The novel Invisible Man travels from one dramatic incident in the life of the narrator to another, and each adds to the overall meaning of the piece. Describe four dramatic incidences that have occurred in the novel and explain the message of each, as well as how each adds to the meaning of the last.
1. Battle Royal: the message is to convey blindness within the black population, adding meaning to the portrayal of oblivious black men.
ReplyDelete2. Near-Death experience after leaving the hospital: the message conveys a universal blindness (between all of society, as an abundance of people pass the narrator when he's fallen on the pavement), which adds to the meaning that the world (at least at this time) remains hopeless.
3. The Gala at at the Brotherhood Meeting: conveys the blindness of the white people, though they want to help, they are left naive to the black man's burdens.
4. Tod Clifton's Death: How hopelessness can contribute between all of society, but how anyone, despite their skin color, can overcome it.
1. Battle Royal: to show the dominance that the white men really had over all of black society and no young black man could see it. Like Charles mentioned before, being blind to it.
ReplyDelete2. The drive of Mr. Norton around the community and the trials that took pace. They convey the message that because of the poor examples of black people, the white men exploit this using them to convey a negative portrayal of the black people that the narrator is not.
3. The eviction meeting and speech: meant to describe the mindlessness and inability of the black people to notice that they had a say in how the community could be run without interference of the white man. When the black banded together they had a voice.
4. The first speech given by the narrator while apart of the brotherhood. This speech shows the narrator being blinded by light which would represent the blindness of black society as a whole. Also marks the first time that as a part of a group he awakened himself and other people of society making them become more active and human.
The first dramatic incident is the speech the narrator gave at the start of the book when he got beaten up. This shows how black people are being oppressed and how their ideas and voices are always put down.
ReplyDeleteAnother event was that of the realization about the letters from Dr.Bledsoe. This shows how the establishment of the society tries to keep free-minded people like the narrator at bay.
The speech the narrator gave at the eviction is another dramatic event. This is meant to show how that if the blacks band together and stay united, they can reach their goals. If they let the whites walk over them, the blacks would lose their rights.
Another event is the first speech the narrator gave at the brotherhood. This shows how the black community can be manipulated by words and can be swayed to think a certian way. The lights on the stage blind the narrator, which symbolizes the general blindness of the black community.
1. Battle Royal: This event shows how innocent black children are in their community, unable to see the true intentions of white people. This event sets the tone for the novel, showing the a harsh divide between the community standing of white and black people. This also segues into the narrator ending up in college.
ReplyDelete2. Expulsion from College and the Letters: The previous event shows that black people are subservient to white people in the novel, but this part shows that some black people appear to be subservient to other black people. This event also demonstrates how blind black people are to their surroundings when promoted to a position of power.
3. Eviction Speech: This event shows that when people listen to you, you gain a position of power and through this power you can advocate for change even if you are black. The last event demonstrates how much power Bledsoe has, and this event shows how he may have obtained this position.
4. Exile from the Brotherhood: This final event shows that although you may be prominent and advocating for change in your community, if you are black you are essentially invisible. As the last event shows that even if you are black you can make change, this event shows that there is always a white person in a higher position of power than you.
1. Battle Royal: This event begins the chain of cruelty and betrayal throughout the novel. It sets up the blindness motif as well using innocent black children who cannot see the true intentions of the white men.
ReplyDelete2. Bledsoe's Letters: The lies and manipulation used by Bledsoe to make sure the narrator would not be able to return to the college continues the betrayal and cruelty of the novel.
3. Explosion and Hospitalization: The betrayal and cruelty continues in this scene where a black "engineer" leaves the narrator to explode in the basement. Then in the hospital the white doctors and nurses experiment with electricity on the narrators body as he is unconscious and helpless.
4. Tod Clifton's Death: The death of Clifton continues the betrayal and cruelty towards blacks through police brutality.
1. Battle Royal. The catalyst to the narrator's journey, the Battle Royal is the narrator's first true exposure to racism and oppression based on skin color and stereotypes. It also begins the blindness metaphor with the blindfolds being placed over the fighter's heads while they continue to be blind from the cruelty at hand.
ReplyDelete2. Bledsoe's Betrayal. The narrator's eventual eviction from the college and finding of Bledsoe's letters makes him completely lose faith in a man who he thought was a great leader. This showed the narrator that cruelty can exist in many forms, and acts of cruelty can be committed even by those he trusted.
3. Liberty Paints. The "white is right" motif and the desertion by Brockway before the boiler explodes continues the acts of racism and cruelty. After his injury, the doctors who experiment on him further the cruel acts by repeatedly giving him electric shocks. Both of these scenarios show the narrator that he can't prevent others from (indirectly or directly) harming him and is powerless to do so.
4. Betrayal by the Brotherhood. The narrator's betrayal by the members of the Brotherhood was the straw that broke the camel's back. After being exposed to so much cruelty and manipulation, the narrator is forced to become the invisible man, in which his dream to actively rebel is crushed under the pressures of violence and racism.
The first-The Battle Royal: The Battle Royal was a fight club type event where white men took black teenagers, blindfolded them and forced them to fight each other. And the prize given to the winner was essentially worth nothing. It was an event of cruelty and bad intention.
ReplyDeleteThe second-The Letters: Bledsoe wrote the narrator letters of recommendation for the narrator to hand to possible employers when he is kicked out of the school, and these letters are the opposite of good recommendation letters. The are so negative and poor that he gets rejected from every job he applied to that he handed the letter in to.
The third-Explosion in the paint: An engineer in the basement of the paint facility, betrays the narrator by leaving him in the basement to explode from the machinery.
The fourth-kicked from the Brotherhood: This shows how while being a part of something that is supposed to be a good act, We learn how there is always going to be a white person in charge, even in this group to support the blacks.
1) The Battle Royal: It's symbolic of society at the time. White people were keeping black people beneath them socially by having them fight wiith each other, and enternaing themselves by doing so.
ReplyDelete2) Bledsoe's Letters of Reccomendation: The narrator had trust in Bledsoe after he was expelled from the college by him. He thought that his letters would guarantee him a job, only to find out they did the opposite after reading one of them.
3) Liberty Paints Explosion: After getting into a fight with his coworker, an explosion occurs, landing the narrator in the hospital. After he came to, the hospital staff give him electric shocks to try and "help" him. Both groups, white and black, have hurt the narrator in some manner.
4) Expulsion from the Brotherhood: Despite his contributions, the narrator was kicked out of the Brotherhood. Even though he himself was black, his own race was willing to betray him for their cause.
1. Battle Royal: The Battle Royal is the first real cruel and racism fueled event that the reader experiences, with many more to come. It also shows how white men use black men for their own benefit, in this case, for entertainment.
ReplyDelete2. Bledsoe's Letters and Betrayal: After trusting Bledsoe to help him this betrayal has a major effect on the narrator. Bledsoe lied to him and is attempting to ruin his future to make sure the narrator would not be able to return to the college. It also shows that the narrator can’t even trust those of his own race to have his back.
3. Hospital Torture: After the explosion at the paint factory, the narrator ends up in the hospital. Here, the white doctors electrocute the narrator in a sick form of ‘experimentation’, which should be called torture. The fact that hospitals are where you go to get better also makes this betrayal extra sickening.
4. Brother Jack’s betrayal: It first seems that the narrator has finally got a break when he meets Jack. He gives him money and a job, and seems to actually want to end racism. However, he was just using the narrator, and abandons him without hesitation when the views of the Brotherhood change.