The Paint Factory In Invisible Man, Liberty Paints

American society is recognized through the power of the White House. It could be possible that the white buildings in Washington, DC reflect the view that the nation was founded and built by white people. This vision of America being “pure” white is flawed. As shown in history, America was dependent on the work provided by the slaves in the South’s agricultural economy, providing the hard labor necessary to run the plantations. America would not have prospered without the extraordinary efforts on the African Americans. Even so, it is still present today that some Americans believe that the United States is still a “pure” white nation. This is due in part that it is hard for some people to see outside of racial differences. Just like the

As represented in the American society, the paint factory is based on the ideals of liberty and purity of the white paint, yet racism is still prominent within it. When entering the plant one sees a huge electric sign with the words “Keep America Pure with Liberty Paints” (196). The narrator uses sarcasm to describe the sign as appearing overwhelmingly nationalist against the dull foggy background. Although Liberty Paints is a paint factory, “Optic White” is seemingly the only paint produced there. This represents the white man’s dominance in the American society. The government, as unknowingly present, demands that the paint be the brightest white there is. The paint itself is a mix of ten black drops of toner along with the regular white paint. The process of painting represents a new permanent layer. With the Liberty paint being “Optic White” it shows how the corruption of white supremacy is trying to overrun any trace of the black population. The company name Liberty paints is also ironic in the sense that Liberty means justice and equality whereas the narrator is treated with no liberty at all. Instead, when he accidently tints a batch of the paint too dark, he is hurriedly fired. This goes along with the factory’s motto, “If Tt’s Optic White, It’s the Right White”. This reminds the narrator of the old southern expression “If you’re white,

The Supervisor of Liberty Paints, Kimbro, sees the paint as pure white, even though it has a shade of gray. From the narrator’s perspective he sees it differently. “I looked at the paint slab. It appeared the same: a gray tinge glowed through the whiteness, and Kimbro had failed to detect it” (205). In American society “racism” is typically seen as black vs white. However, we live in a world where there is more than just two basic races as there are also Hispanics, Latinos, Asians, and Hawaiians just to name a few. In today’s world, these nationalities would represent the gray in society just like the gray Kimbro sees in the paint factory. As present in the news today, the focal point seems to circulate around blacks and white as in the book. This is supported in the book when the narrator is first learning how to make the paint. He doesn’t understand why he is told to add black drops to make the paint whiter. The narrator then angers Kimbro when he questions him about adding the black paint: “His eyes snapped. ‘You damn right I know,’ he said. ‘You just do what you’re told” (200). It is evident from this response that Kimbro is trying to force his views of a white world on himself and the narrator even though the reader can gather that he subconsciously knows it’s not completely