The Narrator In Ralph Ellison's Invisible Man

The book Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison begins with the narrator (a black male whose name is never given) living in the Southern United States. He starts by saying that he is indeed an invisible man but not like a ghost, he is only invisible because in his words, “people refuse to see me.” (3) The narrator then takes the story back in time to the death of his grandfather whose final words stayed with him as he grew older. His grandfather spoke of living as a traitor and even when the narrator was doing good things and was praised he would think back to his grandfather’s words. Even with the haunting words of his grandfather the narrator learns that people see him as a great speaker. He speaks at his graduation and is asked to speak at a meeting
of the powerful white men in his town. Once at the meeting the narrator realizes that he will get to speak but only after he is pitted against other guys his age in a blindfolded fight. The fight is solely for the entertainment of the white men he was invited by and after the narrator loses he is finally asked to give his speech. He does so and at the end he is awarded a scholarship to the Negro state college because they see that he has potential for success.