Richard Wright was a young man of extreme intelligence and open to speaking his mind. Richard's writings in "Black Boy" are a compendium of his alienation, not only from white society, but also from his own people. In Richard's childhood, there was virtually no chance for a personality like his to develop freely. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay Everything conspired against personal freedom, not only the white social structure, but also the black social structure. Richard was treated brutally and tyrannically at home in order to prevent him from being treated the same or worse outside of his home and especially in white society. His family tried to impose a code of conduct on him so that in the presence of white people he would not be harmed. The family tried to impress upon Richard that black children should never strive to be more than black children; if they did, not only would they suffer a terrible fate at the hands of the whites, but so would their families. It was a method of limiting one's individuality, fortunately! For Richard, he overcame and aspired to become a great writer. Richard's struggle for freedom and individuality began at a young age, facing the brutality of his family and black society. We see this early on when Richard is beaten, almost to death, by his mother and father for burning down the house. It could be argued that the beatings were justified, but the extreme method of these beatings cannot be justified. It seems that Richard was more afraid of the punishment he would receive from his family than the punishment he would receive from the whites. He shows this when he gets into a fight with some white boys on his way to the grocery store and his mother keeps sending him shopping. “I have the choice to be beaten at home or away from home” (p20) He chose to fight the white boys rather than be beaten by his mother, this helped him build his individuality. This brutality within the family continued with other members of his family after his mother fell ill. This was to ensure that he learned the code of conduct he should follow towards white people. Richard's greatest difficulties were with Granny and Aunt Addie, as they tried to control his individuality. Richard attends the Seventh-day Adventist school run by his Aunt Addie and rebels against its strict rules. While at school, he was criticized and punished by his Aunt Addie for throwing walnut shells on the floor, which he had not done. Richard respected his street gang code of not reporting someone for the wrongs he had committed, because of this he was punished again. Richard did not excel in school even though his aunt was his teacher. Once Richard transfers to Jim Hill Public School, he excels academically and makes friends. Richard was ultimately abandoned as a lost cause by his family; they no longer expect anything from him, so he was free to do what he wanted. Richard is no longer the type to fight against his family to gain their approval, so he turns his rebellion outward. Richard, increasingly aware of a world outside his own, begins by asking his mother about white people. Richard thinks he may be late in learning how to perceive white people because he never really thought about them, they just existed. Furthermore, the fact that "the slowness in learning to perceive white people as white came from the fact that many of my relatives were.