Invisible ManBy

Ralph Ellison

Copyright 1947

A work of fiction

Plot Summary

● A young, African American man attends college in the South

● Soon, he is kicked out and moves to New York where he tries to prove he is worthy of returning to school

● The rest of the story follows his various attempts at finding a place in society where he will fit in, and his ultimate realization as to where that place is.

Narrative Style

● First person narrator● Indirect Characterization

○ Example: Pg 163 (narrator) - "The [letters] were tightly sealed. I had read that letters were sometimes steamed open, but I had no steam. I gave it up, I really didn't need to know their contents and it would not be honorable or safe to tamper with Dr. Bledsoe. I knew that they concerned me and were addressed to some of the most important men in the whole country. That was enough." After reading letter - Pg 191: "I could not believe it, tried to read it again. I could not believe it."

○ ^Shows how he really trusted Dr. Bledsoe, without saying it outright.

● Reliable narrator- could be biased due to point of view

Literary Style

Syntax:● The author uses a mixed sentence structure.

○ Example - Pg 99 (narrator) - "Tears filled my eyes, and the walks and the buildings flowed and froze for a moment in the mist, glittering in winter when rain froze on the grass and foliage and turned the campus into a world of whiteness, weighting and bending both trees and bushes with fruit of crystal."

○ Example - Pg. 171 (narrator) - "No, the thing to do was to keep faith. I'd start out once more in the morning. Something was certain to happen tomorrow. And it did. I received a letter from Mr. Emerson."

● Prose is both florid and efficient - lots of description, but it is easy to understand basic action of the story. There's lots of dialogue as well.○ Example - (see above Ex. 1.)

Diction

● Relatively simple, but deeper meaning is often implied

● Ex: Pg 575 (narrator) - "'Agree 'em to death and destruction,' grandfather had advised. Hell, weren't they their own death and their own destruction except as the principle lived in them and in us? Weren't we part of them as well as apart from them and subject to die when they died? I can't figure it out; it escapes me."

Flow of story

● Some may feel the narrative was drawn out, but the plot was engaging enough to keep the reader interested. It also seemed like there was deeper meaning to every event that occurred.

Mood

● Mysterious● Hopeful● Devastated● Disillusionment● Reflective

Ultimately, the main narrative is used as a tool to describe the protagonist's revelation.

Structure

● Present tense monologue○ Prologue and Epilogue

● Past tense flashback○ Main Narrative

● dream sequences○ Foreshadowing

Example: In 1st italicized portion, says "'Hey Ras,' I called. 'Is it you, Destroyer? Rinehart?'"

Impact of Structure

● The reader feels like he has just been thrown into the action of the story after briefly being told that the narrator is "invisible." The reader then spends the rest of the book trying to figure out how the main character came to this point in his life.

Setting & Time Period

-Harlem Rennisance-no specific year mentioned-apartheid-heavy racial prejudice-African Americans starting to want rights-south vs. north - small southern town to Harlem, New York

New York:-stressful at first; shocking sights-becomes an exciting adventure-narrator searching for a purpose through the causes he is told to believe in (mainly equal treatment and rights)

Characterization

Protagonist: Unnamed narratorBeginning: naive searching submissive orator

Hurts:-Taken advantage of easily-Only sees what is presented outwardly in his heroes/the antagonists-Doesn't develop independence Helps:-Protected from reality

Characterization

Conclusion:bitterself-assuredheadstronginvisible

Hurts:-living in resentment-hopelessness

Helps:-enlightenment"Once you get used to it, reality is as irresistible as a club, and I was clubbed into the cellar before I caught the hint" (Pg. 572) - Narrator

Characterization

Major Antagonists: Brother Jack, Dr. Bledsoe, Ras the Exhorter

● All one character

-Power Hungry-Lost in their own ideals/justice-Abuse narrator's innocence

"Power is confident, self-assuring, self-starting, and self-stopping, self-warming and self-justifying. When you have it, you know it." (Pg. 143)-Dr. Bledsoe

-The antagonists embody their purpose with confidence in themselves and their actions, supporting their drive for barreling through any person, group, or obstacle that crosses their path

Relationships

● One character under or overestimating the other

-gives a clear message of dishonest communication and misguidedness-creates distrust for all characters

● All relationships help convey the overall message of limited individuality

-characters each pushing their own beliefs on others

Conflicts

The major conflict in the story was the battle inside himself, and blocking out the lifestyles and prejudices that were trying to engulf him.

Key Scenes

1. Kicked out of School2. Enters New York City3. Realizing that Dr. Bledsoe's recommendations were fake (turning point)4. Explosion at paint factory5. Landing job in the Brotherhood6. Clifton dying7. Race Riot ( Climax)

Key Quotations

● Pg. 16 (Grandfather) - "Son, after I'm gone I want you to keep up the good fight. I never told you, but our life is a war and I have been a traitor all my born days...Live with your head in the lion's mouth. I want you to overcome 'em with yeses, undermine 'em with grins, agree 'em to death and destruction, let 'em swoller you till they vomit or bust wide open."

Key Quotations Continued...

● Pg. 94 (Vet) - "He registers with his senses but short-circuits his brain. Nothing has meaning. He takes it in but he doesn't digest it. Already he is...a walking zombie! Already he's learned to repress not only his emotions but his humanity. He's invisible, a walking personification of the Negative, the most perfect achievement of your dreams sir! The mechanical man!"

Key Quotations Continued...

Pg. 13 (Narrator) - "All my life I had been looking for something, and everywhere I turned someone tried to tell me what it was. I accepted their answers too, though they were often in contradiction and even self-contradictory... I was looking for myself and asking everyone but myself questions that I, and only I, could answer."

Key Quotations Continued

Pg. 570 (Narrator) - "Still," I said "there's your universe, and that drip-drop upon the water you hear is all the history you've made, all you're going to make. Now laugh, you scientists. Let's hear you laugh!"

Theme Statement

When a young, naive African American with aspirations to lead a picture-perfect lifestyle comes in conflict with certain rules of society, in a situation in which he can not clearly perceive his own position in the matter, the results may be an uprooting of everything this man has ever known, which may lead to a discovery of ugliness in humanity, motivating him to take a stand and fight for his personal identity. He tries on new identities, and unable to find who he is, he experiments with 'invisibility', learning that he actually is invisible, in a sense, having been used throughout his whole life as a tool for others' profitable motives. The author, by presenting this struggle, is prompting the reader to contemplate whether re-emergence is possible.