The Consequence of Stereotypes in Invisible Man
For the narrator, much of Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison is spent attempting to avoid the stereotypes assigned to him as a black man living in America. Not only is the narrator faced with the stereotypes of white individuals, but also the stereotypes of black people who share conflicting ideas on how best to be black in America.
At the beginning of the novel, the narrator is consumed by a need to assimilate within white society. The narrator turns to obsessing over following every order given to him by a white individual, with the assumption that by doing so, he will achieve success. Chapter 1 serves as a prime example of this skewed perception, as he agrees to participate in the "battle royal" during which he engages in a brutal fight against another black boy, for the sake of entertainment. The narrator continues behaving in a way that serves to please others, thereby perpetuating the racist stereotypes of white individuals who view black people as beneath them.
The narrator is also subject to stereotypes placed onto him by other black individuals in the novel. The narrator's grandfather plays an important role in Invisible Man as his parting words, "'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,'" remain with the narrator throughout the novel (Ellison 16). Through Dr. Blesdoe, the narrator is taught that in order to achieve success, he must work hard and adopt the mannerisms of a white man.
In Invisible Man, the narrator is caught between two worlds, and subsequently two stereotypes in which to assimilate: that of a white man and that of a black man. As a result, his journey to discovering an identity for himself is hindered, thereby preventing continuous character development.
I loved the way you articulated your idea behind the narrator's onerous journey of self identity due to the pressure to conform to two different stereotypes. I agree that the narrator began to obsess over fitting into society, because you can only handle feeling out of place for so long. Awesome post!
ReplyDeleteI think you summed up the idea of conformity and stereotypes in Invisible Man. The narrator definitely defines himself by those around him and does not take the advice given to him like people such as his grandfather and reflect to further his own development - he just blindly follows orders. Great job on this post!
ReplyDeleteI think you did a great job of summing up the negative effects of stereotypes in Invisible Man. I too had a similar idea in mind when writing my blog post and expanded on how those stereotypes keep the narrator from finding his own true identity. I like that your augment is well formed and easy to follow. Great job!
ReplyDeleteI like the way you depicted the way that the narrator in Invisible Man is torn between two worlds, both holding to stereotyped standards and how that makes it difficult for him to find himself. Your post was well written and carefully presented your observations while keeping concise. Good job!
ReplyDeleteThis is a great post, Mariam! I think that this is a wonderful description of what the narrator is feeling internally. The white world and the black world both have standards of the way that he should act as a black man, and it seems that he will never be able to please both groups fully. In pleasing one group, he upsets the other. The narrator appears to be in a never-ending cycle of being able to appease these stereotypes.
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed your post! The organization and appearance of your post is really nice. I like your idea of the narrator's development being hindered by split expectations from white and black stereotypes. Its really hard to see the narrator try so hard to please the white people who only hurt him. I completely agree that the narrator has been holding himself back by trying to please other people. Great post!
ReplyDeleteI think you did a really good job of explaining in more depth, the stereotypes and forcing of conformity that is happening in the different events the narrator goes through in the course of the story. You show clearly how the narrator is pressured by stereotypes from every side of his life: the white men in the south but also his grandfather at home. I love it!
ReplyDeleteI like the way you described how the narrator is being pulled by two different stereotypes and that hinders his development as well as clouds his identity. At the beginning of the novel, he tried to conform to white society but as the story goes on, he starts to turn to the other stereotype. In the latest chapters we've read, we see that he embraces his southern culture while enjoying yams. Rather than trying to prove this stereotype wrong as he did in the past, he embraces it and almost wants to openly display it. This is illustrated in his pun-like statement, "I yam what I am." Overall, really interesting post!
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed your post! I agree that the narrator's journey of self development is a battle between his search for his personal identity and what he thinks others want his identity to be. His idea of how others want him to act is based on racist stereotypical predefined paths, and the entirety of the narrator's story is based on him either following or straying off the path. Your writing is easy to follow -- good blog.
ReplyDeleteThis is a fantastic blog post! You did a great job analyzing the two major stereotypes placed upon the shoulders of the narrator. Not only did you describe the two stereotypes, one of a white man and a black man, but you touched upon a particularly interesting topic, stereotypes about how to be a black man from a black man. Bledsoe is the perfect example of the idea that stereotypes about a group can be enforced and perpetuated by the same people in the group. It is hard to see stunted character development while the narrator struggles to establish their identity. Great job!
ReplyDeleteWow! You summed up the narrator's fundamental obstacle stopping him from truly finding his identity perfectly. When the narrator gains perspective or undergoes an identity change, he always achieves this by conforming to a stereotype or rejecting one, and he is unable to view his identity from a different lens. Furthermore, I think Ellison makes the point that everybody feels this way to a certain degree, by stating the narrator "speaks for you." Great job!
ReplyDeleteI feel like both of these ways of behaving are very similar and go hand in hand. you could accomplish both by acting like a stereotypical white man (polite and put together) while serving whom ever is above you, similar to acting as a secretary. The real issue comes up when Im cannot "simply serve" his "superior" to their liking any longer. Nice post
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