Black Boy

Black Boy (1945) is a non-fiction memoir by American author Richard Wright, detailing his upbringing. Richard Wright's early life is chronicled in Black Boy, an autobiography that looks at his tormented years in the Jim Crow South from 1912 to 1927. Richard recounts difficult and perplexing recollections in each chapter, leading to a greater understanding of the man who emerges, a black, Southern, American writer.

Richard Wright's family spent much of their life in deep poverty, enduring hunger and illness moving around the country in search of a better life. Wright cites his family and childhood environment as the primary influence in his writing. Specifically, Wright's family's religious presence throughout his childhood held a strong influence in both his religious outlook and his writing. Similarly, Wright's experiences growing up in poverty enduring hunger caused by the considerable distress that he referenced repeatedly in Black Boy. Most generally, Wright credits his influence of Black Boy back to the racial inequalities he sustained throughout his travels in America.

Wright becomes a member of the Chicago John Reed Club, a Communist Party club dedicated to enlisting artists to further the Communist cause. Wright discovers that his commitment to artistic autonomy and a more nuanced portrayal of the Black experience as an American underclass puts him at odds with the party's leadership.