Wakefield

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  “In some old magazine or newspaper I recollect a story, told as truth, of a man—let us call him Wakefield—who absented himself for a long time from his wife. The fact, thus abstractedly stated, is not very uncommon, nor, without a proper distinction of circumstances, to be condemned either as naughty or nonsensical. Howbeit, this, though far from the most aggravated, is perhaps the strangest instance on record of marital delinquency, and, moreover, as remarkable a freak as may be found in the whole list of human oddities. The wedded couple lived in London. The man, under pretense of going a journey, took lodgings in the next street to his own house, and there, unheard of by his wife or friends and without the shadow of a reason for such self-banishment, dwelt upward of twenty years. During that period he beheld his home every day, and frequently the forlorn Mrs. Wakefield. And after so great a gap in his matrimonial felicity—when his death was reckoned certain, his estate settled...

A Book With Surprising Lessons

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At first, I was not sure what to think. Many books in the box were written by the same author, which got me wondering if that was a good sign or a bad sign for this book sale. I realized the person selling the books was a former professor, well past retirement age, and I reasoned that this man does not read garbage and was "cleaning house." So I bought up every book he being sold authored by Richard Wright. And I devoured every book by Richard Wright.

"Uncle Tom's Children" stands out as the work that was most educational. I did not what to expect or think from the outset. This collection of fictional short stories are as brutally honest as his non-fiction. I read this after reading Wright's biographical work, "Black Boy" and was stunned by what Wright delivered. I have been educated.

My appreciation for a time, people and culture has been significantly and positively impacted by Wright's descriptive writing. He takes the reader by the hand and shows us the dirt, the blood, the smell of sweat in houses and kitchens, the feel of the heat of the day and the oppressive darkness of night. Wright introduces us to men and women who live, thrive or die trying.

My opinion is that students of literature and/or American history should read one or more of Richard Wright's works. Especially these generations so far removed from the source material.


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