I think the reason Tod Clifton is in the novel for the sole purpose of portraying what happens to a man who cannot become invisible. Not that the narrator WANTS to become invisible after leaving the Brotherhood, but he has little-no choice but to leave the organization and retire from well... life. Clifton then, represents the person who continues to fight the power, going a bit insane in doing this, and eventually getting killed. Personally, Clifton is a man who never understood the opportunity of becoming invisible.
Tod Clifton disappears from the Brotherhood because he is aware of their intentions. As a result he begins to lay low but he makes the mistake of still engaging in treasonous acts such as selling dolls that advocate racism. Instead of becoming invisible Clifton attempts to become a racist white man. When approached by a police officer Clifton thinks that he is invincible because he is "white" and attacks him, resulting in his death. To the narrator, this is an example of what not to do regarding philosophies. The narrator, unlike Clifton is exiled from the brotherhood, and chooses to rebel in secret while conforming to the white man instead of becoming him. Ellison does this to illustrate that regardless of how you act, your actions cannot transcend the barriers caused by race and skin color.
The narrator directly sees Clifton as a threat. Upon their first meeting, Clifton intimidates The narrator because of his stature and how young he was to hold a position of power. The narrator, finds much in common with him, because of their positions in Harlem and how well they are known throughout the city during the time of the Brotherhood's biggest moments. But when the narrator leaves, Clifton lives on as a man who is still well known in the community. Even when he leaves the brotherhood to sell dolls on the street, he is still recognized. This represents the difference between the narrator and Clifton. Clifton is unable to become invisible and does not conform to society and challenges it. The narrator on the other hand, as soon as he leaves is forgotten and becomes invisible to the people, his conformity allows him to do this. Ellison's purpose in making the two characters similar yet drastically different is to show how conformity makes the narrator who he is and to help him on his way to becoming invisible. but it also shows the discrepancies of conformity v.s. non conformity and trying to better your placement in society.
Todd Clifton like the Narrator were pawns to the Brotherhood. Once they did not meet the agenda of the Brotherhood, they were kicked to the side. They both seemed to be bright young men. The way they dealt with rejection is diffrent. Todd Clifton, resorted to the black sterotype, living a degrading life. However, the Narrator lived a happy life by becoming invisible. The author's purpose in doing this is to describe how that if you conform like Todd Clifton, you will live a degrading life but if you go your own way like the Narrator, you will find happiness.
The narrator is different from Clifton in the fact that he decided to passively rebel. Clifton continued to actively rebel even after he left the Brotherhood in the form of selling dolls without a permit. This active rebellion ultimately led to his death at the hands of the police officer. The narrator ,however, decided to change his method of attack and passively rebelled, leaching power and free board. The narrator continues to live his life, quietly moving through the stereotypes created by white men while Clifton slowly rots in a grave. Clifton was a bright candle slamming away the darkness only to be snuffed out. The narrator started out with the same screaming brilliance but transitioned to a softer glow that quietly held the darkness at bay until it's final days.
While at first the narrator sees a connection with himself and Clifton, as they are both black members of the Brotherhood, Clifton's eventual estrangement shows how different the two are. Clifton had practically been filtered out of the Brotherhood, but, though no longer a member, continued to actively rebel against the situation in Harlem in order to keep his voice heard. This was not a sane decision, as his selling of sambo dolls eventually gets him killed. Comparatively, the narrator chooses instead to passively rebel, seeing the dangers of going out with a bang and instead progressively trying to make a change. This contrast between Clifton and the narrator shows both irrationalities, as one is more extreme than the other, but both end up with a sour outcome (e.g. Clifton was killed for rebelling, the narrator was forced to become invisible in order to escape Ras and the Brotherhood).
Both the narrator and Todd Clifton rebelled against society; the difference is in their apporaches to it. The narrator always remainined discreet in his rebellion, even in the novel's prologue and epilogue. He leeched power from the electrical company, lighting up his "hole." He stayed with the Brotherhood before he was kicked out. Clifton took the opposite approach in rebelling. He chose to leave the Brotherhood, and rebelled even after doing so. He was vocal about his rebellion, selling sambo dolls on the streets and getting killed by a white cop for it.
Both Clifton and the narrator took part in the Brotherhood. The narrator was betrayed and left his outwards rebellion behind to live a life of solitude. Clifton left the Brotherhood on his own, and unlike the narrator, continues to have his voice heard and be a part of the fight against racism.
Todd Clifton leaves the Brotherhood when he notices that their intentions start to stray from the innocent original ideas so he left before he could be apart of the corrupted group. Clifton then continued to fight the white supremacy and support the black community. Clifton eventually was killed for his rebellion to the brotherhood. The narrator was betrayed by the Brotherhood as he stayed with them and once they turned against their original goals, the narrator left and had to become invisible to avoid the wrath of Ras the Destroyer and the Brotherhood.
I think the reason Tod Clifton is in the novel for the sole purpose of portraying what happens to a man who cannot become invisible. Not that the narrator WANTS to become invisible after leaving the Brotherhood, but he has little-no choice but to leave the organization and retire from well... life. Clifton then, represents the person who continues to fight the power, going a bit insane in doing this, and eventually getting killed. Personally, Clifton is a man who never understood the opportunity of becoming invisible.
ReplyDeleteTod Clifton disappears from the Brotherhood because he is aware of their intentions. As a result he begins to lay low but he makes the mistake of still engaging in treasonous acts such as selling dolls that advocate racism. Instead of becoming invisible Clifton attempts to become a racist white man. When approached by a police officer Clifton thinks that he is invincible because he is "white" and attacks him, resulting in his death. To the narrator, this is an example of what not to do regarding philosophies. The narrator, unlike Clifton is exiled from the brotherhood, and chooses to rebel in secret while conforming to the white man instead of becoming him. Ellison does this to illustrate that regardless of how you act, your actions cannot transcend the barriers caused by race and skin color.
ReplyDeleteThe narrator directly sees Clifton as a threat. Upon their first meeting, Clifton intimidates The narrator because of his stature and how young he was to hold a position of power. The narrator, finds much in common with him, because of their positions in Harlem and how well they are known throughout the city during the time of the Brotherhood's biggest moments. But when the narrator leaves, Clifton lives on as a man who is still well known in the community. Even when he leaves the brotherhood to sell dolls on the street, he is still recognized. This represents the difference between the narrator and Clifton. Clifton is unable to become invisible and does not conform to society and challenges it. The narrator on the other hand, as soon as he leaves is forgotten and becomes invisible to the people, his conformity allows him to do this. Ellison's purpose in making the two characters similar yet drastically different is to show how conformity makes the narrator who he is and to help him on his way to becoming invisible. but it also shows the discrepancies of conformity v.s. non conformity and trying to better your placement in society.
ReplyDeleteTodd Clifton like the Narrator were pawns to the Brotherhood. Once they did not meet the agenda of the Brotherhood, they were kicked to the side. They both seemed to be bright young men. The way they dealt with rejection is diffrent. Todd Clifton, resorted to the black sterotype, living a degrading life. However, the Narrator lived a happy life by becoming invisible. The author's purpose in doing this is to describe how that if you conform like Todd Clifton, you will live a degrading life but if you go your own way like the Narrator, you will find happiness.
ReplyDeleteThe narrator is different from Clifton in the fact that he decided to passively rebel. Clifton continued to actively rebel even after he left the Brotherhood in the form of selling dolls without a permit. This active rebellion ultimately led to his death at the hands of the police officer. The narrator ,however, decided to change his method of attack and passively rebelled, leaching power and free board. The narrator continues to live his life, quietly moving through the stereotypes created by white men while Clifton slowly rots in a grave. Clifton was a bright candle slamming away the darkness only to be snuffed out. The narrator started out with the same screaming brilliance but transitioned to a softer glow that quietly held the darkness at bay until it's final days.
ReplyDeleteWhile at first the narrator sees a connection with himself and Clifton, as they are both black members of the Brotherhood, Clifton's eventual estrangement shows how different the two are. Clifton had practically been filtered out of the Brotherhood, but, though no longer a member, continued to actively rebel against the situation in Harlem in order to keep his voice heard. This was not a sane decision, as his selling of sambo dolls eventually gets him killed. Comparatively, the narrator chooses instead to passively rebel, seeing the dangers of going out with a bang and instead progressively trying to make a change. This contrast between Clifton and the narrator shows both irrationalities, as one is more extreme than the other, but both end up with a sour outcome (e.g. Clifton was killed for rebelling, the narrator was forced to become invisible in order to escape Ras and the Brotherhood).
ReplyDeleteBoth the narrator and Todd Clifton rebelled against society; the difference is in their apporaches to it. The narrator always remainined discreet in his rebellion, even in the novel's prologue and epilogue. He leeched power from the electrical company, lighting up his "hole." He stayed with the Brotherhood before he was kicked out. Clifton took the opposite approach in rebelling. He chose to leave the Brotherhood, and rebelled even after doing so. He was vocal about his rebellion, selling sambo dolls on the streets and getting killed by a white cop for it.
ReplyDeleteBoth Clifton and the narrator took part in the Brotherhood. The narrator was betrayed and left his outwards rebellion behind to live a life of solitude. Clifton left the Brotherhood on his own, and unlike the narrator, continues to have his voice heard and be a part of the fight against racism.
ReplyDeleteTodd Clifton leaves the Brotherhood when he notices that their intentions start to stray from the innocent original ideas so he left before he could be apart of the corrupted group. Clifton then continued to fight the white supremacy and support the black community. Clifton eventually was killed for his rebellion to the brotherhood. The narrator was betrayed by the Brotherhood as he stayed with them and once they turned against their original goals, the narrator left and had to become invisible to avoid the wrath of Ras the Destroyer and the Brotherhood.
ReplyDelete