Invisible Man Chapters 16-19

1. Invisible Man Chapters 16-19 By: A.J. Dehn, Taylor Cramer, Ruth Munene Ms. Benton Hour 2

2. Theme Statement: When one doesn't know their identity, it becomes a conflict between who they think they are and what others think they should be, however, one still needs those people to make key connections in order to be successful in life.

3. Thesis Statement: Through the events of the Brotherhood, Ellison leaves the reader with the idea that when a person doesn't know who they are, it's easier to manipulate their thoughts and actions into what others think they should be, although, they still need those same people to be successful in life.

4. Example 1 The Narrator has been transformed by the Brotherhood: "No more flying apart at the seams, no more remembering forgotten pains . . . No, I thought, shifting my body, they're the same legs on which I've come so far from home. And yet they were somehow new. The new suit imparted a newness to me. It was the clothes and the new name and the circumstances. It was a newness too subtle to put into thought, but there it was. I was becoming someone else" (Ellison 335).

5. So What? The Narrator has been taken in by the Brotherhood and is about to give his first speech for them. Before the speech he thinks about how he's still the same person that he was from home, but how since coming here, the Brotherhood has dressed him up in this outfit and changed him, compelling him to become a new person.

6. Example 2 The Invisible Man is continuing to mold himself to the Brotherhood's likes. He is happy to be with the Brotherhood, and is even aware of the changes that they are placing on him: "To point out the dangerous nature of his speech isn't destructive criticism. Far from it. Like the rest of us, the new brother must learn to speak scientifically. He must be trained!" (Ellison 351). and after he gives his speech he admits to being transformed when he says: "Even my technique had been different; no one who had known me at college would have recognized the speech. But that was as it should have been, for I was someone new -even though I had spoken in a very old-fashioned way" (Ellison 353).

7. So What? The Invisible Man changes a lot throughout giving his speech. He later reflects on his former self and how he has changed since he left home. He admits that back at college, his prior home, no one would have recognized him. While he changes, he keeps looking back on who he used to be, and it causes him to reflect on the choices that he has made and the choices that he is making right now.

8. Example 3 The Invisible Man is the last of many to make his speech at the arena. In the arena, he is a little nervous in the beginning but gets a line off. In response a man from the crowd yells out, "We with you brother you pitch em we catch em!" (Ellison 342). This plus further baseball expressions helped the Invisible man be successful in his speech.

9. So What? When making any kind of speech it is important to make a connection. Speakers use many tricks to help them make a connection with someone in the audience in order to get comfortable in front of others. The man in the crowd was what allowed Invisible Man to feel at home in a place that isn't so welcoming and is hundreds of miles away from his real home.

10. Example 4 One of Invisible Man's new connections sends him a letter of advice. This anonymous letter tells him to slow down and that it's still a white man's world. "So take a friendly advice and go easy so that you can keep helping the colored people" (Ellison 383). This was a solid warning for the Invisible Man and really made him think.

11. So What? This letter of advice gives the Invisible Man something to think about along with Ras's comments. Although it just says to slow down, it is a very serious warning. The writer states he is in a 'white man's world.' This same message has been occurring throughout the book with Bledsoe, Norton, and even his grandfather. When putting it all together it makes him think about who he is as a person.

12. Conclusion Like many of us, the Invisible Man struggles to piece together his life like a puzzle. He is manipulated, yet becomes successful through those same people that took advantage of him. He doesn't know who he truly is, thus making him an easy target to deceive. Likewise, many of us have been deceived in the past, and have learned from it. This leaves us with this question:

13. ? ? ? Do you know who you are? ? ?