The events used by Ralph Ellison in his story Battle Royal are symbols that contribute to the theme of inequality that is portrayed throughout the entire story. Three symbols or events in this story are the battle, the blindfolding of the fighters, and the naked woman with an American Flag tattooed upon her. The first major symbol in this story is the battle royal itself. The battle royal symbolizes the struggle for equality in the black community. The fight shows how the black Americans try to overcome the brutal treatment and the fear that comes from the violence of segregation and slavery. When the narrator is in the elevator with the other fighters, he thinks that he has the option in participating in the battle, but in reality he has no choice. This event introduced another theme of a reward that cannot be attained. This battle is also a representation of how the white men feel dominant and feel pleasure in keeping the black men fearful of them. In addition to the white men’s sense of dominance over the black men, this event is also pointed towards black society when the narrat...
The symbols and language used in “Battle Royal” allow readers to understand the concept of being black in America; fighting for equality. Symbols such as the white blindfold, stripper, and battle itself all give a suggestion about how the unnamed protagonist felt, but more importantly, Ralph Ellison’s “Battle Royal” depicts the difficult struggles facing the black man in what’s supposed to be a post-slavery era.
The magnificent blonde that paraded around the middle of the boxing ring was more than just amusement This was everything that these black men wanted but would never have She represented the American dream of power wealth and fame The narrator knew he could never have her but he looked anyway Had the price of looking been blindness I would have looked Pg198 The author had devoted his life to pleasing the white men so he could speak to be somebody but he would never amount to anything He was their toy
Although the world is filled with air, it is perceived to be invisible. Only when one is thinking about air does it become considered visible. As the protagonist develops throughout the novel, Battle Royal, created by Ralph Ellison, he quickly witnesses how microscopic his achievements are to the “Big Shots” in his dominantly white community. To discover that he was just as human as the white men, he had to learn that he could only become visible to them when they wanted him to be. He will never get that constant gratitude of being an individual, instead, like air, he will only seem important when thought of. On his grandfathers deathbed, his father was told to tell him to never be a traitor to not only his culture but more importantly himself.
At his graduation, the narrator gives a highly praised speech talking about using humility as the secret of success. The speech got him an invitation to recite the speech at a meeting for his hometown’s white leaders to get a scholarship. When he arrives at the meeting, he is also invited to take part in the “battle royal” before giving his speech. Although the narrator’s invitation to speak is seemingly an honor, the prestige is quickly undercut by the fact that his speech is not considered any more important than a grotesque piece of entertainment. The narrator joins the blindfolded match to fight other participants who don’t like him from his school. During his battle, he had wanted to give up, but he knew that the town’s leaders were watching him. To avoid disapproval from the leaders he force himself to continue fighting in a senseless battle against his peers. After the battle, the narrator tries to deliver his speech with a mouth full of blood. Whenever the narrator says a large word, the men teasingly yell at him to repeat it louder. The narrator knew how “humiliating” it was, but he did what he was told anyway. When asked to repeat the phrase “social responsibility,” accidently the narrator rephrased it with a word the leaders don’t like to hear, “social equality.” When the narrator say the word, he saw how quickly the leaders can take away everything they have given him. After
The hardships that the narrators experiences in delivering his speech, symbolizes the hardships that the blacks went through. The naked blonde who danced in front of men before the fight is symbolic of other side of women who were viewed as the minority. The colors of the American flag painted on the woman`s body signified that the whites controlled the blacks. The circus in the young man`s dream at the end of the story symbolizes that the black boys in the dream are treated as
In his literature, violence is very prominent, and cruel acts are carried out on slaves throughout the entire book. These acts demonstrate the importance of including violence in literature. In this case, the cruelty allows the reader to understand the harsh living conditions that slaves were forced to endure. The author, Frederick Douglass, stated in his work, “It was a most terrible spectacle; I wish I could commit to paper the feelings with which I beheld it (Douglass 18).” In this quote, Douglass is discussing the horrible acts of cruelty and whipping fellow slaves were undergoing. This instance from his novel greatly assists in proving the importance of violence in literature, by using emotion to influence the reader’s
In sum, all of these key arguments exist in “The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass” because of the institution of slavery and its resulting lack of freedom that was used to defend it. This text’s arguments could all be gathered together under the common element of inequality and how it affected the practical, social, and even spiritual lives of the slaves.
Authors use figurative language to express nuanced ideas, those that beggar literal description. Such language provides the author an opportunity to play with his reader’s imagination and sense. A piece of literature that uses figurative language is more intriguing and engaging than a writing that aims only to explain. Ralph Ellison’s use of figurative language in “The Battle Royal” paints a powerful and unique story of oppression and the struggle for self-discovery. His juxtaposition of literal and figural language gave the story a dream like quality, all while creating a profound and vivid image.
In the novel, the author proposes that the African American female slave’s need to overcome three obstacles was what unavoidably separated her from the rest of society; she was black, female, and a slave, in a white male dominating society. The novel “locates black women at the intersection of racial and sexual ideologies and politics (12).” White begins by illustrating the Europeans’ two major stereotypes o...
Multiple examples of the outsiders are revealed at this point of the short story in which the battle royal takes place. The white naked woman who is dancing and has the flag tattoo is very symbolic. She does not want to dance for the men, but she must because she is too controlled by the white men hosting the battle royal. Even though she is white because she is a woman is still considered a minority. She and black men who are about to fight in the arena are both looked at as if they were worthless. This highlights that it was not just black people who did not have full human rights in the 1950’s, but also women. White male considered themselves superior the both African Americans and woman and for that had to be treated with respect at all times. While the naked white woman is dancing, the black men are staring over her beauty and the tattoo of the American flag on her thigh. This makes a very good point that the black people just want equality and freedom, but at the same time were confused and afraid by it. It is easy to comprehend this when the narrator says: “I wanted at one and the same time to run from the room, to sink through the floor or to go to her and cover her from my eyes and the eyes of the others with my body; to feel the soft thighs, to caress her, to destroy her,
In the short story, “Battle Royal,” by Ralph Ellison (1952) the author uses the symbol of the boxing arena to illustrate how the nameless young, African American, character proceeded with his promised speech even after the discrimination, humiliation, and injustice he suffered. For example, the nameless character mentions the different images and voices he witnesses through the boxing arena. When the character says, “I felt a desire to spit upon her as my eyes brushed slowly over her body” while he hears the loud taunting shouts of the Caucasian men displays for the reader what the nameless character experienced in order to present his speech. The nameless character’s horrendous blindfolded boxing match transforms into
The narrator, whose true identity is never revealed, is blind to his own individuality. He seems to see himself exactly how the surrounding people of his era see him –just a black man, a beast, blind to the world around him. In the Prologue, the narrator tells the audience of a time when he ran into a white man and instead of apologizing and going about his way, the narrator decides to make an unnecessary scene and scuffle with the man. The white man is not afraid and continues to call the narrator seemingly explicit names. The reason for his violence is not explicitly stated, but it can be implied that he is attempting to show his strength. However, he might possibly be furthering the white stereotype of being some sort of a savage by beating up a man who did not notice the narrator in the first place. In chapter one, during the Battle Royal, the narrator talks about being "blindfolded with broad bands of white cloth" (Ellison 21), which signifies the black men being blinded to the white men's actual motive of humiliation and savagery. By using the blindfolds and the naked blond woman, the white men are attempting to show what they believe to be the true stereotype of the black men. The narrator also says "blindfolded, I could no longer control my motions" (Ellison 22), which could compensate for the violent acts he committed before, such as with the white man in the
It symbolizes the abusiveness that Blacks are still obeying the WHites to be rewarded with something. While the Whites are in power, they forced the Blacks to obey their rules.
The Battle Royal by Ralph Ellison portrays the difficulty of being a black man in a country controlled by white people and the social inequalities black men have to face. Throughout the short story Ellison uses many symbols to portray the black man’s struggle for equality in white America. These symbols are the stripper’s flag tattoo which was on the stomach, the stripper herself, blindfold, and the battle. The stripper is symbolic because of the connection between black men and women in the eyes of white people and the freedom African Americans strive for. The blindfold also represents the blindness white men have for their actions, as well as the restrictions binding African Americans, and the battle royal represents the black man’s struggle for equality.
At the point when the battle begins, he bumbles around the ring like a tipsy infant. He is seeping from the nose and mouth, and can't tell if his body is secured in blood or sweat. The room is loaded with stogie smoke and irate tipsy men shouting at the dark young men to hurt one another. This sounds like a genuine bad dream; he can't listen, see, or smell. To compound the situation, nine different folks are punching him at irregular. It is a finished disorder. He comprehends his granddads word " our reality is a war" these white men have no respect for the sentiments or feelings of these youthful blacks men. These young fellows must battle this war on the off chance that they are ever to leave this front line. The lesson is learned from here is that every man needs to battle his on a particular fight, agree his slope. We all have our quality and gifts that we use to raise our social positions. We simply need to make sense of what it is and calibrate in it with a specific end goal to accomplish our