Visible Initiation In Invisible Man

Ralph Ellison (1914-1994) is one of the most significant writers of African-American literature since1950s. Meanwhile he is one of the most representative pioneers of American cultural studies and a distinguished literary critic. As the most brilliant work of Ralph Ellison, Invisible Man has been taken as one of the African-American classics reflecting the modern black people’s life. In this novel he illustrates the hard process of the black protagonist’s self-examination and initiation with a unique point of view. The initiation story is mainly based on the growth of the character, which focuses on the protagonist’s psychological process from innocence to maturity. The author of this thesis attempts to analyze the process of the nameless protagonist’s growth in the white-centered society in Invisible Man from the perspective of the initiation story. The growth of the protagonist and ordinary teenagers are in common in some ways, but with the black skin, he is destined to undergo hardships and difficulties in order to search for self and identity in the white-dominated society, which is different from the ordinary teenagers. The thesis attempts to explore the hard process of the protagonist’s growth through the basic plot pattern of the initiation story: innocence---ordeals---piphany---aturity. The protagonist’s growth journey will give enlightenments to the millions of the perplexed young blacks in the white-dominated society.There are four chapters in this thesis. The first chapter generally analyzes the protagonist’s innocence in the south, that is, the blind admiration for the white-dominated society and the ignorance of the black culture, which leads to losing self. In the second chapter, the author of this thesis analyzes the protagonist’s ordeals in New York. Things are moving forward in the twists and turns, and the growth of human is so. From "death," to "rebirth" then to losing self again, the protagonist gradually awakens. In the third chapter, the author analyzes the protagonist’s several important epiphanies in Harlem, which are the indispensable part of the initiation and are significant for the protagonist’s growth. The final chapter focuses on the protagonist’s breaking completely from the illusive past and planning to establish his social identity with his own free will, which means the real initiation comes true. Through the analysis of the protagonist’s initiation process, Ellison points out a new way for Afro-Americans: rooting in American society, comprehending the black history and returning to the black traditional culture. Only in this way can Afro-Americans pursue self and define self.