Analysis Of The Book Invisible Man By Ralph Ellison

Sierra Freudenberg Mrs. Caluya-1 AP English Literature 14 September 2014 Nothing is Simply Black and White The novel Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison is the story of a black man s struggle to live in a society dominated by whites. The colors black and white are contrasted many times throughout the novel. There are three contrasts in particular that stand out to the reader as representative of the narrator s struggles. This repeated contrast serves to remind the reader of the novel s theme of the racial inequality faced by African-Americans, and it also allows the reader to better understand that through racism, one loses his or her individuality and thus becomes invisible. One of the earliest noticeable mentions of the colors black and white are in reference to Mr. Norton s shoes. Mr. Norton is a wealthy white man who helped fund the college for African-Americans that the narrator attends. The narrator spends one summer chauffeuring Mr. Norton around the campus, and, at Mr. Norton s insistence, he takes Mr. Norton to visit Jim Trueblood. Trueblood is a man who lives just off of the college campus and who is notorious for having a relationship with his own daughter. While at Trueblood s house, the narrator comments on the difference between Trueblood s shoes and Norton s; â€Å"I stared at the two pairs of shoes before me. Mr. Norton s were white, trimmed with black. They were custom made and there beside the cheap tan brogues of the farmer they had the elegantly slenderShow MoreRelatedComparative Analysis Of The School Days Of An Indian Girl1235 Words   |  5 PagesComparative Analysis When reading The School Days of an Indian Girl by Zitkala-sa, it shows us a view of ethnic identity. By telling us how a little girl is in a home, away from her mother, while learning how to adapt to the new culture she’s in. 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