Wednesday, May 2, 2012

Invisible Man Book Review

Never have I read a novel as powerful and remarkable as Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison. Taking place nearly half a century ago, he beautifully paints an abstract picture of America and the differing societies of the North and the South in the 1930's. Ellison's timeless classic is so much more than just a powerful storyline but has also changed the shape of American literature as we know it.

The Ellison's protagonist, a young college educated black man who remains nameless, takes the reader on an extraordinary journey as he travels from the Deep South to Harlem with none other besides his briefcase and little hope. From the first chapter, you are instantly addicted to the character and how he got to be was he is. Through trail and tribulations, he is forced to confine in nearly strangers in order to survive in the city and live off of instinct, despite where that may lead him. Although the protagonist tries to live through honesty and trust, a much higher power seems dominate his thoughts, beliefs, and understanding of life itself. Above it all Invisible Man is about exploitation, manipulation, and the gross hypocrisy that exists in our society.

The novel creates a vivid and shocking picture of America's true society and subversion of individual identity. Soon after the book was published Ellison said that Invisible Man was not just about the black experience in America, it was an account of every person's "invisibility" in a world that tells us how to think of each other. Most everyone can relate in some way or another to Invisible Man and its complex works. The plot is more than simply race novel, but more so about coming of age in a world that is so much based upon society and what society influences us believe. Invisible Man is a must-read for anyone who thinks they have a grip on the American experience.

-Jasmine C
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4 comments:

  1. Hot WingsMay 3, 2012 at 12:22 PM

    Hmm, about the "confine" third sentence of the second paragraph, is that supposed to be confide? Normally i'd make the mental correction automatically and not bring this up, but within the context the variations are very close in probability, due less so to the surrounding paragraph and more so to the tone, since due to the first paragraph I'm more inclined to believe what ever is written is actually written.

    K. Lin

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  2. Team SurrealMay 6, 2012 at 6:30 PM

    I have had a few friends read this book and tell me that it was incredibly boring, but I'm glad to hear that it was a good read! I like how you incorporated the title into the experience of all of us in the last paragraph and the insight you put into the true meaning of "invisible" shows that the text really impacted you.

    -Kevin W.

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  3. Team SurrealMay 7, 2012 at 8:45 PM

    This novel sounds like great commentary on what was wrong with society in the 30s. Would you say that Ellison's topics of hypocrisy and exploitation are still problems today? Of course they are wrong but would you say that reference to that kind of malpractice is still relevant to this day and age?

    -Collin G.

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  4. doubledoublezMay 13, 2012 at 10:35 PM

    First of all, I say that this book was a thriller. Also, I like how this book shows how society was so immoral and so lifeless back then.

    -Richard Won
    period 3

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