In his seminal work The Invisible Man, Ralph Ellison describes the dramatic and eye-opening account of the novel's main character's life as he grows to understand himself and of the reality of the world in which he lives. This unnamed narrator, a black man in a white man's America, initially aims to become the kind of notable, successful black man that whites like before becoming disillusioned with this concept and struggling to maintain his own identity. Throughout his trials, the narrator is subjected to the suffocating and omnipresent subjugation of his race, even as he appears to be in control of his own choices. Interestingly, Ellison chooses to illustrate this developing racial power dynamic with recurring descriptions of black and white objects that serve as representations of the two races and their relationship to each other in the novel. With extensive symbolism and black-and-white imagery that ultimately portrays the cruelly inevitable domination of whites over blacks in this time period, Ellison paints a nuanced picture of the racial power dynamic that characterizes the early 20th-century United States. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Ellison initializes this connection between the literal colors of black and white and the actual races with the symbolic object of a blindfold, creating a clear statement about the type of treatment white people subject black people to. Deceived by his school's superintendent, the narrator finds himself in the midst of a “battle royal” with other young black men destined for the entertainment of a room of wealthy white dignitaries (Ellison 17). He is soon blinded by “wide swathes of white cloth,” as are the other men forced to fight (Ellison 21). This white blindfold actually serves as a literal representation of what white people are doing to black people in a figurative sense: blinding them from reality for the purpose of controlling them. To keep the African American population compliant with the intolerable state of race relations in society, it is necessary to prevent them from seeing things for what they are. Whites deceive blacks like the narrator into believing that their current situation is not undesirable, but accomplished, allowing the white population to better keep them under their rule. This initial depiction of racial power dynamics creates a clear and direct image of who has power and who does not in 20th century American society. Later and throughout the story, Ellison deepens this understanding by establishing a relationship between white clothes and white clothes. power, thus leading the reader to make the connection that all power somehow comes from white people. The first notable example of this relationship occurs at the Golden Day, the bar where the narrator takes the sickly Mr. Norton for a drink after his visit with Jim Trueblood. Upon their arrival at the tavern, a group of irreverent black veterans, many of whom appear mentally ill, practically crowd the elderly Mr. Norton. Soon their caretaker, Supercargo, makes his bombastic appearance: "WHAT'S HAPPENING DOWN THERE?" a voice shouted from the balcony. Everyone turned. I saw a huge black giant, dressed only in white shorts, swaying on the stairs. It was Supercargo, the attendant. I almost didn't recognize him without his starched white uniform. She usually went around threatening men with a straitjacket that she always wore on her arm, and they were usually silent and submissive in her presence. But now they didn't seem to recognize him and began shouting curses. (Ellison82) Typically Supercargo wearsan all-white uniform to carry out his assistant duties. By distinguishing himself in this way, he can exercise authority among the men he is responsible for caring for. However, when he lacks the full white robe from which he draws his power, this becomes difficult and even impossible, as his defenses eventually turn against him. In this example, Supercargo's white uniform is emblematic of the intimidating power that whites possess over their black counterparts, as once the uniform is removed, Supercargo appears to lose any control he once had over the war veterans. This relationship between Supercargo and white power becomes even more evident when the veterans begin to vent their frustrations about this traditional power dynamic by beating Supercargo, a proxy or stand-in for the white man. Therefore, the overpowering of Supercargo by black men does not signify a reversal of the power structure; rather, since he is no longer imbued with the authority of his currently absent white uniform, this scene merely serves as a kind of catharsis for the men, who continue to make the connection between their white-clad black caretaker and the dominant power of the men themselves white. .Ellison adds another aspect to the racial power dynamic in Invisible Man by mixing black and white painting later in the book. After giving up his futile mission to deliver Bledsoe's letters in hopes of one day returning to school, the narrator takes a job at Liberty Paints, manufacturer of “Optic White” paint sold primarily to the government (Ellison 201). This fact in itself reveals something about how Ellison sees the American government's role in racial power dynamics: it seeks to maintain power over blacks by painting itself white, effectively preventing blacks from having a say in government by electing mostly whites to positions officials. What reveals more information, however, is how this Optic White paint is made. As the narrator's new (and short-lived) boss, Kimbro, shows the steps involved, the narrator looks on in confusion, since to create the purest white paint of all, according to Kimbro, you need to incorporate a good deal of black liquid jet into the mixture (Ellison 200). This detail adds an intriguing dimension to the standard power structure of white domination over blacks. By following this recipe to create Optic White paint, Ellison leads the reader to determine that white society takes the contributions of what they see as the inferior black population and exploits them to become even greater, if not more powerful. It can be said, then, that, in a sense, whites derive their power simply from taking advantage of what blacks have to offer in society without acknowledging its source. The complexity of this relationship between races requires somewhat illogical images; the narrator is so stunned at the sight of paint and black liquid interacting in this way, partly because this probably wouldn't happen. The improbability of this type of chemical reaction – at least to the average reader – makes it obvious that Ellison does not aim to achieve scientific accuracy, but rather to expose the relationship between blacks and whites thus far established with other images of this type. Concluding Ellison's work, the author illustrates how the narrator personally figures into this racial power dynamic, always in colorful clothing. After becoming disillusioned once again (now by the Brotherhood), the narrator is approached by some of Ras the Exhorter's men while walking the streets of Harlem. To disguise himself he gets a pair of dark sunglasses and a large white hat, leading to numerous cases of mistaken identity for a characterseemingly omnipresent known as Rinehart (Ellison 484). In the context of this escapade through Harlem in disguise as Rinehart, his newly acquired white hat symbolizes the co-optation of the power associated with same-colored clothing for his own purposes of protection through invisibility. To most white people – as he soon realizes at the end of the novel – the narrator is practically invisible: people avoid noticing him, and even when they recognize his physical presence, they do not care about his personal concerns or ideas. This is made painfully obvious to the narrator, as well as the reader, by his subsequent encounters with the other members of the Brotherhood. While he obviously has the most relevant and valuable experience among them, they refuse to accept his opinions on actions the Brotherhood should take to better connect with the people of Harlem, preferring instead that he simply reiterate what they want to hear. The Brotherhood (as a stand-in for white society at large) ignores the narrator's ideas and perspective, essentially failing to truly see him. The hat uses this invisibility to his advantage as he attempts to avoid confrontations with Ras's friends and thus represents a re-enactment of traditionally white power, adding yet another layer to the complex condition of race relations at play here. Although white people maintain prominent control over their black counterparts, this does not stop people like the narrator from finding ways to exploit this very power dynamic and thus benefit from it in some aspect. The narrator's new power through the adoption of white clothing is highlighted once again in the detail of his shoes provided specifically by Ellison. After a woman realizes that he is not really "Rine the runner" due to the lack of Rinehart's signature shoes, the narrator becomes "aware of [his] black and white shoes for the first time since the day of the shooting of Clifton" (Ellison 492). This is one of the few times both black and white coexist on a single piece of clothing, and it's the first time the book addresses the two-tone nature of his shoes, highlighting the importance of this particular detail. The significance of his shoes lies in the fact that black and white share an equal place taking up space on the same item of clothing. This not only reinforces the connection between the narrator's newly acquired power and the color white, but also serves as a harbinger of what Ellison sees as the future potential of the racial power dynamic explored up to this point with black and white symbolism. Shoes, being the means by which one steadily advances, connect the equality of the literal colors on the narrator's footwear with the equality of the races that Ellison envisions for the future. Please note: this is just an example. Get a custom paper now from our expert writers. Get a Custom Essay From the beginning of Ralph Ellison's Invisible Man, the author makes the deliberate choice to describe and comment on the power relationship between blacks and whites that characterized early 20th century America in which the events of The novel unfolds through careful and consistent references to black-and-white objects, particularly clothing. Over the course of his story detailing the narrator's life and struggles, Ellison develops this dynamic into something much more complicated. By doing so he undoubtedly hopes to paint a more accurate picture of the events he himself experienced, because in real life things are almost never that simple. While whites do indeed maintain tight control of the power dynamics between themselves and blacks, even those who are subjugated by.