Read the excerpt from Black Boy. “I’ll take that poker and hit you!” I blurted at my father. He looked at my mother and laughed louder. “You told him to say that,” he said. “Don’t say such things, Richard,” my mother said. “You ought to be dead,” I said to the strange woman. The woman laughed and threw her arms about my father’s neck. I grew ashamed and wanted to leave. “How can you starve your children?” my mother asked. “Let Richard stay with me,” my father said. “Do you want to stay with your father, Richard?” my mother asked. “No,” I said. “You’ll get plenty to eat,” he said. “I’m hungry now,” I told him. “But I won’t stay with you.” What does the excerpt convey about Wright’s personality as a child? He was stubborn and proud. He was afraid of his father. He was shy and deferential. He was easily influenced by others.

In literature, the way the narrator or author shows the reader the personality and other features of one character is called characterization. Characterization can take place in two main ways the first one is by the narrator describing the way the character is and the second is by presenting the actions, words, and reactions of the character that suggest their personality and identity. In the case of the excerpt from Black Boy a dialogue between a kid and his parents in presented as the kid seems to be unsatisfied with his father actions, in this case the use of expressions by the kid such as "I’ll take that poker and hit you!" to his father and "You ought to be dead" to his mother show and the way he expresses he does not want to stay with his father and it is not afraid or shy to make clear his point of view, show the personality of the kid can be defined as "stubborn and proud" considering his words and action reveal he wants to defend his point of view and contradict the adult's perspective. Thus, the excerpt shows the personality of the child is "stubborn and proud".