Richard stealing

Eli Pardue
3/7/08
AP Lang Comp
LaMags

Explain Wright's moral dilemma in stealing. Is he justified in his decision?

When Richard contemplates stealing, he feels that if he steals, he will only reinforce the stereotype that had been placed upon blacks by the whites. He would only acknowledge the subservience that he so hates so much. By playing into exactly what they expect him to do, he justifies all of their suspicions of black worker boys stealing. More than that, he falls into the system that he has tried to escape for his entire socially conscious life. When he finally makes the decision to steal, he feels guilty, and promises only to steal until he has enough money to leave the south and head north.
Richard is both justified and not justified in making his decision to steal. He figures that at his current wages, minus the cost of living, it would take him two years to save up enough money to move north. With the scam that he took part in at the movie theatre, he made that money in less than a month. However, Richard also reinforces that black stereotype and creates more grounds for prejudice in the south. Despite this fact, Richard did the only thing he could do to further his social status and improve his quality of life.