Racial Prejudice In Invisible Man

Al Sharpton had once said, “As I often say, we have come a long way from the days of slavery, but in 2014, discrimination and inequality still saturate our society in modern ways. Though racism may be less blatant now in many cases, its existence is undeniable.” Although slavery has been abolished for many years, racial prejudice is still relevant. Today, society still establishes the thoughts and actions of races. Society may think that racism is gone, however, we still are prejudice in many ways. The Invisible Man's community determines his identity because of racial prejudice and ideologies towards African Americans. Mr. Norton had constructed the Invisible Man's identity to resemble his work. "I think it was because I felt even as a young …show more content…
“Already he's learned to repress not only his emotions but his humanity. He's invisible, a walking personification of the Negative, the most perfect achievement of your dreams, sir! The mechanical man”. (Wells, 299) Even the vet, who is described as a lunatic, can realize how the man’s personality is being shaped by others. The vet was not scared of realizing what society was really doing with people of his race. This was the first time some had confessed to the Invisible Man that he is only what society and people have designed him to be. Although this was the first time the man has been told this, he refuses to believe what the vet says. It is not until a man of importance, like Dr. Bledsoe, make the Invisible Man discover this. “These imposed ideas prevent him from discovering who he is, and allow others to see him as they want to see him”. (Benson) No one had let the man chose who he had wanted to be. Every time he had encountered a different community, or person, they had put limitations on to him. These limitations shaped him into who he was. Throughout almost the entire story, the man refuses to believe his grandfather's advice, “Overcome ‘em With Yeses”. However, it takes him almost the entire story to realize that by letting himself be shaped by society, he was using this advice. By letting society decide who he was, he was not able to …show more content…
“I was someone new … I belonged to them … already it seemed the expression of someone else”. (Wells, 353) The brotherhood resembled a communist group in the novel. They had taken him in and controlled who he was. The Invisible Man had never questioned their decisions. Not only do they change the way he acts, but they change his name and address. He leaves his southern past and takes on Brother Jack’s socialist attitude. Now, his identity was part of a northern, white group. He changes his identity to conform to the views of racial diversity of the group. By becoming a part of the brotherhood, the man drastically changes his