Native Son

On Sunday morning, Bigger wakes abruptly; his mother and siblings are still asleep. Remembering Mary, he begins to panic, and knows he needs to go back to the Dalton house and take the trunk to the station. Mary’s purse lies on a chair, and in his pockets, he finds his blood-crusted knife and the propaganda pamphlets Jan had given him about communism and racial injustice. Recalling the shame and anger he had felt with Mary and Jan the previous night, he plans to leave the pamphlets in his dresser at the Daltons’ and claim that he is afraid of communists and Jan had forced them on him. It is nearly seven o’clock. Gripped by anxiety, Bigger wonders if Mary’s body has fully burned. He momentarily considers running but changes his mind. Quietly, Bigger goes out into the snow and buries the purse and knife in a trash can. Back inside, he packs his belongings into his suitcase, feeling claustrophobic as he tries not to wake his family. Haunted by the image of Mary’s severed head, Bigger starts when his mother whispers his name.

Mrs. Thomas asks about the job and what had kept him out until after four.