Blindness And Sight In Ralph Ellison's Invisible Man

Abstract

The Civil Rights era has been an era of struggle for the African American in the
Unites states. Thus, many writers devoted their writing to reflect the racism and
discrimination that many have suffered from, among them is Ralph Ellison.
Ralph Ellison is a 20th century African-American writer and scholar best known for
his renowned, award-winning novel Invisible Man. He illustrates the powerful
social and political forces that conspire to keep black Americans in their place,
denying them the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness guaranteed to all
Americans. Invisible Man is a 1952 novel that addresses many of the social and intellectual
issues facing African-Americans in the twentieth century. It examines two key-concepts of
the 40-50‘s black literature: blindness and sight in racism. Presenting the concepts of
blindness and sight, Ellison introduces the reader to the complex nature of this problem and
its subjacent factors. It is told in the form of a first-person narrative, Invisible Man traces the
nameless narrator‘s physical and psychological journey from blind ignorance to enlightened
awareness. It is the story of a young , college educated black man struggling to survive and
succeed in a racially divided society that refuses to see him as a human being. Thus, this
research paper begins with an introduction which gives an account of the novel and highlights
in the writer's life, Ralph Ellison. The body analyzes the novel of Invisible man, through the
blindness and sight of the characters. The conclusion sums up the findings of the research
paper.