Within Ralph Ellison’s novel, Invisible Man, Dr. Bledsoe manipulates others benefit himself. The novel morally criticizes Bledsoe for his exploitation of fellow blacks and whites in his quest for power and demonstrating the danger of invisibility. Dr. Bledsoe’s need of power manifests in his control of the black college, utilizing his position to give him a high standing, manipulating blacks and whites to keep his reputation pristine. His manipulative tactics to keep power reveal themselves through the masquerades he performs to appease the white’s sense of racial status. In front of the white trustees he takes on the facade of a humble individual, wearing plain clothes, acting the black stereotype: intelligent, but a little foolish. These acts of submission deceive the white founders into believing they control the college while in reality Bledsoe pulls all the strings. Additionally Bledsoe manipulates the black students of the college, using his high standing to make them submit. He utilizes this technique on the narrator when he expels him from the college with the promise of reentry after working in New York, giving his seven letters to get him a job. However, these letters are a decoy to efficiently move the narrator out of Bledsoe’s way. Dr. Bledsoe’s need for power and control and his manipulation illustrate his …show more content…
Bledsoe. Since Bledsoe is a colored man he holds the guise of invisibility, giving him leeway to control the college. The whites see Bledsoe as less intelligent, indirectly giving him the tools he needs to manipulate them through a fake demeanor. His invisibility additionally shields him from suspicion due to racist assumptions that a black man could not commit deceptive actions. Ellison furthermore uses Bledsoe to unveil the message of how invisibility creates dangerous individuals: criticizing Bledsoe’s perception of humans as tools and his ability to escape his crimes in the