notes of a native son essay summary

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“Notes of a Native Son ” (1995) is an essay by writer and public intellectual James Baldwin . Baldwin was known for his unabashedly honest and controversial critiques on race relations in America and Europe. “Notes of a Native Son” follows Baldwin’s reflection on his relationship with his father among the racial tension and resulting riots in Harlem, New York City.

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“Notes of a Native Son”: James Baldwin

James Baldwin was born on August 2nd, 1924. He grew up poor, the oldest of nine children, in Harlem, and worked part-time to help provide for the family. Very little is known about his relationship with his mother, but he referred to her as loving and caring. David Baldwin was actually his stepfather, and James never knew his biological father. He refers to his stepfather as his father.

Baldwin’s relationship with his father was always tense. James lived a life his father resented and warned against. He read books, liked to watch movies, and had white friends. He hardly spoke with his father, and “Notes of a Native Son ” is his attempt to reflect upon and give meaning to his relationship with his father.

“Notes of a Native Son”: Essay

The essay “Notes of a Native Son” was published in Notes of a Native Son (1955), a collection of essays originally published in various magazines and literary journals. The collection describes the burgeoning era of the Civil Rights movement through the autobiographical perspective of James Baldwin. “Notes of a Native Son” is an autobiographical essay organized into three parts and follows a narrative arc. Part one is an introduction, part two builds action, and part three has a climax followed by a conclusion.

“Notes of a Native Son” moves between societal observations by Baldwin to inner dialogues and reflections on his relationship with society and others, especially his late father. He’s paranoid he will inherit his father's bitterness and distrusting nature. He also fears the destruction that comes from hatred. He wrote it as a social commentary, intending his audience to be any American, white or Black, but especially young Black men like himself.

“Notes of a Native Son”: Summary

On July 29th, 1943, Baldwin’s father dies, and his last daughter, Baldwin’s sister, is born. Race riots have broken out in Detroit, Michigan, and Harlem, New York. On August 3rd, his father’s funeral was held, which was also Baldwin’s nineteenth birthday.

Baldwin and his family drive through the aftermath of the Harlem riots to Long Island. He reflects on his father’s world view, that an apocalypse is coming, and the surrounding destruction seems to confirm it. He had always disagreed with his father, but now with his father's death, and his own birthday, Baldwin begins to consider the meaning of his father’s life, and its relation to his own.

Baldwin and his father hardly ever spoke. There is little information he has about his father. His paternal grandmother was born into slavery. His father was part of the first generation of free Black people, and his exact age is unknown. Consequently, Baldwin is part of a generation that never experienced the Jim Crow South.

Baldwin’s father was handsome and proud, yet severe and cruel to his children. His children would tense up in his presence. He struggled to connect with other people, and was very unsuccessful in life. He was incredibly bitter, and Baldwin fears he has inherited that bitterness.

Baldwin had grown up in Harlem, in a predominantly Black community. Before his father’s death, he had spent a year in New Jersey, living among white and Black people. It was the first time in his life that he experienced the immense weight and power of white society and racism. Now he has begun to see the relevance in his father’s repeated warnings.

His father had struggled with mental illness, but no one knew that until he was committed to a mental hospital, where they learned he had tuberculosis and would die soon. His paranoia led him to insulate the family against their neighbors. He did not trust anyone and refused help despite the poverty and struggle to feed nine children.

Welfare workers and debt collectors were the only white people who came to their home. Their mother handled the visits, as his father was “vindictively” polite. Baldwin writes his first play, and his white teacher takes him to see a Broadway show, which his mother supports but his father reluctantly allows. When his father is laid off, the teacher continues to help the family, yet he never trusts her. He warns Baldwin that he can never trust any of his white friends.

His year in New Jersey exposed him to racism. Baldwin always conducted himself confidently, and this created tension with his coworkers at his factory job. It took four visits to a self-service restaurant to realize he wasn’t supposed to dine there. The repeated indignities ignite a rage in him, and it boils over at a restaurant he enters angrily. The frightened waitress’s reflexive answer leads him to throw a water glass at her. She dodges, and he runs out, barely missing violent patrons and the police, thanks to misdirection from his white friend.

Baldwin returns home to Harlem and notes that unusual combinations of people seem to be waiting for something everywhere. It’s 1943, and World War II is in full swing. Black soldiers are writing home and making the news about the racist and brutal treatment they receive during training down South. Baldwin, with his aunt, visits his father for the first time in the hospital, and the last time while he’s alive. They’re both distraught at the sight of him looking frail and shrunken, hanging on life support. The next day his father dies, and his last child, Baldwin’s sister, is born that evening .

Baldwin spends the morning of the funeral with a friend. She helps him find black clothes to wear. He arrives to the funeral slightly drunk. He reflects on the sermon that describes his father in opposing, flattering terms. Someone begins to sing his father’s favorite song, and he is transported to a childhood memory of sitting on his father’s knee. His father used to show off Baldwin’s singing ability when he was in the church choir. He remembers the one conversation he and his father had in which it was confirmed that Baldwin would rather write than be a preacher.

While Baldwin tries to celebrate his birthday, he hears gossip about an altercation between a Black soldier and a white police officer. The incident ignites the Harlem race riots, which do not cross into white neighborhoods but target and destroy white businesses in Harlem. He hates to see the destruction and feels anger towards the white and Black people who caused it. He concludes that being a Black man means living a paradox. One feels intense rage and bitterness towards the oppression of racism, yet they cannot let it consume them. It’s important to fight injustice everywhere. The fight begins within, and one must resist “hatred and despair.” He laments his father isn’t around to help provide him with some answers. 1

“Notes of a Native Son”: Analysis

The essay is a reflection of Baldwin’s relationship with his father and his attempt to make it a meaningful one. Below are the major recurring themes that appear throughout his reflection.

Intergenerational Trauma

Baldwin is concerned that he will become bitter and hateful like his father. He fears he has inherited his father's paranoia. He’s the first generation that has lived a life outside the Jim Crow South. The abuse and trauma of slavery is alive in his father. He’s cruel to his children and overly protective. His life has shown him that white people are not to be trusted. Even their immediate neighbors, and those who try to help, are rejected.

Sense of Belonging

Throughout the essay, Baldwin exists in a constant state of tension. He does not feel comfortable at home with his father. He mentions how his father's presence would paralyze his children with fear. When he returns home for his father’s funeral, he feels disconnected from the people in his neighborhood. Harlem feels strange, with unusual combinations of people waiting on steps and corners. He spends the morning before the funeral drinking with a friend instead of being with his family. When he passes through the aftermath of the riots, he feels frustration towards the destruction.

Truth versus Delusion

Baldwin grapples with the dichotomy between what people want to believe, and what is reality. During his father's eulogy, he feels the preacher gives an inaccurate description of his father. He’s described as kindly and generous, and Baldwin experienced the opposite.

His father’s paranoia created a hostile world. Even when people tried to help, his father was distrustful. Baldwin sees the painful reality of his father when he’s on his deathbed. His father’s death helps Baldwin through his own delusions. He didn’t believe his father’s dire warnings about the white world. Despite what Baldwin thought about himself, he had to learn the hard truth that as a Black man, he was not treated based on his character but his superficial traits.

The Self-destruction of Hatred

The mental and physical illness that Baldwin’s father experienced symbolize the all-consuming power of the hatred he felt towards the world. The physical destruction of Harlem from the riots mostly hurt the Black residents. Baldwin empathizes with the rage but recognizes that if he acts out in anger, it will only bring destruction to himself and others. He concludes he must live with that anger, but fight injustice whenever he can.

“Notes of a Native Son”: Quotes

Baldwin recognizes that hate is an internal conflict.

I imagine that one of the reasons people cling to their hates so stubbornly is because they sense, once hate is gone, that they will be forced to deal with pain.”

Only an individual can choose to resolve the bitterness within themselves. He saw his father gradually consumed by hate and died with it. Hardly any friends came to his father’s funeral. When Baldwin realizes the destructive power of hatred, he concludes it is easier to externalize this hatred towards others than doing the difficult task of confronting pain and trauma within.

Their legs, somehow, seem exposed so that it is at once incredible and terribly clear that their legs are all they have to hold them up.”

"Their legs" refers to Baldwin watching children go up to view his father's casket. Baldwin felt that no one should be forced to see his father’s corpse. The children have little say in the matter. Reflecting on his childhood, he remembers how helpless children are against the whims of adults. His family dealt with repeated abuses from his father. Essentially, they have no choice but to tolerate it until they have the ability and options to decide otherwise.

To smash something is the ghetto’s chronic need.”

Baldwin acknowledges that every Black person has a boiling rage within. It results from the repeated abuses and indignities from the oppression of racism. The need to destroy something comes from the powerlessness they feel against white supremacy. When an injustice occurs, such as the shooting of the Black soldier by the white police officer, the rage needs an outlet which resulted in the Harlem riots. He experiences this personally at the restaurant when he throws a glass of water at a waitress, after being told one too many times that he cannot be served because he is Black.

Notes of a Native Son - Key takeaways

• "Notes of a Native Son" is an essay written by James Baldwin
• In the essay, Baldwin reflects on his relationship with his father, or lack thereof.
• His father suffered from mental illness, and Baldwin is concerned he will inherit it.
• Baldwin draws parallels between his relationship with his father and his standing as a Black man in a white world.
• Baldwin concludes that he cannot let himself be consumed by hatred, and must do whatever he can to fight injustice.

1 Baldwin, James. Notes of a Native Son (1955).

• Fig. 1 - James Baldwin (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:James_Baldwin_4_Allan_Warren.jpg) by Allan Warren (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Allan_warren) is licensed by CC BY-SA 3.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)
• Fig. 5 - Notes of a Native Son (https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/ac/James_Baldwin_Notes_of_a_Native_Son.jpg) by Charles Gorham is licensed by CC BY 2.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)

Frequently Asked Questions about Notes of a Native Son

--> how is james baldwin's “notes of a native son” organized.

James Baldwin's “Notes of a Native Son” is organized into three sections.

--> What is “Notes of a Native Son” about?

“Notes of a Native Son” is a reflection on Baldwin's relationship with his late father.

--> What does Baldwin talk about in “Notes of a Native Son?”

In “Notes of a Native Son”, Baldwin talks about his relationship with his father, experiencing racism while living in New Jersey, and the race riots in Detroit and Harlem.

--> What is the genre of “Notes of a Native Son” by James Baldwin?

“Notes of a Native Son” by James Baldwin is an autobiographical essay.

--> Who is the intended audience of “Notes of a Native Son?”

“Notes of a Native Son” by James Baldwin was written intending his audience to be any American, white or black, but especially young black men like himself.

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How is James Baldwin's “Notes of a Native Son” organized?

James Baldwin's “Notes of a Native Son” is organized into three sections.

What is “Notes of a Native Son” about?

“Notes of a Native Son” is a reflection on Baldwin's relationship with his late father.

What does Baldwin talk about in “Notes of a Native Son?”

In “Notes of a Native Son,” Baldwin talks about his relationship with his father, experiencing racism while living in New Jersey, and the race riots in Detroit and Harlem.

What is the genre of “Notes of a Native Son” by James Baldwin?

“Notes of a Native Son” by James Baldwin is an autobiographical essay.

Who is the intended audience of “Notes of a Native Son?”

“Notes of a Native Son” by James Baldwin was written  intending his audience to be any American, white or Black, but especially young Black men like himself.

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Notes of a Native Son

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Discussion Questions

In “A Question of Identity,” Baldwin explores the American in Europe without mentioning race. Is it possible to analyze a social situation that is intrinsically racialized without mentioning race? What insights might be lost? What insights might be gained?

In “Stranger in the Village,” Baldwin recounts some of his experiences in a remote Swiss mountain village. Do you think there is more possibility for positive interracial community in such a setting than in a major metropolitan center like Paris or New York City? If so, why? If not, why not?

Baldwin’s reading of Carmen Jones is geared towards the Hollywood industry generally, but since the time of his review, a small but significant independent Black cinema has grown. How might Baldwin’s concerns about Hollywood be addressed in Black independent cinema? How might you apply Baldwin’s analysis in “ Carmen Jones ” to other contemporary Hollywood films?

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Notes of a Native Son

James baldwin, ask litcharts ai: the answer to your questions.

Notes of a Native Son

By james baldwin, notes of a native son themes, the task of the writer.

Baldwin argues that the writer must be committed to uncovering the truth about himself and other people. For him, writing is "a devotion to the human being, his freedom and fulfillment." We see Baldwin's attitudes toward writing mostly clearly in "Everybody's Protest Novel" and "Many Thousands Gone" when he is criticizing other writers for creating stereotypes with their characters and taking the easy way out. Baldwin is against this approach. He writes "part of the business of the writer—as I see it—is to examine attitudes, to go beneath the surface, to tap the source." We see this approach across all of the essays here. He sets out to examine the meaning of race in America and to do this he turns to history, unconscious attitudes, and even his own family life and psychology.

Embracing complexity

Another important them for Baldwin is embracing the contradictions, complexities, and paradoxes in life. The problem with modern society, he argues, is that it is always trying to reduce people to something simple, to make them little more than cogs in the machine. It reduces people and things to the simplest common denominator. The goal of literature, by contrast, is to reveal the complexities hidden under the surface. The only way to improve the world is to accept the contradictions and bring them into the light.

History, society, and the individual

For Baldwin, the individual cannot be understood without grasping their historical and social context. We see this in the essay " Notes of a Native Son ," where he brings together his own family history, the history of the New York neighborhood Harlem, the conditions in America during World War II, and his own mental state. All of these aspects help create the individual, Baldwin argues. He is against what he describes as the American illusion that history and context do not matter and people should simply be seen as individuals. Similarly, in the essays written from Europe, Baldwin critiques American students and tourists who are completely unaware of how America's dominant position after WWII affects how locals see them.

Family relationships

The relationship Baldwin had with his father was a complicated one. Baldwin admits that his father had trouble connecting with his children. Baldwin remembers how his father tried to be more accessible to his children but that his children were too scared to get close to him and then the father would get even angrier, becoming violent at times. Instead of criticizing his father for his behavior, Baldwin eventually tries to understand him and the reason why he acted this way. Baldwin admits that his father’s behavior was most likely the result of his experiences as a black man in America. Baldwin sees a link between the rage that made his father emotionally unstable and the rage that exists within him. Yet Baldwin is also determined to act and live differently than his father did and not let the rage get the better of him.

Western civilization

Baldwin frequently describes the relationship of African Americans to Western civilization. Though he knows Shakespeare, Bach, Rembrandt, and other important figures in Western literature, music, and painting, as a black man the way he approaches these works is different. Because his ancestors were enslaved, removed from their culture, and brought to the American continent, he is both inside and outside of Western civilization. He describes himself as a "bastard of the West." Even the way he looks at a French cathedral or the Empire State Building is different than the way a white European or American looks at them: "These were not really my creations, they did not contain my history."

Birthright and inheritance

Baldwin separates the idea of birthright from that of inheritance. Inheritance is specific and particular. In Baldwin's case, this is his inheritance as a black man in America. Birthright, in contrast, is shared and universal; it connects him to all people. As we see throughout the essays, Baldwin starts from his specific inheritance (his family history, experiences with racism, way of looking at the world) to reach his shared humanity. Inheritance and birthright are separate but connected; one has to start from the specific to reach the universal.

Black and white

One cannot understand America without understanding race. Yet this does not only mean looking at the experiences of African Americans, though this is crucial. Baldwin argues that the racial system in America (the history of slavery, segregation, and so on) has also shaped what it means to be white in the country. Racism stems from the false attempt to act as if one can return to an innocent world before slavery and ignore the consequences of history. Yet Baldwin shows in these essays that the fate of both black and white Americans depends on acknowledging how interconnected their histories are. The future of the country depends on this.

Notes of a Native Son Questions and Answers

The Question and Answer section for Notes of a Native Son is a great resource to ask questions, find answers, and discuss the novel.

Note of a Native Son by James

This is really asking for your opinion. I don't know what meant something to you. It is a personal question.

In what month and year do the events of the essay take place?

Notes of a Native Son is a collection of essays written and published by the African-American author James Baldwin. Your question depends on which essay you are referring to.

What is the author’s goal in this book? And what kind of effect does he want his book to have in the world?

Baldwin believes that one cannot understand America without understanding race. Yet this does not only mean looking at the experiences of African Americans, though this is crucial. Baldwin argues that the racial system in America (the history of...

Study Guide for Notes of a Native Son

Notes of a Native Son study guide contains a biography of James Baldwin, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis.

• About Notes of a Native Son
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Essays for Notes of a Native Son

Notes of a Native Son essays are academic essays for citation. These papers were written primarily by students and provide critical analysis of Notes of a Native Son by James Baldwin.

• The Identity Crisis in James Baldwin’s Nonfiction and in Giovanni’s Room (1956)

Lesson Plan for Notes of a Native Son

• About the Author
• Study Objectives
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• Introduction to Notes of a Native Son
• Relationship to Other Books
• Bringing in Technology
• Notes to the Teacher
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Wikipedia Entries for Notes of a Native Son

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