Inequality In Invisible Man

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Invisible Man “tells” a dark truth about American culture, a truth that America’s past was one of racism, inequality. While fictional, the tale of the nameless narrator of Invisible Man gives reader a very realistic view of just how difficult it was to be black in the early 1900s in America, particularly in the South and the New York City. The difficulties of being black are not portrayed as just being due to the racism of the white community, but the difficulty of fitting in and being accepted into black communities as well. This novel is a fictional exploration of one man’s identity, but a clear representation of a strange time in the development of American culture.
The novel begins with the narrator talking about his grandparents’ history …show more content…
I see education as being shown in a positive light in this book because it opened up opportunities for the narrator that he could have never had before. While his ability for orating and public speaking was obviously a pre-existing gift that the narrator had, his education was the extra push that made him exceptional to the point where his skills as a public speaker would change the course of his life. His education also gave him the opportunity to see the inequalities in the educational system between white and black officials. The narrator enjoyed educating himself and the simple fact that he was fortunate enough to be born into a family well off enough to be able to provide him with an education would forever change his future. His involvement in the Brotherhood would have never occurred if he had not been educated and he most likely would have never been involved in any sort of political or social movements if he was not educated. Uneducated people at the time found it more difficult to participate in movements such as the one the Brotherhood was involved in simply for lack of comprehension of the subject matter. The meaning of education that I got from reading Invisible Man was simply that it alone could provide opportunities for anyone. Education is invaluable and is life changing and important regardless of race, class, or gender. However, education is more difficult to achieve due to unfortunate economic circumstances. Education is another key theme that is presented in this book and I feel that without his education, the narrator may have led an entirely different and far less interesting
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