Invisible Man Journal 5

Finally the last section of Invisible Man! The section started off with the narrator seeing Ras the Destroyer giving a speech of condemnation on the Brotherhood for not using Clifton’s death. Some of his followers confront the narrator so he gets a disguise. Since identity is a theme of this book, it was interesting to see all of the different people the narrator is mistaken for as “Rinehart”. Everyone seems to know him in the disguise but they think of him as a variety of people which could be a reflection of how he does not know himself. As the narrator reflects on the disguise he “[sits] there trembling” as “[he] caught a brief glimpse of the possibilities posed by Rinehart’s multiple personalities and turned away. It was too vast and confusing to contemplate” (499). The narrator is almost scared of the possibilities that the new identity could bring to him because he has grown accustomed to not having an identity and being whatever people tell him to be. When the narrator gets to Hambro’s house he learns the truth behind the Brotherhood and decides to learn more by going to get information from Jack’s mistress. Although he does not go through with it, it was surprising to me because the narrator does not seem like the type of person that would exploit people, so it is obvious that he has strong feeling towards the Brotherhood. He does decide to use Sybil which does not work out for him because she just wants to use him. When the narrator reports back to the Brotherhood about Harlem he lies to them and says that things are quieting down. The whole rest of the ending was crazy. After major chaos in the streets of Harlem and being attacked by Ras with a spear, the narrator flees and falls into a manhole and decides to stay there. Why do you think the narrator stayed underground? Being underground gives the narrator the most clarity that he’s had all book and he finally realizes that he was not interpreting his grandpa’s words correctly. He realizes that he should be making the world a better place. I also like that at the end the narrator burns all of the things in the briefcase. This shows that he is no longer letting others define who he is. He is ridding himself of the identities or things that people have given him that don’t reflect his true self. I thought that this was a fitting ending for the novel. 

Invisible Man Journal Entry 4

The newest section of Invisible Man was very exciting! The narrator works for women’s rights and the first thing he does is sleep with one of the white women. When the woman’s husband comes home he does not see the narrator. This plays in with the motif of visibility and invisibility. The narrator also sees Clifton being shot by a cop. Prior to this, Clifton was selling dolls that were representative of blacks. This angers the narrator and he does not approve of Clifton’s actions. He even crushes one of the dolls by stepping on it. I thought it was interesting that the dolls move with string because that is also a motif. The blacks are being controlled by outside forces just as we have seen throughout this novel. The actual shooting scene was very chaotic. It is clear that Clifton punched a cop and then was shot, but it seemed to be shocking for everyone. After seeing Clifton being shot, the narrator works tirelessly to speak out and start organizing events. Do you think that it was for Clifton or simply because he likes to speak out? Is it to go against the Brotherhood who held the meeting without him? I’d love to hear your thoughts! 

It also baffles me why the narrator stays in the Brotherhood when they do not have respect for him as a person. They tell him that he is there to speak and not to think. This would be a red flag for me but the narrator still sticks around. It seemed very significant that brother Jack’s eye popped out. In our group today we discussed how Jack is physically blind in one eye and the other eye is blind to truth. They also demand blind devotion from the people in the group. They get angry when someone tries to step out, even if it be in the name of the Brotherhood. Brother Jack gets angry at the narrator for organizing speeches for Clifton without the support of the Brotherhood even though the narrator had good motives. He wanted the Brotherhood to use the tension to propagate their cause, but they do not want to. They do not want Clifton to be associated with them, even though he could have been a powerful tool if they utilized the tension his death caused. 

Invisible Man Journal Entry 3

This section was very long so I won’t be able to talk about everything but I’ll talk about a few things that stood out. One was the veteran who finally got what he wanted after speaking out. He says, “For a year I’ve tried to get transferred, then this morning I’m suddenly told to pack” (153). Just because the veteran went against Bledsoe, he now wants him to go away because he sees him as a threat. The veteran got what he wanted in the end, but not because of anything in his power. It’s sad how powerless he was in the situation and only came out with the ending he wanted because of the power that Bledsoe used to get him far away. Bledsoe does the same thing to the narrator and the veteran talks about this when he says, “Why the same they we always mean, the white folks, authority, the gods, fate, circumstances-the force that pulls your strings until you refuse to be pulled any more” (154). Although Bledsoe is not white, he is still the controlling factor in the narrator’s life. He sends him away with fake recommendation letters and no chance of success. It’s sad that Bledsoe is a powerful black man but he does not do anything to help his own race. He is more focused on staying in power and looking good. 

I also thought that chapter 11 was very interesting. That chapter shows us a new narrator who no longer has any sense of his identity because of the factory accident. While the doctor asks the narrator questions he can’t remember his name or many details. This transition is significant because the narrator is no longer fearful of the authority figures that have wronged him previously. His identity is then given to him by Jack as he joins the Brotherhood. They use him as a pawn for their movement and make him speak and think in the way that they want. Ras claims that the white members will turn on the black members, and the whole incident casts some uneasy feelings on the Brotherhood. This feeling also increases when Jack’s wife questions whether the narrator is black enough. The brotherhood also starts to look into the narrator and transfers him to a different branch dealing with women’s rights. Doing the interview seemed to be a bad idea for the narrators future. Do you think that the narrator will stay with the Brotherhood or do you think he will start on a new path?