理查．萊特是美國最傑出的黑人作家之一。在他的自傳《黑男孩》裡紀錄了他的一生。他用寫作來追尋他的權力和自由。黑人男性因種族歧視在父權社會裡的地位被貶低和黑人女性一樣。爲了取得男性的認同，萊特強調能幫助他脫離種族歧視，進入白人世界的教育和識字能力。此論文旨在探討萊特的黑人男性的認同取得是藉由超越挑戰黑人女性、白人女性、以及黑人男性三個階級的權力。第一章介紹作者生平及出版《黑男孩》時所受到的困境。第二章致力於探討萊特對於當時社會地位最低的黑人女性的刻板單調的負面形象描述，他塑造這樣的形象讓女性必須爲阻擋男性取得其男子氣概負責，成功挑戰女性的權威證明他能自我主張，擁有權力支配黑人及白人女性並取得男性的性別認同。第三章描述萊特如何藉由挑戰黑人男性來建立自我的男子氣概。因為認同父權制度下的白人男性權威，萊特以獲得的知識看輕黑人男性，並決定脫離黑人生活。第四章探討萊特身爲一個黑人男孩，如何在不停遷徙的過程中獲得知識。藉由獲得的知識，萊特學會如何從黑人家庭裡獨立自主，在白人世界中取得權力，並且追尋一個完全不同於黑人的生活。最後，透過知識的取得，萊特找到身為一個男性的身分認同，並且成為一個成功的黑人作家。但是，他的作品為了獲得白人讀者支持，選擇以負面的形象描述黑人，使得他個人的身分認同變得矛盾且充滿爭議性。

One of America’s greatest black writers, Richard Wright makes a masterful recording of his own life in the form of the autobiography, Black Boy. He finds a way—writing to quest for his dream of authority and freedom. Black men are degraded to the same status as women are in the patriarchal society. In order to acquire male identity, Wright emphasizes the effect of education and literary ability that can facilitate him to approach the white world dominated by the white men. This thesis aims to explore Wright’s construction of black male identity from the way he emulates and surpasses the three classes: black women, white women, and black men. The first chapter is an introduction to Richard Wright and the historical background concerning the publication of Black Boy. Through the literature review, I further my examination of his violent relationship with women and men, especially his negative treatment of women. Chapter Two explores how Wright challenges the women, the lowest rungs in the social and racial ladder to acquire his male-identity. In order to maintain his dominance over women, black and white women fall victim to his stereotyped and one-dimensional delineation in which they are responsible for blocking black men’s self-assertion. Chapter Three describes how Wright builds up his manhood and authority by emulating black men. Chapter Four explores how Wright as a black boy acquires literacy during the migration from the South to the North. Literacy helps Wright to be independent from the black family, and have power over black people. Conclusion holds that with the power of literacy, Wright subverts himself from an object to a subject and acquires his male identity. However, as a successful black writer, that he succeeds in the literary career at the expense of black people, especially women, makes his self identity dubious and problematic.

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