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Invisible Man

Invisible Man. Ralph Ellison FOLK 195 March 4, 2003 Jean Ferguson. Invisible Man. What does it mean to be unseen? “I am an invisible man …”. Invisible Man: Overview. Invisible Man: Ralph Ellison. Born March 1, 1914 in Oklahoma City, OK (named after Ralph Waldo Emerson)

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Invisible Man

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  1. Invisible Man Ralph Ellison FOLK 195 March 4, 2003 Jean Ferguson

  2. Invisible Man • What does it mean to be unseen? • “I am an invisible man…”

  3. Invisible Man: Overview

  4. Invisible Man: Ralph Ellison • Born March 1, 1914 in Oklahoma City, OK (named after Ralph Waldo Emerson) • Father died in 1917 resulted in economic struggle • Mother active in socialist politics • Attended college at the Tuskegee Institute to study Music • Moved to Harlem in New York City to study sculpture and photography • Took seven years to write Invisible Man (1952) • Taught at Bard College, Rutgers and NYU • Published other novels • Died April 16, 1994

  5. Invisible Man: Characters • Narrator • Grandfather • Dr. Bledsoe • Mr. Norton • Mary • Brother Jack • Tod Clifton • Ras, the Destroyer

  6. Invisible Man: Structure • Framed Narrative • Retreat • Battle Royal • College • New York • Harlem • The Brotherhood • Retreat

  7. Invisible Man: Major Themes • Invisibility/Blindness • We choose not to see the ugly truths around us • Society ignores the oppressed • How we change perceptions of the self in society • Identity/Black Identity • Defining who you are through your relationships with others • Who is my authentic self? (Self versus who we WANT to be) • Is this a universal search or is it specific to an African-American man in a predominately Caucasian society? • Does failure lead us to truth? • Dualism • Being two seemingly contradictory things at once. • Being black in a white society • Are we what is projected onto us? • Existential Search for Self • Realizing that you are responsible for your actions/reactions in a chaotic world • Oppression • Society’s role in oppressing us all • The oppression of African-Americans

  8. Invisible Man: Motifs • Dreams • Sex • Violence • Paper • Vision (Physical seeing, Delusions, Illusions, Reveries) • Oratory (The Power of Speaking) • Music • Family • Power

  9. Invisible Man • “What Did I Do to Be So Black and Blue” Louis Armstrong • Cold empty bed...springs hurt my headFeels like ole ned...wished i was deadWhat did i do...to be so black and blueEven the mouse...ran from my houseThey laugh at you...and all that you doWhat did i do...to be so black and blueI'm white...inside...but, that don't help my caseThat's life...can't hide...what is in my faceHow would it end...ain't got a friendMy only sin...is in my skinWhat did i do...to be so black and blue(instrumental break)How would it end...iain't got a friendMy only sin...is in my skinWhat did i do...to be so black and blue

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