Who Can Be Invisible?

What does it mean to feel invisible? I think we would all be lying if we said we have never felt invisible. No matter if you are at the top of a social hierarchy or at the very bottom, I think there are situations in which everyone sacrifices their true beliefs in order to satisfy the requirements that social norms demand and by doing so become invisible. Despite this, I do believe that being at the bottom of the racial hierarchy probably increases the amount of time that a person spends being "invisible". I think that there have been many clear examples supporting this idea in what we have read in the Invisible Man.

Throughout the novel, the narrator has been struggling to find meaning and purpose in his life, and in many situations, instead of embracing what he truly likes, he has followed what others have wanted him to do. I believe that the narrator's naiveté also leads him into hiding aspects of his true self. This is evident near the very beginning of the novel when the narrator takes place in the "battle royal", in which he and his fellow classmates humiliated themselves for the pleasure of some of the prominent white men of the town. The narrator leaves this situation only thinking of the speech he made towards the end and feeling very proud of himself. I think this shows an obvious amount of naiveté in the narrator. During the battle royal, the narrator is completely invisible, but at this point he still does not realize that he is not seen. He thinks that the men are proud of him and that they support his ideas and his speech, while really he was just an object of ridicule.

For a while, the narrator continues to be invisible but he does not seem to realize it. The incident with Bledsoe and Norton proves his invisibility to a great extent. The narrator seems to think that both of these men have his best interests at heart, when they are really both selfish and uncaring men. Both men offer to help the narrator while simultaneously turning their backs on him. He is seen as inconsequential and therefore invisible by almost everyone. Even when he begins to work for the brotherhood he is still invisible. He is simply a tool being used by the brotherhood as a mean to an end. When Brother Jack first introduces him to other members, a woman even asks if he should be blacker. I think that much of what the narrator experiences could be experienced by anyone who is naive and desperate for purpose and meaning in their life. He is easily manipulated, like many young people seeking approval are, but at the same time, I think much of what he experiences is heightened because he is basically at the bottom of the racial hierarchy and is also very insecure. As of this point, though, the narrator does not seem to realize how invisible he is. Because of the name of the novel, I doubt he will do anything to combat his invisibility, but at the same time, if the narrator just realizes he is not seen by anybody else, he might be able to improve his life.