Throughout Invisible Man, we get to know the narrator as we read what is basically his entire life story. This character begins as a naive but lovable, however he slowly gains an awareness of what he describes as his invisibility. In the prologue we meet an enlightened, or certainly much developed narrator. He has shed his previous innocence and has fully embraced his "invisibleness." As a reader one is left thinking: "what does this truly mean?" As we progress through Invisible Man there are various clues as to what his supposed invisibility represents. First and foremost, we never learn the character's name, he never says it himself, however no one around him ever bothers say it either. I believe that his invisibleness is born from how others perceive him as he alludes to in the prologue.
Throughout his interactions with various characters in the book, the narrator rarely finds anyone who wishes to get to know him as an individual. For better or for worse the majority of those he meets see him as a symbol for something else. In particular, Mr. Norton who preaches about his desire to advance African-American people never truly attempts to understand the narrator, he describes him as a cog in the machine, and a representation of his success, but he would most likely say the same to any young student sitting in the car with him. The narrator himself, in one of his first displays of self-awareness, even notes that Norton does not know his name. Later, Brother Jack and his brotherhood only see the narrator as a representative of the African American community, even symbolically stripping him of his own name and giving him a new one, one that we also never learn.
Throughout his journey, everyone has visions and plans for our main character, rarely consulting him along the way. Everywhere he goes he is branded as a representative of something or another: as a union worker at the factory, as a Southerner in Harlem, as another black kid at the battle royal, as a key to social activism by the brotherhood. The reality is that none of these identities are his own, and as he begins to notice this, he in turn begins to notice and accept his invisibility. From his complete naiveté, to his seemingly all-knowing persona by the end, this novel hinges around his self-discovery, and the discovery that neither he nor anyone else truly knows "himself."
Throughout his interactions with various characters in the book, the narrator rarely finds anyone who wishes to get to know him as an individual. For better or for worse the majority of those he meets see him as a symbol for something else. In particular, Mr. Norton who preaches about his desire to advance African-American people never truly attempts to understand the narrator, he describes him as a cog in the machine, and a representation of his success, but he would most likely say the same to any young student sitting in the car with him. The narrator himself, in one of his first displays of self-awareness, even notes that Norton does not know his name. Later, Brother Jack and his brotherhood only see the narrator as a representative of the African American community, even symbolically stripping him of his own name and giving him a new one, one that we also never learn.
Throughout his journey, everyone has visions and plans for our main character, rarely consulting him along the way. Everywhere he goes he is branded as a representative of something or another: as a union worker at the factory, as a Southerner in Harlem, as another black kid at the battle royal, as a key to social activism by the brotherhood. The reality is that none of these identities are his own, and as he begins to notice this, he in turn begins to notice and accept his invisibility. From his complete naiveté, to his seemingly all-knowing persona by the end, this novel hinges around his self-discovery, and the discovery that neither he nor anyone else truly knows "himself."
I think you bring up a good point, as not knowing the character's name makes him much less of an individual to everyone else and arguably even the reader at points. I think that up to this point we've seen him go through many phases, each one arguably a bit more unstable than the last. His unraveling and rebirth finally make him a more conscious person, and now I'm starting to feel that intro vibe from the very beginning a bit more.
ReplyDeleteIt is really noticeable that the character has grown over the course of his life and is no longer naive and your point about his feeling invisible is valid as well. Like you said, throughout the book the character is constantly seen as a symbol and nobody ever tries to get to know him personally. In addition, the character's name is never mentioned and so no matter how much we know about him, even we don't know who he really is. This also relates to how in "Native Son" Bigger was seen as a symbol and not a person.
ReplyDeleteIt is annoying how we, as the reader, never get to know the narrator. Yes, we know that he is naive and lovable, but that's about it. His own character is always being shaped by somehow else one way or the other. I think I've gotten to know more about every character in the book besides the narrator. For instance, Dr. Bledsoe maintain power and reputation, and Dr. Norton feels accomplished just by helping the school. I just wish we get to know more about the narrator. Great Post!
ReplyDeleteI'm really excited for when we read the last few chapters of the novel, because i miss the prologue narrator and want to see that full fledged critical consciousness again. I guess it is still forming!
ReplyDeleteThis figurative invisibility that the narrator learns about is seen in other characters that he encounters, such as Bledsoe and the Veteran doctor. The doctor has a professional knowledge of medicine, but is unable to practice because of his skin color. Bledsoe appears as a successful but humble man focused on education, but that is not the case when he scolds the narrator.
ReplyDeleteWhile I agree with your overall point, I don’t like the examples you’ve given. For starters, multiple characters throughout the novel, including the narrator, say his name. However, it is always phrased as “I told them my name” or “he said my name”. Names are also a form of labels though, giving no indication of the person behind them. So, while it is true that most of the characters in the book don’t ever ask the narrator his name, the ones that do end up learning it hardly seem to treat him any differently. The second thing is that there are in fact some characters who try to learn about the narrator or help him be independent. Emerson is a good example of this as he doesn’t try to put any labels on the narrator, and actively tries to help him while still giving him the chance to think for himself. What seems to happen is that whenever a character gets introduced who doesn’t try to label the narrator, we as readers just gloss over them. Because this form of labeling stands out so much, the normalcy of the narrator not being labeled just passes us by, giving those characters themselves a form of invisibility.
ReplyDeleteI agree completely. The narrator is only a symbol of a societal idea to these people. His person doesn't matter to the people he meets. I cannot recall a single person who the Narrator can call 'friend'. Somehow Tod Clifton is his 'best friend' but this only exacerbates this point. He can't comprehend friendship because it seems he's never had any. Throughout this novel he is taken advantage of over and over again all anyone cares about is his 'blackness' and it shapes who we saw in the introduction and who we'll see in the prologue,
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