Invisible Man By Ralph Emerson (Thematic Preoccupation)

                    ( style="text-align: center;">THEMATIC PREOCCUPATION)

THEMES, CHARACTERIZATION, and NARRATIVE TECHNIQUES

 

 

 RACE RELATION (RACISM) AND IDENTIFY

 

 Racism is the discrimination between two different races.  In the novel,  racism is seen or treated as obstacles to individual identify.  As the invisible man who is a black American struggles to arrive at a conception of his own Identity, his efforts are fruitless because of the fact that he is a black man living in a racist American society. Throughout the novel, the narrator finds himself passing through a series of communities, from the Liberty Paints plant to the Brotherhood, with each charming out rules or ideas of how blacks should behave in the society.  The more the narrator attempts to define himself through the values and expectations imposed on him, the more he’s forced to play an inferior role in his society.

             When he arrives in New York, the narrator enters the world of the Liberty paints plant, and it achieves financial success by making the blacks play lesser role over the white.  There, the narrator finds himself involved in a process in which white depends heavily on black both in terms of the mixing of the paint tones.  The factory denies the black of the final presentation of its product.  Racial discrimination is also seen when the narrator joins the  Brotherhood, he believes that he can fight for racial equality by working with the ideology of the organization, but he then finds out that the Brotherhood only seeks to use him as a token black man in its abstract project. 

             Also, the narrator also realizes that the racial prejudice of others causes them to see him only as they want to see him, and their limitations of vision in turn, place limitations on his ability to act.  He concludes that he is invisible because the world is filled with blind people especially the white counterparts, who cannot or will not see his real nature.  They cannot also see the plights of the black in a white dominated society. Consequently, the narrator is unable to act according to his own personality and becomes literally unable to be himself.  As a result, the narrator initially embraces his invisibility in an attempt to throw off the limiting race relation.  In the end, he determines to emerge from his underground to make his own contribution to society as a complex individual still on Liberty Paints Plant, the work force is primarily blacks but the final product is handled by the whites.  This is quite ironic because their slogan is “If it’s optic white, it’s the Right white” There is also a sign outside of the building that reads “keep America pure with liberty paints”.  This is a form of racism in itself because they only produce white paint, and they say that they are keeping America pure.

            Also, the narrator grandfather’s opinion made us to be conscious of racism.  On his grandfather’s opinion, they should pretend to be good slaves, behaving as their former master’s wish and on the other hand, they should remember their resentment and bitterness and fight against this fake identity, and that is the only way blacks can deal with racial discrimination.

              In conclusion, Ralph Waldo Emerson’s Invisible Man describes an American society, and his quest for freedom and self-nature makes the black call attention to their value and destiny.  The novelist creates a black, image who will have self-reflection on racial issues.  The narrator’s college, represented by Dr. Bledsoe, thinks that blacks can best achieve success by working hard and adopting the manners of speech of whites, while Ras the Exporter believes that blacks should rise up and take their freedom by destroying the whites. 

 

 Power and self-interest

 

             This theme revolves round the novel, and this contributes immensely to the conflict in the novel.  Firstly, the narrator encounters powerful, selfish and ambitious people.  For example, Brother Jack and the entire Brotherhood use people such as the narrator to build a stronger basis for their organization to fully show case their ideology.  Brother Jack uses the narrator also to establish fame of the Brotherhood ideology.  Brother Jack does not see the narrator as a friend or as a co-worker, but as a tool for the Brotherhood advancement.  This is a perfect example of a person who does things according to his self-interests.

              Another example of character in the novel who is drunk with power and ambition is Dr. Bledsoe, the two faced traitor.  Bledsoe’s motto is to act servile and submissive in front of the white, but is actually a man who belongs to nobody; Bledsoe is ambitious and selfish and has once told the narrator that if he has to kill and hang the black in order to keep his position, he should do.  That statement is most evident idea for readers to see that Bledsoe is a traitor to his own race.

             Bledsoe is also a man who would take any measure to gain what he wanted.  The anti-hero Griffin, who turns himself into an invisible man in order to gain power and glory should not be exempted from people who are ambitious.  The fact that several characters in the novel warns reader not to succumb to these vices.

 

 Ambition and Disillusionment

 

             Invisible Man which is known as a coming age novel deals with a certain ambitious young man who makes an attempt to rise up though a broken system that rejects and becomes completely hostile to him.  The narrator’s dream in the novel is to work hard to improve the conditions of the black race, but the more he tries to advance his dream, the more his hopes and expectations are dashed. His own experience mirrors the whole generation of young black individuals who expected that they could rise up in an increasingly equal society.  The ex-doctor from the mental hospital is a reflection of those dashed ambitions.  After receiving recognition in France, the ex-doctor learns that he will never be truly respected due to his race.  As he’s denied of his dignity the surgeon gives up all hope of recognition and ends up as another nameless member of the asylum.

            

 When the narrator joins the Brotherhood he feels as though he is beginning to achieve recognition.  But he quickly discovers that the actions of the brotherhood are designed to keep him in place.  The narrator being an ambitious person, but his dreams and hopes could not see the light of the day because of racism and number of irreconcilable differences in the brotherhood.  Also, the brotherhood’s betrayal culminates the riot at the end of the novel.  The narrator realizes that he has been kept out of affairs in order to help incite the riot without interference.  The narrator’s final retreat into the hole represents the final stage of the narrator’s disillusionment, though on an ambitious.  After completely dissatisfied with all existing institutions and accepted ways of behaving in the world, the narrator is patiently walking for the time to come when he can begin to achieve his aim.  By secluding himself in his hole, the narrator sees himself either as ambitious or butch of disappointment.  The fact that the narrator’s temporary stay in the hole and hoping to bounce back or advance his conditions, makes him an ambitious character.

 

Struggle for self-definition

 

             In the novel, the narrator’s desire to change the course of his story that makes the whites more important than the blacks contributes to the enormous struggles the narrator encountered.  No black man is allowed to rise beyond a certain level because of the problem of race and his desire to self-define himself.  The protagonist of the novel attributes his invisibility largely to his inability to define himself outside the influence of others. Almost everyone he encounters attempts to tell him who he is, and how he should conduct himself.

          

  At the college for instance, Dr. Bledsoe tells the narrator that he should smile and lie to please the white.  The narrator is given an honor to drive one trustee known as Mr. Norton and the narrator is reprimanded for his action at the pub.  Also, he is initiated into the brotherhood to become their spoke man, but their selfish aims and objective or too many unreasonable rules makes him back out in the end.  At first, the Brotherhood attempts to redefine him by giving him a new name and identity and by having him go through intense instructions to ensure he adapt to the organization’s philosophies. Fortunately, the narrator has to go underground in order to define himself.  He does this because he’s not able to finds solution to racial prejudice in his society.  His decision to go underground and come back later also portends that the narrator has not relent in his struggle to ameliorate the conditions of his society. This is evident in his enviable conclusion.  “In going underground I whipped it all except the mind. And the mind has conceived a plan of living must never lose sight of the chaos against which that pattern was concluded.  I must come out, I must emerge… And, as I said before a decision has been made, I’m shaking off the old skin and will leave it here in the white.  I’m coming out, no less invisible without it, but coming out nevertheless” (536).

 

Identity Crisis and Invisibility

 

              The narrator is and Tod Clifton are faced with the problem of conflicting pressures and uncertainty about themselves and their role in society. In the novel, the narrator is especially searching for his identify in the race dominated society, unsure about where to turn to define himself. As the narrator states at the beginning of the novel, “All my life I had been looking for something, and everywhere I turned something tries to tell what it was”. It is undoubtedly clear that the narrator’s blackness comprises a large part of his identity.

             However, invisibility doesn’t come from racism alone.  For example, when the narrator decides to work with Liberty Paint Plant, he becomes excited with the hope of equality or finding a natural ground with the white.  He feels that he has finally found his identify, unknown to him that it is the beginning of his endless search for one.  It is search for identity that makes him stage Tod Clifton’s funeral ceremony without-consulting the Brotherhood.  The Brotherhood also provides systematic way of thinking about the world that claims to be solution to racism and inequality.  The narrator at first, embraces the Brotherhood, thinking it would help him ascertain his missing identity as a member of the black race. The narrator at first embraces this ideology of the Brotherhood and structures his identity around it.  However, he comes to discover that the Brotherhood is perfectly willing to sacrifice him for their own selfish interest, and it is not what it truly represents.  Thus, this novel can be read not only as a story, but a black man’s struggle to find his identity or grow up and learn to be himself, against the backdrop of social pressure or racism.

            The theme of invisibility is also evident in the novel. The narrator puts on invisibility in order to express himself in a society that is not safe for the blacks.  He is visible only on the surface, but is really invisible. When the narrator is invisible, he is praised for the things he had done.  The narrator tries to announce and explain his invisibility at the beginning of the novel. “I am an invisible man… I have been surrounded by mirrors of hard and distorted glass. When they approach me they only see my surroundings. I am not complaining, nor am I protesting either. It is sometimes advantageous to be unseen” (3). Significantly, the narrator is invisible because the entire white race is too blind to see the conditions of the black in their society” their inability, to recognize and affirm their identity makes them blind and “vision-less. The narrator’s drastic measure and decision to go underground and return later portends his plan to fight back racial  prejudice and his invisibility would be cast off in the end.

 

CHARACTERIZATION

The Narrator

 

             The narrator is the protagonist and principal character in the novel.  His name and true identity is never mentioned.  The narrator begins and ends the novel as a type of embodied voice.  He addresses his story through the use of the first person narration. At the beginning of the novel, he explains the meaning of this invisibility.  “I am an invisible man…I am invisible understand, simply because people refuse to see me… it is as though I have been surrounded by mirrors of hard disturbing glass.  I am not complaining, nor an I protesting either.  It  is sometimes advantageous to be unseen”…(3)

            The narrator is gullible; for he’s easily deceived by the white and other people around him. He should have known that Dr. Bledsoe does not have any good intention for him. When Bledsoe gives the narrator the recommended letters, knowing fully well that Bledsoe initially yells and criticizes the narrator for showing the unpleasant side of the black community to Mr. Norton. The narrator refuses to believe that Dr. Bledsoe is trying to get rid of him through expulsion, little did he know that the letters were not of recommendation, but of rejection.

            

 Before the narrator joins the Brotherhood, he remains extremely innocent and inexperienced.  He is prone to think the best of people even when he has reason not to, and he remains constantly respectful of authority.  The narrator’s innocence sometimes causes him to misunderstand important events in the novel.  For instance, the narrator accepts his scholarship from the brutish white men with gladness. Although, he passes no judgment on the white man’s behavior.  The narrator remains vulnerable to the identity that society thrusts upon him as an African- American.  He plays the role of the service black man to the white man.  He also plays the industrious, uncomplaining disciple of Booker T. Washington during his college year, he agrees to act as the Brotherhood’s black spokesman, which allows the Brotherhood use him.

But the narrator also proves very intelligent and introspective.

             Finally, the narrator has retreated to underground, yet in the act of telling a story, the narrator comes to realize the danger of invisibility.  He concludes his story determined to honor his own complexity rather than subdue it in the interest of a group of ideology. Though most of the narrator’s difficulties arise from the fact that he’s black.  The novelist sees the narrator’s as a universal character- a direct representation of the struggle.

 

Dr.  Bledsoe

 

             Bledsoe is the president of the state’s college that the narrator attended and he is a black man.  Bledsoe is two faced, manipulated and a hypocrite- a traitor to both the whites and blacks.  His motto is to act servile and submissive in front of the white and is actually a man who belongs to nobody.  Bledsoe is ambitious and selfish and has once told the narrator that if he has to kill and hang the blacks in order to keep his position he should do so.  The statement is the most evident idea for reader to see that Bledsoe is a traitor to his own race.

              Bledsoe is also a man who would take any measure to gain what he wants.  When Mr. Norton told Bledsoe that the narrator is not at fault. Bledsoe would on the surface agrees with Mr. Norton, but behind him, do as he likes.  Bledsoe instead, expelled the narrator and sent him off with seven horrible recommended letters.  Even though the narrator fell for Bledsoe “on surface kindness”, this example showed the reader what kind of man Bledsoe is.  To the public, it appears as If Bledsoe is willing to help the protagonist, but as soon as the content of the letters are revealed, the protagonist or the readers, get to have more insight to his character.

             Bledsoe serves as a foil for the foreshadowed narrator; because both the narrator and himself find themselves in each other’s neck throughout the novel.  Because the novel is a bildungsroman, readers can make an assumption that the narrator will be normally developed as the novel progresses.  By the end of the novel, readers will be able to see the great differences between the mentality of the narrator and that of Dr. Bledsoe.  Bledsoe is also the figure of successful black man during that particular time, that is, to become a traitor towards the black and white.

             Also, Bledsoe represents Booker T.  Washington.  Both men are black and believe that they should remain submissive towards the whites Washington wanted the black to be submissive towards the whites and this is also what Bledsoe has been doing.

 

Brother Jack

 

             Jack is a local leader of the communist party who recruits the narrator to be their speaker.  He is also the leader of the Brotherhood, to point out the failures of abstract ideologies to address the real plight of African Americans and other victims of oppression.  At first, Jack seems kind, compassionate, intelligent and helpful; a real friend to the struggling narrator whom he gives money, a job and seemingly – a way to help his people fight against prejudice.  But as the story progresses, it becomes clear that the narrator is just as invisible to jack as he is to everyone else.

            Jack is a manipulator, because he sees the narrator not as a person, but as a tool for the advancement of the Brotherhood goals.  It later becomes clear to the narrator that Jack shares the same racial prejudice as the rest of the white American society, and when the Brotherhood’s focus changes, Jack abandons the black community without regret.  He is also a cunning man who only uses the narrator to assist the advancement of the Brotherhood.

Brother Jack does not only rob away the narrator’s ideas but also replace them with the Brotherhood ideas.  Brother Jack’s literal blindness is a metaphor for the flawed vision he possesses for the brotherhood. Brother Jack is not what the narrator thought he’s and not what we readers think he is.

              In Jack’s letter to the narrator, he demands that the narrator reconcile his past, focus on the collective, and use abstract jargon and ideology in his speech.  The letter reads, “Brother, this is an advice from a friend who has been watching you closely.  Do not go too fast.  Keep working for the people but remember that you are one of us and do not forget if you get too deep they will cut you down.  So take a friendly advice and go easy so that you can keep on helping the colored people”  (18).  Brother Jack also ridicules the narrator for treating Clifton’s death like a celebration of a hero.

 

Mr. Norton

 

             Mr. Norton is an old white man and a co-founder of the narrator’s college.  He is the brains behind the narrator’s expulsion and betrayal by Bledsoe.  Norton represents the white Northern Liberal who considers it his day to civilize blacks.  He feels compelled to help and enlighten blacks whom he considers as inferior people, lacking skills and intelligence to help themselves.

 Although, Norton appears to be a sincere and a generous man, he is simply a new breed of racist who exploits the blacks, as illustrated by his hand red-dollar donation to Jim.  Trueblood after listening to his horrific story of incest.  He is a supporter of all the evils perpetuated by the blacks. This action of his is seen when he rewards blacks for the abusing each other by tossing them brass at the battle royal. Both  Bledsoe and Mr.  Norton promote and perpetuate negative behavior among blacks. They are separated by class, but they share the common bond of race.

 

Rinehart

 

     A surreal (very strange) figure who never appears in the novel except  by reputation.  Rinehart possesses a seemingly infinite number of identities, among them include pimp, bookie, and preacher, who speaks on the subject of “Invisibility”.  When the narrator wears dark glasses in Harlem, many people mistake him for Rinehart.  He is also a con-artist who takes advantage of the people of Harlem in his roles as a gambler and a lover.

 

Jim Trueblood

 

              Trueblood is a black share cropper and a former singer and story teller.  He sexually assaulted and impregnated his daughter, Matty Lou and claims that it was the fault of his sexual dream, Jim Trueblood’s act of incest also reflects upon his name.  “Trueblood where his grandson and son being the same person.  To the black community, Jim Trueblood ”had brought disgrace to them (46), but to the white community, Trueblood is interesting and in return gained more attention and charisty than he did before. Trueblood’s character shows the readers how an unfortunate story about the blacks seems to entertain the white people but he does not understand this fact.

             When Trueblood tells his story to Mr. Norton, he makes the story sound as if Matty Lou is seducing him as he heard “her mumbling for a while…” like a woman” (56). Jim Trueblood therefore uses his story telling skills as an advantage to gain more attention and money, just like he did to Mr. Norton, with a hundred dollars bill.

              Trueblood therefore is like an outcast to black people but supported by the white people of the town after an accidental incestuous encounter with his daughter.

 

Brother Tod Clifton

             Clifton is an enthusiastic and charismatic young activist in the Harlem district, and the narrator is initially threatened by Clifton’s presence.  He is a determining leader of the youth of Harlem and he is a friend and ally to the narrator.  He is a black man who is very influential in the Harlem district Clifton often gets into disputes with Ras the Extort er who bashes both Clifton and the narrator for betraying their own race.  Even though Clifton is a very influential figure in the brotherhood and in the Harlem district, everything changed when the Brotherhood’s goal “changed” while the narrator is away on the woman question.

             His name is symbolic because “Tod” is a German name which means death.  This is a foreshadow to Tod Clifton’s disappearance from the Brotherhood, and his eventual death.

             Tod Clifton is a passionate, determined young man who just wants to change the youth of Harlem for the better.  When the narrator first meets Clifton, he thought of him as a “possible rival” (363).  But soon after the narrator realizes that Clifton is not interested in power, and just wanted to help the youth of Harlem.  When he disappears from the Brotherhood and the next time he’s seen is when he is at the street, selling Sambo dolls. Although, Clifton’s real reason remained a mystery. He later realizes that the Brotherhood is only using him as a pawn.  It is as if Clifton and the narrator are merely used only as puppet, so this is why Clifton himself opens the racist Sambo doll.

            Clifton unexpected death is what motivated and awaken the narrator’s spirit.  It makes the narrator think over the Brotherhood abstract ideology.

 

 

 

Ras the Extort er (later called Ras the Destroyer)

 

              Ras is a Black Nationalist agitator who considers the black men of the communist party traitors to their race because they are still acting as the white men’s puppets.  Ras is an Ethiopia name which means Prince and he is obsessed with the idea of race.  As a charismatic leader, he has a kind of God like power in the novel.  His guiding philosophy is that blacks should cast off oppression and prejudice by destroying the ability of white men to control them.  This philosophy leads to violence and the narrator is opposed to such ideology.  The novelist has not in any way portrayed Ras as a villain.

He is depicted as a West Indian and has reminded us of Marcus Garvey, a Jamaican born Black.  Nationalist who was influential in 1920s.  Like Ras Garvey was a charismatic racial separatist who advocated black pride. Ras is also a visionary leader and a prophet.  But because Ras is black, he is perceived as a dangerous militant and rabble-muser whose voice must be silenced.  He also possesses powerful oratory skills – he nearly convinces Brother Clifton that he has joined the wrong “Brotherhood” and is selling his people which eventually leads to tragic consequences.

 

Mary Rambo

 

            Mary is a kind black woman who takes the narrator in and lets him rent a room form her until he joins the communists and moves away.  She is a strong black woman who has learned to survive the violence and corruption of the city by relying on her inner resources.

             She is very accommodating and she provides the narrator with enough love and comfort when he becomes stranded and homeless.  After his harrowing experience at the Liberty Paint Factory, the narrator is grateful for Mary’s kindness and generosity.  Mary takes him into her home, cooks for him and nurses him back to health.  Even when he can’t pay his rent, she tells him not to worry.  She does everything humanly possible to demonstrate her faith in him and also opts to adopt him as her surrogate son.

             During this time, the narrator sees, Mary as the Saintly mother figure. referring to her as his anchor and guide, and appreciating her support and generosity.  But after he meets Brother Jack and begins to work for the Brotherhood, he sees Mary through different edges.  He finally leaves Mary without even saying a word of goodbye, confident that she will survived. Mary is a survivor who represents the courage and dignity of the black women.

 

Brother Hambro

 

     He is a well-educated communist, who trains the new speakers in communist doctrine.  The narrator trains with Hambro for several months before he is allowed to give public speech again.

 

Sybil

              A white woman whom the narrator attempts to use to find out information about the Brotherhood, Sybil instead uses the narrator to act out her fantasy of being raped by a “Savage” black man.  She is also the wife of a committee member of the Brotherhood and the narrator sleeps with her in an attempt to get information that could help him destroy the brotherhood.

 

Narrative Technique in Invisible Man

 

Point of View:  The novelist employs first person narration using the narrator as the central narrator throughout the novel.  We understand the story to be his perception; he is speaking out about his experience and, as he says in the epilogue, hopefully shedding light on things we might not have realized.  This treatment of other characters actually mirrors the way he himself has been treated; aside from the narrator.  The narrator’s experience and narration is semi-autobiographic in nature.

 

Likely WAEC and NECO 2020-2025 Questions

 

1.        Examine the theme of racial oppression or racial discrimination in

            Invisible Man.

2.        Argue that the narrator is like a pencil in the hands of Mr. Bledsoe, Mr.

            Norton and others.

3.        Discuss the significance of the title to the event in the novel.

4.        Comment on the assertion, “Mary Rambo is a woman with a good heart”.

5.        Discuss what happened at the Golden Day Bar.

6.        The narrator is used to advance and promote brotherhood.  Discuss.

7.        Describe the role and character of Mr. Bledsoe.

8.        Closely examine the relationship between the Narrator and Mary Rambo.

9.        Who is Jim Trueblood? Discuss, his role and significance in the novel.

10.      Discuss the role of Ras the Extorter as a charismatic leader.

11.      Trace the circumstance leading to Tod Clifford unexpected death and

            its significance in the novel.

12.      Write short note on the following characters (i) Mr. Norton  (ii) Rinehart 

            (iii) Mary Rambo

13.      Discuss Brother Jack as a manipulator and a schemer.

14.      Assess the theme of identity crisis and invisibility.

15.      Examine the theme of struggle for self definition.

16.     Power, greed and self interest revolve round the novel”.  Discuss.

17.      Examine the narrator’s trip to New York and its outcome in the novel.

18.      Examine the setting of the novel as a reflection of history.

19.     Compare and contrast Mr.  Norton and Mr. Bledsoe as characters.

20.     Give a full account of the Narrators encounter with the Brotherhood.