Themes In Battle Royal, By Ralph Ellison

The use of symbolism throughout Battle Royal, the first chapter in Ralph Ellison’s novel “Invisible Man,” reveals and reifies Ellison’s view of the hindering influence that racism has had on individual identity among the black race. The narrator’s struggle at attempting to deliver his graduation speech to prestigious white men is equally representative of African Americans’ struggle to develop a self-assured identity, apart from that of a slave, among a racist society of superior whites. The narrator’s grandfather is essential to the story as he admits that he considers himself a traitor for obeying whites. It is unclear as to whether his grandfather believes himself a traitor to his own identity, his family or his entire race. He encourages

The white people would make fun of the black people in front of their faces, telling them how another black person was beat up and how all the black people are a problem for the white people. How would you feel if someone told you that you were a problem? This would really up... ... middle of paper ... ...that people need to be educated about it. After John’s job was taken away from him he didn’t see any reason to stick around there anymore. “Mammy, I’m going away, - I’m going to be free.” John left and went north.

Richard’s grandmother was always excessively beating him. From the beginning, Richard would not subdue himself to the white man like the other black people around. The white people knew that he was different from other black men. Whites were scared because Richard challenged the system that they had created to insure white supremacy. They feared Richard, and some of the white people felt it necessary to act out their racist feelings in order to cover up their fear.

The first lasting and long term effect racism towards Richard had on him was that it caused him to think differently of people. Racism caused Richard to think differently of people because he did not understand how, or why the white people that he lived with hated him, and his race with such a great passion. He never comprehended how people could have so much hatred inside of them to act, and treat another race so poorly. Richard reads in an advertisement from the newspaper he was selling, “The only dream of a is to be President and to sleep with white women…” (Wright 131). This quote is depicting an African-American.

It supports his view of an anti-racial America, because by using stereotypes he makes his characters racial these are the characters that the Americans misunderstand and abominate. Dr. Bledsoe is the stereotypical submissive African American. He seemingly is peremptory, but this is just a façade. Though all of the African Americans in his community hold him in a high regard, he has no such respect in the "white-mans" world. College students tell stories about how when in the north, he is called Mr.

Even after his death, they still feel right enough to insult him, and make new notions of blacks. Maycomb does not understand that he is fed up with all the racism and unfairness, so he tries to get freedom and tries to tell himself maybe his faith can be restored if he actually escapes. Yet, the worst got the best of him, and he died under the impression of being a “typical

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. Indeed, the narrator comes from a long line of black men who’ve felt the difficult struggles while trying to live alongside the white people. The protagonist speaks of his grandparents, who felt after the civil war, they were free, but on his deathbed, however, the grandfather spoke to the narrator’s father, telling the protagonist’s father that he himself felt like a traitor. He advised the narrator’s father to subvert the whites.

Troy feels that ... ... middle of paper ... ...n. Troy attempts to offer this passage as justification for his affair, but only succeeds in further angering a woman who had given her all to him. But one should not hastily judge Troy to be the sole creator of his problems. The oppression that has plagued blacks in the past— slavery, sharecropping, and Jim Crow laws— has driven blacks to feel that they must “not [let] whites of the hook” (McWhorter 14). On the surface, double consciousness looks to be the perfect antidote for the problems that trouble the black race. However, upon closer examination, one can see that Troy’s actions throughout Fences exemplify the negative effects that are caused by double consciousness.

The Struggles for Identity Throughout world society, racism in others has caused them to become “blind” or ignorant. Racism has been around since anyone can remember. In racism in America, the struggle of African Americans seems to stand out the most. In Ralph Ellison’s, The Invisible Man, the narrator struggles to find his own identity despite of what he accomplishes throughout the book because he’s a black man living in a racist American society. In the beginning of the Invisible Man, the narrator is apart of this battle royal with other young African Americans youths.

Blacks are seen as blind because they allow themselves to be mistreated by their oppressors. Native Son focuses on African American racial discrimination and segregation that took place prior to the Civil Rights movement. As racial discrimination remains a reality in America today, the racial tensions and separatist laws that caused the violence and fear between blacks and whites may not be familiar to anyone who has not experienced any of the aforementioned. Set in Chicago in the 1930’s, Native Son tells the story of a young African American... ... middle of paper ... ...ut needing the white man’s consent and the narrator by coming out of hiding and facing the world and its challenges. Works Cited Bloch, Alice.