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SS1: LITERATURE-IN-ENGLISH - 2ND TERM

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  1. African Prose

    African Prose: Second Class Citizen by Buchi Emecheta | Week 1
    5 Topics
    |
    1 Quiz
  2. Themes in Second Class Citizen | Week 2
    3 Topics
    |
    1 Quiz
  3. Characterization and Narrative Techniques in Second Class Citizen | Week 3
    2 Topics
    |
    1 Quiz
  4. Non-African Prose
    Non-African Prose: Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison | Week 4
    4 Topics
  5. Themes in Invisible Man | Week 5
    3 Topics
    |
    1 Quiz
  6. Characterization and Narrative Technique in Invisible Man | Week 6
    2 Topics
    |
    1 Quiz
  7. African Poetry
    “Black Woman” by Leopold Sedar Senghor | Week 7
    6 Topics
    |
    1 Quiz
  8. Themes and Poetic Devices in “Black Woman” | Week 8
    2 Topics
    |
    1 Quiz
  9. Non-African Poetry
    "Bat" by D.H. Lawrence | Week 9
    5 Topics
    |
    1 Quiz
  10. Themes and Poetic Devices in "Bat" by D.H. Lawrence | Week 10
    2 Topics
    |
    1 Quiz
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Topic Content:

Point of View:

Ralph Ellison employs the first person narrative technique in Invisible Man, using the narrator as the central narrator throughout the novel. We understand the story to be his perception; the narrator is speaking out about his experiences and as he says in the epilogue, hopefully shedding light on things we might not have realized. The narrator is invisible just as the title of the novel. His name is never given throughout the narrative. Neither his real name nor the name given to him by the Brotherhood is revealed. He becomes a voice and an invisible person to readers.

Foreshadowing:

The dream the narrator had on the night he was awarded a scholarship in a calfskin briefcase to study in a Negro College foreshadows subsequent events in the novel. The narrator dreams that he is in the midst of his grandfather that night, who refuses to laugh at the clowns. His grandfather orders him to open the briefcase and read the message contained in an official envelope. The narrator finds that each envelope contains yet another envelope. In the envelope, instead of 

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Question 1

Question:

What does invisibility mean in the context of the novel “Invisible Man”? Give an example of how the author depicts this invisibility in the story.

Answer:

The theme of invisibility pervades the novel “Invisible Man”. The novel begins with the narrator’s assertion that he is invisible. He is invisible not because he does not exist, but because others simply do not acknowledge his existence. Therefore, invisibility in the context of the novel is the refusal of others, especially the whites to see the narrator or the blindness of the whites to the concerns and needs of the blacks (who the narrator represents) in American society. Thus, it is the refusal to acknowledge the existence of the narrator vis a vis the black race.

The author depicts the concept of invisibility through the character of the narrator. The narrator is the protagonist and principal character in the novel. His name and true identity is never mentioned. The narrator begins and ends the novel as a type of embodied voice. At the beginning of the novel, he explains the meaning of this invisibility, “I am an invisible man… I am invisible”, understand simply because people refuse to see. The narrator is faced with the problem of uncertainty about himself and his role in society. In the novel, he is especially searching for his identity in the race-dominated society, unsure about where to turn to to define himself. As the narrator states at the beginning of the novel, “All my life I had been looking for something, and everywhere I turn, something tries to tell what it was”. It is therefore clear that the narrator’s blackness comprises a large part of his identity and invisibility.

It is the invisibility of the narrator which makes Brother Jack change his identity by giving him a new name and new ideas. He is given a scholarship by the prominent white folks in his town even though they do not know him. He is forced to fight in the battle royal just like any other black boy because he is not perceived as having an identity that is different from other black people; consequently, his invisibility.

However, invisibility also has its advantages. It is the invisibility of the narrator that allows him to tell the story so well and not impose his thoughts and present insight on past events. The narrator puts on invisibility in order to express himself in a society that is not safe for the blacks. He is visible only on the surface but is really invisible.

Significantly, the narrator is invisible because the entire white race is too blind to see the conditions of the blacks in their society – their inability to recognise and affirm their identity makes them blind and visionless.

The narrator’s drastic measure and decision to go underground and return late portends his plan to fight black racial prejudice and his invisibility would be cast off in the end.

Question 2

Question:

Narrate the riot at Harlem

Answer:

Racism is a theme that cuts across the entire novel. The novel opens with the battle royal, where the narrator and other negro boys are emotionally tortured by the white blindfolded and also forced to pick face gold coins from an electrified rug which actually shocks them as they attempt to pick up the fake gold coins. This episode serves as a source of entertainment for the whites and reveals the dehumanization of blacks in America. The whites do not regard the blacks as humans. They do not care about the degradation and torture they are putting the boys through, their primary concern is their pleasure.

This theme of racism is not only revealed from the perspective of the whites but also from the perspective of African Americans (Blacks). This is revealed in the character of Ras the Exhorter who later becomes Ras the Destroyer. He is the main black opponent of the Brotherhood. He does not trust the Brotherhood because he does not believe that whites and blacks can work together to fight against racism and exploitation. He touts his beliefs loudly in the streets of Harlem and attacks the narrator and Clifton on the street as he perceives them as traitors of the black race, for working with whites in the name of Brotherhood.

Ras the Exhorter is of the ideology of the forceful takeover of freedom through the destruction of the whites. Hence, he is also a racist, as he responds to racism with racism. He initiates the riot in Harlem after the death of Clifton and calls for whites to be attacked.

The narrator comes back to Harlem to meet a riot. He runs into Ras and his men. He quickly buys a hat and a pair of sunglasses to disguise himself. He is mistaken for Rinehart the gambler whom he has heard so much about but has never seen. There is pandemonium as gunshots are heard far ahead of him. He tries to figure out what is going on but no one is ready to wait and talk to him. He eventually runs into Dupre who is leading some mob to loot and steal. He is forced to follow them in order to save his life. He also meets Scofield who helps him to evade shooting. Dupre leads the crowd into a shop and orders them to empty the place.

The narrator is surprised to discover that all the things that were taken from the store are used to set a particular building ablaze. He is disgusted by the wanton destruction of properties. He tries to calm the crowd but to no avail because he is a lone voice. The more he moves, the nearer and louder the guns sound. He reasons that this is the kind of situation the Brotherhood wants. They want a race riot to justify their aims.

The narrator and Ras meet again. This time Ras recognizes him because his disguise is broken. Ras rides on a large black horse as Abyssinian Chieftain. Ras yells at the narrator and sends his men after him. The narrator flees for his safety. In his bid to escape, he sees some policemen who corner him to search his briefcase. He runs away and jumps into a manhole. The manhole is covered with a heavy metal which the narrator is unable to push away.

He is now literally invisible, and they clamp the manhole cover back on, leaving him there, where he stays in a kind of tomb, a kind of living death, to sleep until morning.

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