The specie of conflict exemplified in the Native Son is that of_______

Analyze the question: It asks for the type of conflict in Native Son (1940) by Richard Wright. The novel follows Bigger Thomas, a young Black man in 1930s Chicago.

Explain the concept: Literary conflict is usually grouped into these types:

• Man against man: a direct struggle between two individuals.
• Man against nature: a struggle against natural forces such as storms or the wilderness.
• Man against society: a struggle against social institutions, laws, prejudice, or systems.
• Man against self: an internal struggle.
• Man against culture: a clash with cultural values and traditions. This is common in African novels such as Things Fall Apart, where the clash is between traditional Igbo culture and colonial culture.

Solution (step by step):

1. Bigger Thomas lives in poverty in Chicago's South Side, in a society shaped by racism and segregation.
2. He is boxed in by housing discrimination, limited jobs, and a justice system that is biased against him.
3. He accidentally kills Mary Dalton, a white woman, and later kills Bessie. The tragedy comes from how the racist system shapes his fear, his choices, and his trial.
4. Wright's central point is that Bigger is a product of an oppressive society. The main force against him is not a single person, nature, or a cultural clash. It is the social and racial structure of America.
5. Individuals such as Buckley, the prosecutor, do oppose him. But they stand for the system, so this is not simply "man against man."

Answer: Man against society, which is option A.

Tip: For African-American protest literature such as Native Son, think "man against society" (racism and social injustice). For African novels about colonial encounters, think "man against culture" or a culture clash. Always ask, "Who or what is really oppressing the hero?" If the answer is a system, choose society.