The first time the ideology of submission occurs is in Chapter One, when IM's grandfather's message propelled a "yes them to death mentality". Throughout the rest of the novel, this message is intertwined with the idea of an invisible race and what that means for society. Although Ralph Ellison’s Invisible Man explores the concept of identity, Chapter Eleven uses rhetorical devices to examine the relationship between invisibility and racial superintendency.
The paradox that Ellison creates is unique. On the one hand, he is considered an invisible man. However, white society dictates his invisibility. This situation not only creates the possibility that one can measure invisibility, that it is not merely a fixed state of being, but also that white supremacy has a direct effect on it. The doctor in Chapter Eleven just as readily tells him to, “hush, goddamnit. . . shut up," (232) as he does ease his confusion. This juxtaposition proves to reiterate the doctor’s ability to accept IM or decide he is an invisible man. …show more content…
IM is immobile, cannot correctly speak, and has no recollection of his identity. This arrangement makes it easier for the doctor to provide him with one, which he claims will allow for “society to suffer no traumata on his account” (236). The description of IM as being “quiet and. . . numb” (231) and “blinking as though noticing me for the first time, ” (233) are used to create a loss of identity for IM. It also provides the understanding that IM is noticing himself through the formation of a new identity the “prefrontal lobotomy” (236) has provided for him. The doctor takes the opportunity to give IM a “complete [a] change in personality, ”(236) once again determining to what extent he considers IM to be “visible” by
The paradox that Ellison creates is unique. On the one hand, he is considered an invisible man. However, white society dictates his invisibility. This situation not only creates the possibility that one can measure invisibility, that it is not merely a fixed state of being, but also that white supremacy has a direct effect on it. The doctor in Chapter Eleven just as readily tells him to, “hush, goddamnit. . . shut up," (232) as he does ease his confusion. This juxtaposition proves to reiterate the doctor’s ability to accept IM or decide he is an invisible man. …show more content…
IM is immobile, cannot correctly speak, and has no recollection of his identity. This arrangement makes it easier for the doctor to provide him with one, which he claims will allow for “society to suffer no traumata on his account” (236). The description of IM as being “quiet and. . . numb” (231) and “blinking as though noticing me for the first time, ” (233) are used to create a loss of identity for IM. It also provides the understanding that IM is noticing himself through the formation of a new identity the “prefrontal lobotomy” (236) has provided for him. The doctor takes the opportunity to give IM a “complete [a] change in personality, ”(236) once again determining to what extent he considers IM to be “visible” by