The Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison is a narrative story of a black man in New York City whose experiences growing up cause him to believe he is invisible to American society. The Invisible Man can be read through many lenses, one that offers a consistent and memorable experience is the lens of external “conflict” or “combat.” In chapter one the narrator presents the first conflict scene of the novel, “Battle Royal,” in which he and his classmates fight each other as entertainment for the white men. Ellison uses literary features of metaphors and symbolism and the historical context of discrimination mixed with ideals of Booker T. Washington to emphasize this example of hand-to-hand combat.
The battle royal, the first major scene of conflict depicted in The Invisible Man, is
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The blind rage of the fight throws the narrator into a violent, chaotic world where society rules do not exist and conveying a desire the white men have to live a less civilized life. “ Everyone fought hysterically. It was complete anarchy. Everybody fought everybody else. No group fought together for long.” The battle royal represents the state of darkness, terror, and confusion in which the white men of this society trap these black men. This conflict symbolizes the social and political struggle blacks must endure in society. The theme of struggle, in which blacks fight for a prize that often remains out of reach, is introduced. The boys’ literal blindfolding in the ring parallels the white man’s metaphorical blindness as they watch: the white men view the black boys not as individuals, but as inferior beings in a source of cruel amusement. To emphasize his message that blacks forced to live in a segregated society where denied their human rights, Ellison uses two symbolic elements: white blindfolds and brass tokens. The white blindfolds represent the boys’ metaphorical blindness as they are being “blinded by the white.” The boys