Battle Royal, by Ralph Ellison

855 Words2 Pages

If I had to pick one out of the many stories that we have read and say that it moved me the most, I would have to say that the story would have to be “Battle Royal”. The reason that the story did move me so was because of the author’s keen use of symbolism, the author portrays a larger meaning than what is initially implied to the reader who does not thoroughly analyze the text.
Initially, the story seems to be about one black boy’s struggle to get ahead in a predominately white society. He tries to accomplish this goal by adhering to his grandfather’s dying words. His grandfather told him to “live with your head in the lion’s mouth. 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”. In other words, his grandfather was telling him to conform to the white peoples way of life in order to get ahead. I believe that the story had a deeper meaning than the aforementioned one.
I believe that if the reader were to take a deeper look into all of the symbolism in the story, one would find that the summation of all the symbolism is equal to not only the struggle of this black boy, but the struggle of blacks at the time in which the story takes place. I think that if one were to analyze the grandfathers dying words, one would find the view of most conformist black Americans. The only way for a black person to excel at that time was to conform to the white society. Any rebels that tried to stand up for their rights were most likely killed by anti-black groups, such as the KKK.
There was one symbol in the story that stood out especially in my mind and that was the stripper. She was a tall blonde-haired woman with a tattoo of the American flag on her stomach. I think the stripper symbolized the perfect American white woman, something a black man can strive for all his life to obtain, but would never receive. This was a symbol of the many things that a white man could have whereas a black man could not.
The blind folded boxing in the story, I believe, was a representation of the blind hatred of the blacks at the time the story took place.

It Ll All Come Out In The Wash By Joanne Crutchfield
1205 Words | 3 Pages
The stories that the author told were very insightful to what life was like for an African American living in the south during this time period. First the author pointed out how differently blacks and whites lived. She stated “They owned the whole damn town. The majority of whites had it made in the shade. Living on easy street, they inhabited grand houses ranging from turn-of-the-century clapboards to historics”(pg 35). The blacks in the town didn’t live in these grand homes, they worked in them. Even in today’s time I can drive around, and look at the differences between the living conditions in the areas that are dominated by whites, and the areas that are dominated by blacks. Racial inequalities are still very prevalent In today’s society.
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Battle Royal, by Ralph Ellison
988 Words | 2 Pages
In contemporary America, the blacks have searched for companionship, success, and freedom, both physical and mental. Even after several years of [the] abolition of slavery, the blacks were not able to see [a white=whites] eye-to-eye. They were still [a puppet=puppets] for the white men?s show. During this era, several blacks tried to achieve success and bring themselves up to the level of whites by conforming to their direct or indirect, reasonable or unreasonable, and degrading or respectful commands. [Focus more on the rebellion/conformity aspects and the specifics of the story as you explain the issue.] In this chapter (?Battle Royal?) of [the] novel [?Invisible Man,?=title format] the narrator conforms to all humiliating orders to get a chance to express his views on ?social equality? and ?social responsibility?. Good thesis statement. The first chapter is like the worst nightmare for the narrator who is a young, graduating Negro boy. He timid[ly] and obedient[ly] comes to a white men?s gathering in a Southern town, where he is to be awarded a scholarship. Together with several other Negroes he is rushed to the front of the ballroom, where a [blonde frightens them by dancing in the nude=ambiguous. They are not afraid of her. They are afraid of the white men who demand that they look at her. That could mean beatings or even death for black men in times past]. Blindfolded, the Negro boys stage a "battle royal," a brawl in which they batter each other to the drunken shouts of the whites. After such [a] humiliating and ghastly experience, the terrified boy delivers a prepared speech of gratitude to his white benefactors.
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Symbolism in Battle Royal, by Ralph Ellison
808 Words | 2 Pages
In one way it is symbolic of the African Americans’ struggle for equality throughout our nation’s history. The various hardships that the narrator must endure, in his quest to deliver his speech, are representative of the many hardships that the blacks went through in their fight for equality.
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922 Words | 2 Pages
He portrays the racist tendency of people to assume black men are potentially violent and dangerous. He describes about a white woman’s reaction when she and him were walking on same street but on the opposite sides during the night. He says that women seemed to be worried, she felt uneasy and she thought that he was ‘menacingly close’. He even shares his experience on how he was taken as a burglar, mistaken as a killer and forced out of a jewelers store while doing assignment for a local paper. The reason behind being kicked out of the jeweler store and women running away was because he was a black man. During that period black men were stereotyped as rapist, murderer, and gang members. These names upon a person’s personality can hinder ones feelings and can also affect ones confidence level. Thus stereotyping can cause a person to miss opportunities and the person might face difficulties in building relationships with specific types of people. (Brent
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1304 Words | 3 Pages
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Battle Royal, by Ralph Ellison
780 Words | 2 Pages
Battle royal is a story reflecting the post civil war era. With so many privileges and opportunities for Blacks, the future seemed promising but the "Black Codes" limited all of the so called opportunities presented to blacks. It was worst enough to have these "Black Codes" implemented in the southern states, but there were also groups such as the Ku Klux Klan, which enforced the "Black Codes" and were bent on oppressing the blacks. The story seems to be set in the late 1800's. This was a time when blacks wanted to be treated equally but were too scared to speak out because their family's welfare might be at risk if they did. In the short story Battle royal, tells his family his way to social equality. While the grandson does things a little differently.
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702 Words | 2 Pages
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1607 Words | 4 Pages
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1363 Words | 3 Pages
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661 Words | 2 Pages
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1652 Words | 4 Pages
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1045 Words | 3 Pages
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Battle Royal, by Ralph Ellison

It Ll All Come Out In The Wash By Joanne Crutchfield