The Effect of Society on An Individual The ability for one to think for themselves, and act upon their own actions has truly become something more of an illusion. Society can be personified as someone who tempts minds and influences opinions molding them into a more correct way of thinking or behaving. Standing out and voicing opinions that oppose or deviate from the norm tend to be frowned upon. Through Ellison’s portrayal of character, plot, and symbolism in Invisible Man the mental picture of what perseverance truly is becomes evident as the hardships of society are uncovered. By breaking away from the benchmark, one has received the opportunity to open doors that led to places that can change patterns to more beneficiary standards, …show more content…
Being alone can really pose feelings that hurt one’s self esteem especially when there is no one to look to for support or guidance. The character longs to clear the events that have occurred in his life, and he turns to isolation to help him plan what he will do after. The world has manipulated Jack so much he tries to pull himself away so he can form his own opinions, and not those derived from others (Hobson). Being able to turn around, and recover becomes the next step that Jack has to overcome. It would be easy to give up; accepting the fact society is an unbeatable opponent but this concept helps molds Jack’s character to want to change this way of thinking. The narrator Jack has to seek medical attention for Norton early in the book, so the two go to “Golden Day” a black brothel for army vets. There a big ordeal occurs due to the fact a white man is brought into the meeting place (Ellison 74). This view of isolation from the white man to the black shows just how far the two races are apart from one another. Can a “golden day” truly exist where the two races can co exist with each other. Small ideas like this can be hard to overlook when one is trying to push for racial equality, but Jack manages to overlook these