Title: Invisible Man
Author: Ralph Ellison
Synopsis: It is a story of a Negro’s attempt to gain a successful life
in the prejudiced society of the United States, only two generations after the
abolition of slavery.
Themes:
• One can have lofty goals and work towards achieving them, but be smashed
down by circumstances beyond his control.
• Prejudices are evil and often press people into actions they would not
have done if society did not hold them in contempt.
Point of View: First Person Omniscient
Characters/types:
I, is a hero for the black race, but achieves little recognition and ends up
with a sense of disenchantment about the world.
Figurative Language/literary devices: note extensive or unique uses as well
as describing the overall effect.
In this noel Ellison extensively uses very detailed imagery to bring the reader
a greater understanding of the world in which I was living.
1. Which element was the most important to the development of the novel? Explain
why.
The most important element to the development of the novel was the prejudice
which I faced as he tried to gain success.
2. Identify the elements of plot below. Justify your answer.
A. initial incident
The initial incident is when I is thrown out of college and leaves for New York.
B. climax
The climax seemed to be when Tod Clifton was shot by the police, because it
caused I to eventually be driven underground.
3. Give an example of conflict. Identify the type of conflict and how it is
/ why it is not resolved.
In the very beginning of the story there is a conflict between the prominent
white men of I’s area and the ten black boys, I included, who are supposed
to fight like animals for the enjoyment of the whites.
4. Give an example of irony from the novel. Identify the type and explain how
or why it is ironic.
There is a particularly ironic part of the story in chapter one when the “gold”
coins which the narrator braved the electrified rug to collect turned out to
only be brass coins, not worth even as much as a nickel
5. Identify a flashback from the novel and explain the effect of the use of
this device.
“…I’ve closed my eyes and walked along the forbidden road
that winds past the girl’s dormitories, past the hall with the clock in
the tower, its windows warmly aglow, on down past the small white Home Economics
cottage, whiter still in the moonlight, and on down the road with its sloping
and turning,…” (Pg. 34) He is recalling life at the Negro college.
6. Give an example of foreshadowing from the novel. Explain the effect of the
use of this device.
When I says, “The grass did grow and the green leaves appeared on the
trees and filled the avenue with shadow and shade as sure as the millionaires
descended from the North on Founder’s Day each spring.” He is foreshadowing
the tale of the time when he drove Norton to the sharecroper’s
7. From what point of view is the story told? What effect does this point of
view have on the reader?
This story is told by the invisible man himself, and that gives it an inherent
sense of truth which might be lost if it ad been written from anyone else’s
point of view.
8. Describe the setting of the novel.
This story takes place about two generations after the repeal of slavery in
the United States. Most likely the place is somewhere in the southern region
of America, due to the violent abuses delivered to the blacks mentioned.
9. Identify two major characters from the novel. For each character: A. Identify
the type. B. Give three quotes, with page numbers, which illustrates the character.
Character one: I
A. He is the hero of the story.
B. “All my life I had been looking for something, and everywhere I turned
someone tried to tell me what it was.”(Pg. 15)
“And yet I am no freak of nature, nor of history”(Pg. 15)
“But I only want a job sir,” I said. “I only want to make
enough money to return to my studies.” (Pg. 188)
Character two:
There is really no other main character.
10. Give a one sentence statement of theme for the novel.
Few people ever escape from personal invisibility.
11. Identify one symbol from the novel and explain the symbolism.
The leather case that I received from the white men after giving his speech
represented his path toward success.
12. Identify one allusion from the novel and explain the allusion.
On page 41, Norton, who I drove, made a reference to Ralph Waldo Emerson who
was a famous author of that approximate time.
13. Identify six different types of figurative language or literary devices
used in the novel. For each type:
A. Identify type. B. Give a quote with page number. C. Explain the effect.
1. A. Allusion
B. “And I stand and listen beneath the high-hung moon, hearing ‘A
Mighty Fortress Is Our God’…” (Pg. 35)
C. It shows what kind of music was present while I was at college.
2. A. Hyperbole
B. “She was a being more rare, more beautiful, purer, more perfect and
more delicate than the wildest dream of a poet.”(Pg. 42)
C. Norton is describing to I what his daughter was like, from his memory of
her, which was a little skewed.
3. A. Dialect
B. “No suh! I feels all right.” (Pg. 51)
C. Trueblood speaks differently because that is the way an actual person in
his situation would be likely to speak.
4. A. Motif
B. “…I am invisible.” (used through out the story)
C. I is describing his current personal state.
5. A. Simile
B. “…I am a New Englander, like Emerson.” (Pg. 41)
C. Norton is giving a comparison between himself and Emerson.
6. A. Soliloquy
B. “One of the very first no doubt,” he said, dabbing at the blue-veined
eyes. “A trustee of consciousness.” (Pg. 89)
C. The Negro doctor was commenting to himself as to Mr. Norton’s state.
