Refusing To Fight

The 1940s represent a decade of turmoil for the United States in general. Perhaps no group of people struggled more during that time period, however, than African Americans. With racial segregation prevalent, particularly in the South, opportunity was lacking for African-Americans. However, Ralph Ellison suggests in "Battle Royal" that due to the lack of racial unity among black men as well as a certain amount of naivetÐ"©, black men prevented themselves from succeeding more so than their white oppressors.

With few outlets to succeed in America at the time, African Americans put forth extra effort to succeed when they were given a chance. Often times, this set black men at odds with each other, as they fought to get ahead in a white-dominated society. In "Battle Royal", this type of dog-eat-dog behavior is duly noted in the actual fight scene. From the moment the narrator steps into the elevator with his classmates, he "felt superior to them in [his] way" (200), and yet he also felt intimidated by their overwhelming fierceness. The only hint of unity that the reader can sense is when all the boys are thrown together, feeling awkward and uncomfortable at the site of the naked white girl in front of them. This distorted sense of unity ends as they are blindfolded and thrown into the ring together. This immediately draws a parallel to society in general, as black men were thrown out into the world, competing against each other to see who would succeed. Likewise, the boys immediately turn on each other, as "everybody fought everybody else. No group fought together for long" (203). Though it is their white oppressors that serve as a catalyst for this kind of disunity, it is up to them to stand together as one and fight to win over white dominance, not to be at constant war with each other, hoping for the same outcome.

This type of intra-racial conflict is explored further in the scene where the narrator must fight Tatlock. The narrator had been at this point "fighting automatically" (203), fighting without a solid purpose, fighting against members of his own race, with whom he went to school. Now, he must face his biggest challenge to prove himself physically to the white men by fighting the biggest boy, Tatlock. Left in the ring, it is the strong versus the week, the uneducated against the educated. With fear and anger both in his eyes, Tatlock wants nothing more than to rip the narrator apart, perhaps perversely taking his own frustrations meant for the white men who have done this to him out on the narrator. This is clear when he is asked if he is fighting for these men, and he responds, "For me, sonofabitch" (204). That is the same vulgarity that had been shouted at all the boys by the white men. Thus, Tatlock, large in stature and dense in wit, represents the distorted sense of anger felt by the black boys. Rather than expressing it toward the ones holding them back from opportunity, it has been displaced and is directed at each other, which the white men wanted all along.

In addition to the fight, the boys are once again thrown together to grab all the coins that they can. More concerned with doing what they are told and seizing the coins than pain they experience, they cope with the fact that the rug is electrified and do not come to the realization that they once again are being set up by the white men. Oblivious to the fact that they are being tricked and mocked, the boys scramble for the coins in a frenzy, like that of animals, only for the narrator to find out later that the coins were actually tokens. Once again, they had been put in a situation at war with each other, struggling for a goal that resulted in an empty conquest.

Before the fight, Ellison uses symbolism to portray how the black men of society at the time viewed the American Dream. This is represented by the white girl with the American flag tattooed on her stomach. As a symbol, the white girl represents the chance at opportunity available to the citizens of this country. The placement of the tattoo on a naked woman suggests that, somehow, the American Dream has been corrupted by those who had been able to live it out. The white men grab and grope at her, sexually harass her, and are able to gaze upon her. She is tangible to them, yet this holds no greatness for them. They abuse her as much as they can without a second thought.

The girl holds an entirely different meaning for the black men. They dare not look at her, as the narrator immediately feels "a wave of irrational guilt and fear." (201) She is the forbidden fruit of the country, which they are not allowed to actively participate in. She is still a dream for them, an unattainable goal that is waved before their eyes to taunt them, to show them what they can not achieve. But, this type of thinking is able to be changed as she becomes Ð''human' for the narrator. He believes that "she saw only [him] with her impersonal eyes" (201). He even has a moment where he can hear her "calling to [him] from the angry surface of some gray and threatening sea" (201). Here, the narrator has a very personal encounter with a very impersonal character. He believes that he has connected with the woman, but does nothing about it. Many others around him even want to run from the room. They are scared to look because of what the white men will do to them. They feel awkward and uncomfortable because they are not bold enough to look at what is in front of them. It is through this symbolic moment that Ellison believes that the black men did not try hard enough to attain the seemingly unattainable.

It is evident that the narrator harbors a great deal of naivetÐ"© throughout the story, as he was "looking for [himself] and asking everyone [else] questions which [only he] could answer" (199). As an "invisible man" (199), it is up to him to better himself and prove to the white men that he is an intelligent man, worthy of becoming a leader. But, viewing himself as a "potential Booker T. Washington" (200), it is certain that his speech, in which he stated that humility is the key to success contradicts this image that he held. A black man could not excel by being humble, yet he was forced to. Constantly conscious of what the prominent white men think of him, the narrator so desperately wants to deliver his speech to show off his ability. This consumes him so much so that he is willing to endure all of the humiliation and violence in the process.

Furthermore, at the first chance to stand up for himself and his race, a result of an error in his speech, he backs down and continues to speak, unbothered by the fact that he does not impress the