Question

How does the theme of a struggle for power interact with the theme of racial oppression in Richard Wright’s short story “The Man Who Was Almost a Man”?
A.The black sharecroppers in the story are treated poorly by the white Mr. Hawkins. In turn, they treat Dave poorly, and all must struggle to retain power.
B.Mr. Hawkins is abusive to Dave, which is a symbol of white taking power from black, but Dave’s quest for a gun is an attempt for him to take that power back.
C.Dave’s parents have taught him not to let himself be taken advantage of by white people, and so he wants a gun so that he can feel like he has power over his boss.
D. Dave is powerless toward his parents, who make all of his decisions for him, so he must set out on his own with the gun at the end of the story in order to feel powerful.

Answer 1

The appropriate response is D. "The Man Who Was Almost a Man" is a start story, a story of a high school youth attempting to break free of adolescence and enter the universe of adulthood. Disappointed by being youthful, poor, and dark, David Glover grapples with the strain of needing to be a grown-up yet being seen as a youngster by the grown-up group.