Inivisible Man

Power of the Unrecorded

Invisible Man, a book written by Ralph Ellison, is a story about an African American man whose naпve outlook on life leaves him with a sense of invisibility and emptiness. Shortly before this book was published, the story of Emmett Till hit the press worldwide. Till, like our unidentified narrator, becomes invisible in the way that once he is dead, little empathy is shown by the white community as a whole. Within both of these tragedies lie the recorded history and the unrecorded thoughts and feelings. Ultimately, it is the unrecorded thoughts and feelings that cause the individual's invisibility and forms their character.

The narrator in Invisible Man has many unrecorded thoughts that form his character more than the recorded history. His character really forms as the book reaches the end of the story; the scene at the factory infirmary exemplifies an unrecorded situation that leads to the narrator's invisibility and inability to know himself. The fact that he cannot answer simple questions such as "what is your name" or "who is your mother" show his invisibility and how this unrecorded information plays such a huge role in his development. Just as this unrecorded shapes the narrator, Emmett Till's future is shaped by the unrecorded history of when he steps into the white man's truck.

The narrator's surrounds help to dictate his invisibility also: "The longer you can run from the police, the longer you will be effective," said the little girl. His unrecorded reaction to this statement is that of surprise. He is too naпve to understand this is how he has been used the entire time. His "superiors" keep him running and rallying people up, and thus he has become effective to the ends his superiors wish. These unrecorded instances push the narrator to want to be invisible.

The narrator's yearning