The Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison - Essay Example

Perhaps, it is through such attributes of the story that make it qualify as The Invisible Man. Earlier on, before joining the Brotherhood, his early experiences describe him as a naïve inexperienced person with natural charisma. He is an individual who harbors good thoughts of others, optimistic that everyone he meets deserves an equal measured of respect. He is a law abiding citizen who does not participate in most vices and mischiefs that occur in his neighborhood. The author lets the reader perceive the struggle of the narrator, who represents the African American culture in their struggles during the era of pre-civil rights unions (Orozco 22).

The narrator at the beginning the story thinks well of others despite having every reason to doubt their trustworthiness. The narrator is determined to make it in a society that is racially divide and one that has ignored his human rights. Despite the humiliation he is subjected to by the society, the narrator displays patience and succumbs to his fate (Orozco 64). While still at the South, the narrator proves to be hard working, portrayed by his great oratory skills in public speaking. As a result, he is honored to deliver the same speech to a group of important white men who visit the town.

He is eventually rewarded by a briefcase containing a scholarship to a prestigious African American college but after enduring a humiliating near-death blindfolded fight with other black men in a boxing ring. The illiterate nature of the narrator also comes out as he tries hard to imagine and figure out what the writing in his letter of scholarship letter. The narrator is portrayed as ignorant following the event that takes place in college when he decides to take the Mr. Norton to have a drink at a black owned restaurant. Mr. Norton is wealthy white trustee of the college and the narrator is mandated with the task of chauffeuring him around the college campus (Ellison 57).