The Invisible Man

            The invisible man in Ralph Ellison’s Invisible Man isn’t a superhero or a supervillan, at least not as of yet. He isn’t invisible due to magical powers but because people simply don’t notice him. He is invisible because most are completely unaware the he exists. Even where and how he lives goes unnoticed. This lack of attention is the reason he rebels and throws his little temper tantrum; he is similar to a teenager or toddler.

            The man is angry with the people who ignore him. He reacts violently, at first; even beating up one man. However, he realizes that he is like an apparition for them and decides against murder—he’s a saint, right? This initial reaction is one of rebellion. As if he is a misunderstood teenager, lashing out, or a small toddler, throwing a fit. Of course, I understand that his pain is much deeper, and that he does have a reason to be angry; I don’t, however, agree with his method of dealing with the world. The beginning starts at the end, hinting that this is how he ends up, so maybe he did try to fix the problem. However, he ends up passive-aggressively fighting the power of the sleep-walkers (those who don’t see him). He steals electricity and speaks about it as if it were the funniest prank. He laughs that the company must think it is going into the Harlem, although he lives just outside of it. He wires the inside of his home—I use this word since it is where he lives, but it’s really just an abandoned space—and fills it up with light. The light represents knowledge and good in the world, especially since he specifically states that the brightest places in the city lack it. His comment means that New York City lacks the knowledge that would allow people to see him. Anyways, he is, essentially, filling his home up with knowledge. My problem is that he doesn’t share it. This invisible man sees the injustices of the world and gathers knowledge, yet he doesn’t do anything about it. Maybe I am judging him too harshly, but I hope he speaks out at least at one point during the novel. I’m not sure what he is waiting for.

            The invisible man constantly says he is hibernating. Hibernation implies that the animal will one day awaken and come into action. Thus, if the invisible man in in hibernation right now, then at some point, he must come alive and do something. At least, that is what I’m hoping. The hibernation does, however, confuse me a little bit. If this is the end, then I’m really curious as to what happened to him. He says he is going to share his story, but I think it’s odd that somebody would end up in hibernation. Usually, a protagonist will start off in a resting state and then come to action as things unfold. However, it seems as if the invisible man will be forced back into a hole by the things that happen to him. He literally lives in a hole by the end.

            Honestly, the novel is interesting so far, but I can’t wait for more to happen. The prologue has made me curious as to what the man’s backstory is. It’s also interesting because it starts at the end, causing multiple questions to arise; most of these will hopefully be answered at some point in the novel.