Invisible Man Theme/Symbol

The Invisible Man is about how black people are and were treated. I say this because I believe Invisible Man addresses a timeless problem, the problem of racism that will probably be prevelant for the rest of time. Ellison addresses this problem in physical happenings as well as an overabundance of symbols and allusions. The use of the colors black and white in the novel appears almost on every page, I think that the scene where the narrator is working at Liberty paints shows the overall message of the novel very well. The narrator is set to work making optic white paint. This in itself is extremely symbolic in the fact that to make this optic WHITE paint which represesnts the superiority of the white race and the fact that if it wasnt for black workers and slaves in the past they would be no where, the narrator is the cornerstone for something he is not accepted into. A theme of clearness, and eyesight is a motif throughout the novel, and the word optic is usually associated with these themes. Optic white, the fact that whites can see or the fact that they cant see what is going on that their vision is truly blurred. Mr. Norton could not see the situation for the trees, he only saw a part of it. The optic symbol is really a very important aspect to the novel because it shows that Ellison understood all views on the black race and that their was white people who wanted to help but couldnt because they did not see everything that was needed. This in my opinion gives Ellison alot of credibility he wiould not have recieved if he only wrote about how the white race continually only puts down his without trying to help at all. Back to the paints though, the narrator is told to put a dark chemical called "dope" in the paint then stir until the paint becomes white. This is symbolic because it shows what is really at the center of the white race, that even though it may appear nice, and clean from the outside, in the heart of it is corruption and greed and evil and that is what the dope represents. After the narrator messes the paint up and his white employer "fixes" it, the paint comes out with a grey tinge coming through the white. The narrator notices this but the white man doesnt see it. This again goes back to white people seeing only what they want to see and not really seeing the corruption of their own race.

The narrator is never named throughout the novel and there are probably many oppinions on why Ellision chose to do this, I think this was done because the narrator was made to represent the race as a whole and not only one mans story. He is supposed to show the struggle of his race and the constant fight to advance in society but never really getting anywhere, that they keep trying and fighting but that life is really only fixed for them. The narrator never really gets anywhere throughout the novel he finds the brotherhood which seems promising but is really only using him for their own advancement. He is only an actor who cannot really speak his mind or be the leader they try and make him out to be.

The novel is ultimatley one big symbol where this one man is an allusion to a race and the reality of the time. Where he opens endless envelopes with another inside of it. And he continues to run in hopelessness.