Kelsey Crone
PAS 114 B
Professor Broadous
25 April 2012
Being
a Stranger to Yourself
"And
I love light. Perhaps you'll think it strange that an invisible man should need
light, desire light, love light. But maybe it is exactly because I am invisible. Light confirms my reality,
gives birth to my form." (Ellison.Prologue.6) In The Invisible Man, by Ralph Ellison, the journey to self identity
is followed through the eyes and thoughts of a black man living in the south
during the 1940s. Similar to the main character, also known as the invisible
man, Ralph Ellison grew up in a hostile society in the south, with the
influence of slavery all around him. Throughout the prejudice of Texas,
Arkansas, and Oklahoma, he grew up with the fighting spirit in his own home.
When his mother died, Ellison had to take the responsibility to raise his
brother and took refuge in a ministers' library, where he became fond of
literature and writing. (“Biography of Ralph Ellison”) In the book, the main
character considers himself to be invisible, because society refuses to see him
and he is without a name throughout the entire story. The main character is an
excellent writer and speech giver, who tries to manipulate and convince people
to see and acknowledge him. In his home, without being detected, he steals
power from the Monopolated Light and Power Company to power his 1,369 light
bulbs he has. Throughout his story, the invisible man describes his many jobs,
with one of them being a paint maker of the famous Optic White paint; made from
many different black bases. Through the complications of delivering a simple
speech, the symbolism of the many light bulbs in his home, and the Optic White
paint, the invisible man struggles to identify himself and his purpose. This struggle
is one of the main themes of the entire story that is reoccurring, and is
symbolized in many different ways.
The main character's invisibility first surfaces when he is to give a speech for the chance to win a scholarship. When he first arrives, unknowingly, to what is called The Battle Royal, he is told to fight men, blindfolded. This is to show the superiority that the white men have in society to keep the black men in a state of darkness, confusion, and fear; the white men become, in reality, more uncivilized. (“Invisible Man Notes”) After fighting, the invisible man (main character) is to then give his speech, with blood in his mouth and his muscles sore. As he begins to give his speech, the invisible man is ignored and laughed at. The white men ridicule the man as for he cannot speak loudly, due to the blood in his mouth. Trying to focus back on his speech, the main character accidentally says "social equally" when he in fact means to say "social responsibility". That's when the white men become serious and angry and questions what he meant by "social equality"; the main character quickly corrects himself and makes quickly for the door, inconspicuously. However, he is awarded with the scholarship he went in for. After being awarded, he reads the letter that he was given by the white men, and it read, at the very end, "...'Keep This Nigger-Boy running.'" (Ellison. Chapter 2.41) The actions of the white men, and how the black men were treated, show their lack of attention and concern for the black men's lives. The invisible man is ignored for what he is trying to achieve and mocked for what he is told to do. Even as he strives for the attention when giving his speech, and fights hard, he is still unseen to the world, and, in a way, to himself.
When the invisible man goes to his "home", he in fact just goes to his little hole in a wall. He lives in a basement, where he cannot be found or traced. In his little room, he has 1,369 light bulbs, which is said to be the number of Ralph Ellison's age squared when he actually wrote this novel. (Bulgakov) The main character has so many lights because he loves and desires light. He steals all of his power from the Monopolated Light and Power Company, and the company knows that it is being stolen, but they cannot trace to where it is being stolen, making the invisible man unable to be detected. These light bulbs relate to his invisibility due to the fact that the power is untraceable, and since society refuses to see the main character and refuses to acknowledge his existence, the lights bring conformity of his existence to himself, to know he is alive. As he says, "Perhaps you'll think it strange that an invisible man should need light, desire light, love light. But maybe it is exactly because I am invisible. Light confirms my reality, gives birth to my form." (Ellison.Prologue.6) he is totally and completely aware of his invisibility, and at the end of the novel, he accepts it which is why he lives in a small basement. He knows that the only way to manipulate society is slowly and undetectable. Another reason he considers himself "The Invisible Man".
What many people fail to recognize, is the color of certain buildings. The buildings in DC are white to symbolize that our nation was founded and built by white people. (‘Optic White’) What it doesn't show, is the hard work of many other races, specifically, black people. Most of the south's agricultural economy came from the work and of the hands of black people. As our nation has developed, many Americans still view our country as a "pure" white nation, just as society did in the 1940s. In the novel, the invisible man is instructed to make the infamous Optic White paint. In order to make the "purest" and "whitest" paint, he has to mix together a variety of dark bases. This symbolizes the position of black people in the workforce and in society; all of their hard work is put towards something, but the only results that one sees, is the white. To society, the black people and their work are invisible because society does not see it. The invisible man works and slaves over something getting done, and, in the end, he does not receive credit for it. This strips him of his individuality and of his manhood because any human being is proud of what they have accomplished and produced.
The main theme of this story is the invisibility that the main character has so much of, and the lack of individuality he has and the acknowledgment he has. Through his many attempts for people to see him and to be confirmed as a person, he fails to do so. His speech, light bulbs, and making of Optic White paint were all symbolized to portray the lack of power and rights the black people had in the 1940s. This reoccurring theme forces the main character to believe what society tells him that he is nothing. At the end of the story he accepts the fact that he is invisible, to himself and to society. He learns that being invisible isn't such a bad thing, but an advantageous one, for he can manipulate society without being traced.
The main character's invisibility first surfaces when he is to give a speech for the chance to win a scholarship. When he first arrives, unknowingly, to what is called The Battle Royal, he is told to fight men, blindfolded. This is to show the superiority that the white men have in society to keep the black men in a state of darkness, confusion, and fear; the white men become, in reality, more uncivilized. (“Invisible Man Notes”) After fighting, the invisible man (main character) is to then give his speech, with blood in his mouth and his muscles sore. As he begins to give his speech, the invisible man is ignored and laughed at. The white men ridicule the man as for he cannot speak loudly, due to the blood in his mouth. Trying to focus back on his speech, the main character accidentally says "social equally" when he in fact means to say "social responsibility". That's when the white men become serious and angry and questions what he meant by "social equality"; the main character quickly corrects himself and makes quickly for the door, inconspicuously. However, he is awarded with the scholarship he went in for. After being awarded, he reads the letter that he was given by the white men, and it read, at the very end, "...'Keep This Nigger-Boy running.'" (Ellison. Chapter 2.41) The actions of the white men, and how the black men were treated, show their lack of attention and concern for the black men's lives. The invisible man is ignored for what he is trying to achieve and mocked for what he is told to do. Even as he strives for the attention when giving his speech, and fights hard, he is still unseen to the world, and, in a way, to himself.
When the invisible man goes to his "home", he in fact just goes to his little hole in a wall. He lives in a basement, where he cannot be found or traced. In his little room, he has 1,369 light bulbs, which is said to be the number of Ralph Ellison's age squared when he actually wrote this novel. (Bulgakov) The main character has so many lights because he loves and desires light. He steals all of his power from the Monopolated Light and Power Company, and the company knows that it is being stolen, but they cannot trace to where it is being stolen, making the invisible man unable to be detected. These light bulbs relate to his invisibility due to the fact that the power is untraceable, and since society refuses to see the main character and refuses to acknowledge his existence, the lights bring conformity of his existence to himself, to know he is alive. As he says, "Perhaps you'll think it strange that an invisible man should need light, desire light, love light. But maybe it is exactly because I am invisible. Light confirms my reality, gives birth to my form." (Ellison.Prologue.6) he is totally and completely aware of his invisibility, and at the end of the novel, he accepts it which is why he lives in a small basement. He knows that the only way to manipulate society is slowly and undetectable. Another reason he considers himself "The Invisible Man".
What many people fail to recognize, is the color of certain buildings. The buildings in DC are white to symbolize that our nation was founded and built by white people. (‘Optic White’) What it doesn't show, is the hard work of many other races, specifically, black people. Most of the south's agricultural economy came from the work and of the hands of black people. As our nation has developed, many Americans still view our country as a "pure" white nation, just as society did in the 1940s. In the novel, the invisible man is instructed to make the infamous Optic White paint. In order to make the "purest" and "whitest" paint, he has to mix together a variety of dark bases. This symbolizes the position of black people in the workforce and in society; all of their hard work is put towards something, but the only results that one sees, is the white. To society, the black people and their work are invisible because society does not see it. The invisible man works and slaves over something getting done, and, in the end, he does not receive credit for it. This strips him of his individuality and of his manhood because any human being is proud of what they have accomplished and produced.
The main theme of this story is the invisibility that the main character has so much of, and the lack of individuality he has and the acknowledgment he has. Through his many attempts for people to see him and to be confirmed as a person, he fails to do so. His speech, light bulbs, and making of Optic White paint were all symbolized to portray the lack of power and rights the black people had in the 1940s. This reoccurring theme forces the main character to believe what society tells him that he is nothing. At the end of the story he accepts the fact that he is invisible, to himself and to society. He learns that being invisible isn't such a bad thing, but an advantageous one, for he can manipulate society without being traced.
Works
Cited
"Biography
of Ralph Ellison (1914-1994)." Biography of Ralph Ellison. GradeSaver.
Web. 19 Apr. 2012. <http://www.gradesaver.com/author/ralph-ellison/>.
Bulgakov,
Mikhail. "Points of Light." Light Bulbs «. The Ambiguities, 5 Apr.
2011. Web. 22 Apr. 2012. <http://ambiguities.wordpress.com/tag/light-bulbs/>.
Ellison,
Ralph. Invisible Man. New York: Vintage International, 1995. Print.
"Invisible
Man Identity Quotes Page 2." Shmoop. Shmoop, 2012. Web. 19 Apr. 2012. <http://www.shmoop.com/invisible-man-ellison/identity-quotes-2.html>.
"Invisible
Man Notes | Quotes." BookRags. BookRags. Web. 22 Apr. 2012. <http://www.bookrags.com/notes/inv/QUO.html>.
"Invisible
Man." SparkNotes. SparkNotes. Web. 22 Apr. 2012. <http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/invisibleman/section1.rhtml>.
"Invisible
Man Summary and Analysis." Invisible Man Study Guide : Summary and
Analysis of Prologue and Chapters 1-2. GradeSaver. Web. 22 Apr. 2012. <http://www.gradesaver.com/invisible-man/study-guide/section1/>.
"'Optic
White' in Invisible Man." "Optic White" in Invisible Man â 1950s
American Literature. 1950s American Literature, 12 Dec. 2012. Web. 22 Apr.
2012. <http://blsciblogs.baruch.cuny.edu/1950s/2010/12/12/optic-white-in-invisible-man/>.
