-PROPAGANDA everywhere

what is propaganda?

chiefly derogatory information, esp. of a biased or misleading nature

used to promote or publicize a particular political cause or point of view

Anywhere you look in today's society, there's propaganda. Some people are naive enough to believe it, but the more intelligent choose to stay out. A big chunk has to do with politics. How many times do voting commercials play in an hour? The worst part is that the media exposes the propaganda everywhere and to everyone. Children, young adults, seniors, they all have to deal with it. When it comes time to elect a new president, mayor, alderman, etc. the radio and TV are practically bursting with false advertisements. The point of commercializing a person's position is to tell the people how great of a leader they will be and all. If the watcher really pays attention, however, it is very obvious that no message is being put out there. The only thing being said is how horrible other people are and why they shouldn't be elected. Is that making the people want to vote for them any more? In my opinion, not so much.
Another major product of propaganda is paparazzi and the media. Since we have so many new additions to technology, anything is possible for reporters and news people. A bad story about a celebrity can be turned a whole 180 degrees and make it look good in a magazine. Photoshop programs, cameras, and other devices are what make all the propaganda possible. Although it is very convincing most of the time, media cannot be trusted with important issues. They are falsely advertising and leading people to be biased, so they have no opinion for themselves.

BlackBoy.

Little Richard does not really seem so little. Reading Black Boy it seems as if he is at least 13 and able to take care of himself. He starts out very immature, but his ways change majorly throughout the story. At the beginning of the story, Richard burns his house down on accident. Was it really an accident? Whatever it was, he got "attention" for it, mostly bad. Not exactly what Richard was looking for, but it satisfied him for the time being. If burning a house down is just another little event in his life, you know Richard has it rougher than anyone can imagine.
The main thing that strikes the reader is Richard's sense of self. He seems to grow up and learn every single thing on his own. For a boy of 4 years, this is no easy task. "Living it up" in the saloons, bars, and roaming streets is all Richard can say about his childhood. Is this how he wanted to grow up? Probably not. But having a sick mother, family living far away, and no paternal support, what could he expect. Richard's strength is put to the test with every obstacle in his life.

lil' kids.

Richard? Cravings? Alone? Not in my opinion. All little children crave attention once in a while, some more than others. Richard is a not-so-fortunate young boy who lives in a dangerous area. He lived in the time of beatings and such. Growing up for Richard was more of a task he had to accomplish, rather than just something given to him.
Since Richard's dad had left him, he felt abandoned and a sort of hate towards him. Richard's mother, on the other hand, did everything to keep Richard and his brother alive. He craved that parental love, which seemed hard to express for his mother. Other than mental cravings, he had physical cravings. Richard was always hungry, to the point of pain and sickness. 
Physical hunger is not what I am getting at. Richard's bigger cravings were those for attention. An example is when he burned down his entire house. Curiosity definitely killed the cat. Speaking of, Richard also killed a kitten. Getting back at his father was the overall idea, but it did not come off like that at all. Since Richard thought his father paid no attention to him, he took his words and found a loophole. Killing the kitten seemed like a good idea at first, and it is what lead to fights and anger. 
When Richard burned his house down, it seemed as if everyone was against him. Even his own brother was there through it all, and the first to run to the parents and tattle-tale. Richard's curiosity lead him to trouble, but he knew what he was getting into. However, the attention (even if bad) satisfied Richard's needs at the time.