, they paid mute tribute to it. There were rare moments when a feeling of longing for solidarity with other black people would take hold of him. He would dream of making a stand against that white force.” Although communism is a reoccurring motif in this novel, I don’t believe that Bigger is a communist in any way. His thoughts about Japanese conquering China, Hitler exterminating the Jews, and Mussolini in Spain show a more rebellious and violent nature rather than an attitude of bringing society together as one, or bringing equality to the blacks and whites.
Bigger wants violent revenge. He wants to bring the blacks together and to put their differences aside for an important cause. Bigger and the other blacks live in fear and shame. Later in the book, he classifies the feeling of being pushed into a corner with his back against the wall as rape. The actions against the blacks do not promote a feeling of communism in Bigger’s mind, but rather emotions of revenge and rebellion.
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