One character in Native Son that we didn’t get to talk about much in class was Buddy so I wanted to explore the relationship between Bigger and Buddy more. In the opening scene, the narrator refers to Bigger and Buddy multiple times as “the two boys” (3 and 4). They then work together to kill the rat. From just this interaction, it would seem that Bigger and Buddy are allied against the rest of the family. But when Bigger starts taunting Vera, Buddy avoids the conflict so it seems that he is less confrontational than Bigger and doesn’t just follow his older brother’s lead blindly. Other times though, Buddy enters a conflict on Bigger’s behalf. When Bigger is fighting with his mom about taking the Dalton job, Buddy tells her “Aw, lay off Bigger […] He told you he was going to take the job.” (11). When the family is eating breakfast the next day and Bigger is fighting with Vera, Buddy again takes Bigger’s side, asking “What’s wrong with you, Vera?” (109). When Buddy return