Has the Invisible Man Become the Character We See in the Prologue

Throughout this weeks reading, we have seen the narrator progress more and more towards the version of him we see in the prologue. Many times before we have noticed a significant event or moment that impacts the narrator and leaves him changed, for example when he reads the letter Bledsoe sent to his “Acquaintances” in Harlem or during the operation in the paint factory hospital. In Chapter 23, the narrator discovers Rineheart and his many identities as well as the idea of invisibility and the “power it holds.” Ellison explicitly depicts the narrator’s epiphany about invisibility occurring and makes it seem as though it was something right in front of him the whole time. While we discussed the idea of this scene as a fundamental turning point for the narrators character, I also want to explore a scene one chapter back that I think is also important and leads up to this discovery.

At the end of Chapter 22, the narrator has just ended the meeting with Jack and the Brotherhood committee, which focused on the events that happened during Clifton’s murder and funeral. As we know, the Brotherhood is angry with the narrator and decides he must be disciplined. The idea of discipline is ridiculous to the narrator and he is appalled at their decision. Near the end of the meeting, the narrator begins to realize that he is actually invisible to Jack and the other members: “So that is the meaning of discipline, I thought, sacrifice, … yes, and blindness; he doesn’t see me. He doesn’t even see me.” Here we see the continuous theme of invisibility prevalent throughout the story but now, the narrator fully acknowledges its presence. After the meeting has adjourned the narrator realizes that although the he is not quite sure what to do about his findings, he knows things will be different from then on: “I would never be the same. Never. After tonight I wouldn’t ever look the same, or feel the same.” The narrator’s thoughts about invisibility further support the dynamic nature of his character and give yet another example of a changing moment in his life. This scene of realization leads to the discovery of Rineheart and the narrator ultimately confronting the idea of invisibility and fully “committing” to it.

The narrator has become increasingly close to the character we see in the prologue, but in my perspective, he hasn’t reached him quite yet. The character in the prologue has no ties to the brotherhood, or anyone for that matter, and lives how he likes, not caring for the cause he once fought for. After chapters 22 and 23, although the narrator is straying from the Brotherhood and its ideals, he hasn’t physically left, and he still believes he should make a difference in the Harlem community and make a difference in the world. While we can see major changes in the narrator’s character caused by the events of the meeting, and a fundamental change in the narrator’s perspective, I think there is still change to be made before the narrator can become “fully invisible,” as we seem him in the prologue.

Invisible Man and Reincarnation/Rebirth

As we read and discussed chapter 11 of Invisible Man (the chapter in which the narrator undergoes an “operation” if you will, in a somewhat sketchy hospital attached to the paint factory), a common idea of rebirth or reincarnation was brought up several times in our discussion. The way the narrator describes his experience in the hospital and how he feels after it, certainly supports this idea of a change in character or even life during this scene. I chose to go along with the idea of rebirth and look further into Elisson’s language and choice of words.

Ellison describes the hospital scene in specific detail sometimes hinting at the idea of a rebirth or reincarnation of the narrator through his diction. Although the comparison of the narrator coming out of the operation to a pregnancy or human birth type situation is mentioned, I want to focus more on the idea of a new life in general, not so much the metaphor of a childbirth.

As soon as the narrator wakes up, the reader can tell there is something off about the situation, with so much being unknown and things happening so quickly. One of his first thoughts is “Where was I?”, implying the obvious uncertainty of the situation but also that he couldn’t remember how he’d gotten there, a thing that occurred before the “operation.” Of course there is the usual disorientation after a big surgery or medical procedure (assuming that is what occurred in the hospital) but later the narrator realizes that indeed he has no recollection of his arrival, “I tried to remember how I’d gotten here, but nothing came to mind. My mind was blank, as though I had just begun to live.” Here, Ellison definitely wants the reader to notice this idea of a new life, explicitly stating that the narrator felt like he had “Just begun to live.” Ellison could just have easily said something similar without using the word “live,” but the fact that he did, makes it seem all the more likely that the operation could serve as a metaphor for a new beginning.

Ellison also chooses his words very wisely and to the point that he uses the same word more than once to further emphasize his point. The narrator says many things such as “Rising up, to find myself …”, “I discovered now that my head…”, “When I strained my neck around I discovered that I was…” that all portray a theme of the unknown. It seems as though the narrator doesn’t know anything previous to the “operation” and has to start over from there. Maybe because I overanalyzed the text, or because Ellison purposefully chose it, the word “discover” to me, seemed to emphasize that the narrator did not remember things about the hospital or contraption before the operation, since he is figuring all of these things out now. In a normal story this could be an ordinary detail, but in this particular scene, especially after we learn he can’t recall his own name, it seemed specifically chosen and/or important. Additionally, the way Ellison repeats the word seems to point towards its emphasis. This word choice along with the ideas of general confusion, not remembering, and starting new from after the operation seems to me like Ellison is trying to make a point about what happened in the hospital. And this point is that the narrator doesn’t remember things before the operation and so he has to start new, entering a new stage in life, almost as if he had been reincarnated or born again.

Bigger vs. The Invisible Man

This week in class, we touched briefly on the similarities and differences between Wright’s Native Son and Ellison’s Invisible Man. In our class discussion, we compared Bigger Thomas to the Invisible Man and ended up finding several differences between them, some of which included their character, education, relationships with others, and even their way of living. As we talked about these two novels, I began to think beyond the characters and to how the story is told and what the narrator says about the characters in the story. Aside from the two stories being very distinct (so far) in plot, I began to see the similarities and differences between the two writers, specifically what they allowed their characters to do.

Many of our class discussions about Native Son included the idea that Wright wrote in a naturalistic manner, giving his story an underlying theme of inevitability. It seemed like every time Bigger Thomas had a opportunity to break free from the stereotype society placed on him, he made a mistake, decision, or action that caused him to fall back right where he started. He had a chance at a new life with his job as a chauffeur for the Daltons, but then ended up accidentally killing Mary and ruining any chance he had of this opportunity. He had a chance to commit the crime, destroy the evidence, and wait it out, hoping no one would notice, but he decided to somehow profit from the situation and create a fake ransom note signed by the “Reds.” He even might have had a chance to flee to another city with Bessie, but ended up going through with his plan, and killing Bessie as well. Now, although all of the scenarios I have just mentioned were actions Bigger did himself, we covered the idea that maybe it was Wright not letting Bigger get anywhere, stopping him in his tracks every time he got somewhere. I agree with this idea in that I think Wright limited Bigger’s actions and shaped the story how he wanted it to go. But I also want to draw a comparison to Ellison and how he writes Invisible Man.

In contrast to the almost inescapable story of Bigger Thomas, The invisible man has somewhat of a spontaneous nature about him. The way Ellison writes about the narrator and his story is quite different from the control Wright held over Bigger as he wrote his novel. You never know what is going to happen next on the story, each chapter being distinct from the previous one. However, this is not to say there is no control that Ellison holds over the Invisible man. Already just a few chapters into the book, the narrator has attempted to take Mr. Norton on a brief car ride and then back to school, but every time it seems like he’ll be able to go home, they encounter something new, a person, or problem that delays them further and further. This effect is similar to the way Wright never lets Bigger get anywhere in life. And despite the erratic series of events that occurs in Invisible Man, the theme of inevitability is still present, just like in Native Son.