Native Sons

Knowing what I know as a reader, but also from the perspective of the jury, I would sentence Bigger to life in prison. I'm not sure if I believe in the death penalty at all, so I think this is a good alternative. I don't think he deserves to die because of what he did, even though he killed two people and raped one. As Max tried to explain to the jury, Bigger was scared because he knew that as a black man, even finding out he was in the room at all would be a crime. That certainly doesn't justify killing Mary, but it implies that it wasn't out of hate or anger like everyone seems to think. Society is a weird thing, and causes people to act out of their usual character when put into seemingly dangerous situations. Society is what told Bigger that being black is worse than being white. This is what Max is trying to get at. Society has progressively pushed Bigger to commit this crime, although indirectly. This is why I don't think Bigger should get killed for what he did. Yes, he murdered Mary and Bessie, and he should get adequately punished for doing so, but I don't think he deserves to die for it.