Differences Between Faulkner And Ralph Ellison

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William Faulkner and Ralph Ellison com from two different back grounds. William Faulkner was a white man born into a family who was affluent and powerful. (DiYanni 78) Ralph Ellison was a black man born in the south. (DiYanni 341) Through their stories they share their views of the south at that time. Faulkner and Ellison had contrasting views on the south about how people with differences were treated and whether or not the south’s changes were positive, however they both view the changing south as inevitable.
In Faulkner’s south people who are different are not punished but they are protected from the public embarrassment of their honor. In “A Rose for Emily” Colonel Sartoris forgives Miss Emily of the taxes she owes the city of Jefferson. …show more content…

The difference that his story “Battle Royal” highlights is race and gender. The protagonist of this story is an unnamed black teenager who is humiliated by the elite white class. The Invisible Man, as the protagonist calls himself, thinks he is going to this smoker to give his speech that he made at graduation. Once the invisible man arrives at this affair he is taken with some other black teenagers and put in a ring, and forced to watch a nude white women dance around. This is humiliating to the black boys because at the time when this short story was written it was socially unacceptable for a black man to stare at a white woman when she was dressed let alone when she was disrobed. They then began verbally degrading the boys saying “Some threatened us if we looked and others if we did not.” (Ellison 344) Then the boys were blindfolded and they are told to fight each other in a battle royal type of clash for the entertainment of the whites likening it to animals fighting each other. Then after the battle royal they make the Invisible Man give his speech patronizing him extensively through his speech. The protagonist say’s “I spoke automatically and with such fervor that I did not realize that the men were still talking and laughing.” (Ellison 349) Another occurrence of being punished for being different is the white male establishment treatment of the nude female. She may be above the black boys …show more content…

The Invisible Man’s grandfather deathbed diatribe is telling the younger generation to not tolerate this injustice brought upon them by the whites. The Grandfather tells them “I want you to overcome 'em with yeses, undermine 'em with grins, agree 'em to death and destruction, let 'em swoller you till they vomit or bust wide open." (Ellison 344) The Invisible Man is guilt ridden from this speech up until the end of the story. When he figures out that he can use this education to better advance his race his guilt is gone. He can now advance his race to the point of social

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