Big Boy

Big Boy is the title character and <a data-internal-link data-link-type="Literary Device" href="https://www.supersummary.com/protagonist/">protagonist</a> of the story. The reader is never given a clear description of his physical appearance, background, or personality, but some of these details can be gleaned from the <a data-internal-link data-link-type="Literary Device" href="https://www.supersummary.com/narrative/">narrative</a>. He is an African American school-aged boy who is living in the rural South with his family. Their last name is Morrison, as seen when the elder calls his mother “Sister Morrison” at the end of Section III. The descriptions of Big Boy’s tattered clothes and ill-fitting shoes suggest that he is poor and of low social status. His ability to physically overpower his three friends suggests that he is strong, and his repeated battles for his life against Jim, <a data-internal-link data-link-type="Symbols & Motifs" href="https://www.supersummary.com/big-boy-leaves-home/symbols-and-motifs/#385692">the snake</a>, and the dog suggest his extraordinary will to survive. He is the first to be identified among the undifferentiated voices of his friends, and he’s singled out because he introduces a made-up word—“quall”—into their rhyming scheme, implying that he’s something of a rule-breaker. Big Boy is a dynamic character who changes over the course of the story. The dramatic plot action leads him to kill someone and go on the run to a new <a data-internal-link data-link-type="Literary Device" href="https://www.

Bobo, Buck, and Lester

Old Man Harvey, Bertha, and Jim

Big Boy’s Family

Literary Area of Study

African American Literature

Values & Ideas

Books on Justice & Injustice

History: U.S.

Civil Rights & Jim Crow

Society

Community

Social Issues

Sexual Harassment & Violence

Richard Wright

Adult

Short Story

Fiction

Guide

Study Guide

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Overview

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Big Boy Leaves Home Summary and Study Guide

Background

Big Boy Leaves Home Background

Story Analysis

Big Boy Leaves Home Story Analysis

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Character Analysis

Big Boy Leaves Home Character Analysis

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Themes

Big Boy Leaves Home Themes

Symbols & Motifs

Big Boy Leaves Home Symbols & Motifs

Literary Devices

Big Boy Leaves Home Literary Devices

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Important Quotes

Big Boy Leaves Home Important Quotes with Page Numbers

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Essay Topics

Big Boy Leaves Home Essay Topics

Big Boy Leaves Home

Character Analysis

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