What hobby, talent, or interest do you have that
might lead to a satisfying career?
Make a list of people you could go to for
encouragement or advice about developing your
talent. Next to each name, explain how he/she
could help you.
Objective

 ELACC11-12SL1: Initiate and participate effectively
in collaborative discussions on grades topics, texts,
and issues, building on others’ ideas and expressing
their own clearly and persuasively.
By Richard Wright
Meet Richard Wright

 Author Background on pg 296
More details on his
Biography

 Born on a plantation near Natchez, Mississippi, on
September 4, 1908.
 Son of a sharecropper who deserted his family when
Wright was 5.
 His mother became ill, and the family moved to Jackson,
Mississippi with his grandmother.
 Grandmother tried to stop Wright from writing.
 His grandmother attempted to crush his imagination.
 Wright and his brother lived in an orphanage for a short
time because of family problems.
Biography

 He would recall his childhood as a “time of hunger.”
 For food, but also for affection, understanding, and
education.
 Although a very good student, Wright never graduated
from high school.
 Wright’s jobs in the South were marked by harassment
by whites and by his own disdain for what segregation
and racism had done to distort the humanity of his
fellow blacks, as he saw it.
Biography

 In 1927, Wright fled the South for Chicago.
 In Chicago, Wright seemed headed for a career
in the post office but was also determined to
become a writer.
 Wright found a circle of friends with similar
views in 1933 when he joined the John Reed
Club.
 It was a nationwide organization founded by the
communist party to attract writers and artists.
 Between 1933 and 1940 (the first major stage of
his literary career), communism was clearly the
major intellectual and political force of Wright’s
life.
Biography

 In 1938 four of his stories were collected as Uncle
Tom’s Children.
 He then received a Guggenheim Fellowship,
which allowed him to complete his first novel,
Native Son (1940).
 In 1939, he married Dhimah Rose Meadman, a
white dancer, but the two separated shortly
thereafter.
 In 1941, he married Ellen Poplar, a white
member of the Communist Party, and they had
two daughters, Julia in 1942 and Rachel in 1949.
Biography

 After moving to Paris in 1946, Wright wrote his
second novel, The Outsiders (1953).
 In his last years, he was plagued by illness (aerobic
dysentary) and financial hardship.
 Throughout this period he wrote approximately
4,000 English Haikus (some of which were recently
published for the first time) and another novel, The
Long Dream, in 1958.
 After his death on November 28, 1960, another of his
collections of short stories, Eight Men, was published.
 His most famous work is still his autobiographical
work, Black Boy (1945).
Building Background

 Page 296
Vocabulary Preview

 Look over the vocabulary words on page 296 before
you read. Know the word intuitive! You may see this
again!
As you read, you may want to jot down
notes… we will discuss in 30 minutes.
Short but Sweet

 On a piece of paper…
 If you could use only four sentences to summarize this
excerpt, what would they be?
 Pass it to your neighbor; comment on their summary
 Pass it again, comment, pass, comment (get yours back)
 Finally, adjust your summary utilizing the comments that
you received
Summary like this?

Richard Wright, an eight grade African American
student, writes a short story and submits it to the
editor of the local newspaper. The editor publishes
Wright's story and as payment, offers him a chance
to learn to write. Much to Wright’s dismay, his
family and friends react negatively to the
publication of his story. Nevertheless, as Wright
grows up, his desire to become a writer becomes
stronger.
Conclusion

 At the bottom of your sentences, revert back to our
theme of alienation.
 How does this theme apply to this excerpt?
Finally

 Review your journal entry…what do you think
would happen to your dreams if you received no
support from your family and friends? Would a lack
of support discourage you- or push you to achieve as
it did Wright? Write it.
Lastly…

 Memoir rubric due TODAY; memoir due TONIGHT
via student portal
 Extra Credit Letter assignment—on website; due
9/29 for revisions first
 The Veldt story copies??
 Tonight is Curriculum Night. Parents usually only;
you can come but zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz  Come if you
have too.