Year 12 IB Extended Essays 2018

The manipulation of the narrator’s identity in the novel As the narrator experiences racism such as being expelled from his university, his perception of his identity is hindered by these racial suppressions, and thus leads up to the climax of the development of the narrator’s identity. The narrator’s identity climax is after giving a speech after witnessing a black couple getting evicted. The narrator truly finds his own voice here and this is when his worth of self-identity is at its highest, as he has just attracted a crowd from his powerful speech. He is soon after offered a job as an orator at the Brotherhood. However, joining the Brotherhood has subsequent events which lead to the narrator’s identity ironically plummeting from this climax. An incidence which discouraged the narrator from asserting his own identity early in the novel was his expulsion from the university for negros. The narrator had been expelled by the African American administrator of the school after taking a white benefactor of the college, named Mr. Norton, to a black bar. Although it was the wish of the Mr. Norton to go to the bar in order to get a drink, the narrator is still punished with expulsion. Thus, the narrator feels as if he did everything that was expected of him only to be rebuked. Prior to this, the narrator had tied his identity to the idea that he was a successful student. The language Ellison uses when the narrator is expelled from the college is a true display of how ignorant the narrator is of racial standards and behavior. While trying to explain his actions with Mr. Norton, the narrator often questions what Dr. Bledsoe is saying, often as if it made no sense to him. Dr. Bledsoe criticizes his actions for obeying the white benefactor, saying “My God, boy! You’re black and living in the South – did you forget how to lie?” (135). The narrator replies, “Lie, sir? Lie to him, lie to a trustee, sir? Me?” (135). This quote represents the narrator’s ignorance of how African Americans are meant to act, even though it may not be logical. He continues his confusion with the quote “But I was only trying to please him” (136). Similarly, one can see that the narrator is only now beginning to understand what the true nature of African American status has bequeathed to him. Next comes the climax of the development of the narrator’s identity, with the empowerment he was feeling after giving a speech to a crowd of African Americans to organize around a leader instead of indulging in violence. The narrator prevents an eviction of an elderly black couple in Harlem. Before the crowd can turn violent, the narrator steps in and begins giving a speech, telling the crowd that they are “law- abiding people” (265). Here we see the narrator seizing an opportunity for his identity to be recognized. His forceful speech attempts to strike a balance between following the law and indicating that the law itself is unjust, while simultaneously establishing his identity through speech.

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