Power in Invisible Man

Elizabeth Kao

Nazia Khan

Heather Price3rd Hour

Monopolated Light and Power

“That is why I fight my battle with Monopolated Light & Power...It allows me to feel my vital aliveness...” (7).

Everyone thrives on the power they have over someone or something. The Invisible Man does not have power over whether people see him. He tries to make up for the lack of power by taking away power from the company.

“Most Powerful Men in Town”

In Chapter 1 IM finds himself in front of the most powerful men in Greenwood. The men use IM and other boys as entertainment showing the power they have as white men.

“All the town’s big shots were there in their tuxedoes, wolfing down the buffet foods, drinking beer and whisky and smoking black cigars” (17).

Electric Rug

“I tried frantically to remove my hand but could not let go. A hot, violent force tore through my body, shaking

me like a wet rat. The rug was electrified” (27). •By trying to remove his hand, the Invisible Man is attempting to not give the white men power. However, the Invisible Man could not remove his hand; he could not stop giving the white men power.

•The Invisible Man tries to throw Mr. Colcord on the rug but the man doesn’t land on the rug. He remains powerless.

Norton’s Power

“I have wealth and a reputation and prestige - all that is true”(45).

Mr. Norton has more power than the average man. He receives a personal tour guide when he comes to visit the school. Putting him in danger cost the Invisible Man his place in the school. Not everybody who comes to visit the school receives the treatment that Mr. Norton did. Mr. Norton has a special importance that he, as well as the Invisible Man, is aware of.

Powerful men

“Here’s a chair for the Messiah” (78).

Mr. Norton was mistaken for many powerful men. Among them were Thomas Jefferson, John D. Rockefeller, and Messiah. After the people at the Golden Day realized that he was white, Mr. Norton and the Invisible Man were treated differently. Before seeing Norton, the people did not pay any attention to the Invisible Man. They did not even attempt to help a potentially sick man but when they saw Mr. Norton their manner changed dramatically.

Bledsoe’s Power

“We take these white folks where we want them to go, we show them what we want them to see” (102).

“The only ones I even pretend to please are big white folk, and even those I control more than they control me. This is a power set-up, son, and I’m at the controls” (142).

Bledsoe gains control by making others think theyhave control over him. He follows some of the same principles as the Invisible Man’s grandfather, such as “acting the nigger”.

“This is a power set-up, son, and I’m at the controls...When you buck against me, you’re bucking against power, rich white folk’s power, the nation’s power-which means government power!” (140).

Money And Clothing

“...in a dapper suit of rich material, cut fashionably, like those of the men you saw in magazine ads, the junior executive types in Esquire” (164). The Invisible Man wants to be a miniature Bledsoe. He believes that if he is rich and fashionable he will become as powerful as Bledsoe is. He is quite naïve.

The Letters

“I want to help, but there is a tyranny involved” (187).

Mr. Bledsoe was able to keep the Invisible Man out of work through the Bellerophonic letters. It was a tyranny because with the letters he had power hurting the Invisible Man without the Invisible Man’s knowledge.

“My dear Mr. Emerson: The bearer of this letter is a former

student of ours (I say former because he shall never , under any circumstances, be . . . a student here again” (187).

The Unions

“That damn union! They after my job! I know they after my job! For one of us to join one of them damn unions is like we was to bite the hand of the man who teached us to bathe in a bathtub! I hates it, and I mean to keep on doing all I can to chase it outta the plant. They after my job...” (228).

Brockway is believed to be the most powerful man of the plant. He has said that he basically runs and controls the plant. Yet when the Invisible Man mentions the union, Brockway goes ballistic. He starts attacking the Invisible Man, verbally and physically. Brockway obviously feels threatened by the union because they have power over him and his job.

The Unions Cont’d

Company Hospital“...it was as though he had suddenly given a name to, had organized the vagueness that drifted through my head, and I was overcome with swift shame. I realized that I no longer knew my own name” (239).

The doctors had complete power over the Invisible Man because they could decide the rest of his life. They could either tell him his identity and the Invisible Man could be the person he used to be or they could make him create a new identity.

“The voice throbbed with icy authority and I quieted and tried to contain the pain. I discovered now that my head was encircled by a piece of cold metal like the iron cap worn by the occupant of an electric chair” (233).

The Power of Words

“And beneath it all there boiled up all the shock-absorbing phrases that I had learned all my life” (275).

Invisible Man loves to speak. It’s one way that he feels powerful - having control over what the people hear, “inciting them to action.” At the eviction, he finally gets to speak again. He had been itching to speak for quite some time, and he finally got the chance. In addition, he receives a career opportunity to do what he loves. He likes being seen. And words do truly have power - just see what the people did. He even made it into the newspaper, this time, not for mugging someone.

Energy-Releasing Speeches

“That was all I needed, I’d made a contact, and it was as though his voice was that of them all” (342).

This chapter continues the branch of power continued from chapter 13 - speaking. The Invisible Man is giving his first brotherhood speech and it is met with mixed feelings. However, he has once again succeeded in making the crowd excited about his cause and purpose. Words have such power, and it is his near sole source of power in the world.

Words as Power (revisited)

“Say what the people want to hear, but say it in such a way that they’ll do what we wish” (359).

Like all speakers, Invisible Man has a purpose to convey when presenting his message. Brother Jack instructs him to master the ideology, but not to let it master him. They are trying to control their audiences and want to get more and more support for their ideals and objectives. Invisible Man is a powerful speaker (so far); consequently, Brother Jack relies on him and gives him power to do what he needs to do.

Power Between the Invisible Man and the Brotherhood

“For by selecting me to speak with its authority on a subject which elsewhere in our society I’d have found taboo, weren’t they reaffirming their belief both in me and in the principles of Brotherhood, proving that they drew no lines even when it came to women?”(408).

Invisible Man has confidence that the Brotherhood had confidence in him. However, the Brotherhood is still the main power here; he is still quite the pawn. He almost lost his job because of the charges put forth by Brother Wrestrum, showing that the Brotherhood holds the real power. They do indeed have confidence in his skills though, which is why they delegate him to women’s rights.

Discipline and Sacrifice

“... You must accept discipline. Either you accept decisions or you get out...” (474).

The Brotherhood is angry with Invisible Man for his “funeral oration” for Tod Clifton, whom they now consider a traitor. They believe that Invisible Man’s speech was a disgrace and a hindrance to the cause of the Brotherhood, and that he did not follow directions. The communist cause is reflected in the “even if you’re right, you’re wrong if we say so” attitude of Brothers Jack and Tobitt. His true position as a pawn is revealed, but there is nothing he can do; there is no where else he can turn.

Mistaken for Rinehart

“Ain’t you Rine the runner?” (491).

In chapter 23, Invisible Man has an extremely large amount of power. In running from Ras and his goons, he dons a disguise, first of green-shaded sunglasses, then of the hat. After the glasses, he is mistaken in the bar for a certain Rinehart. In further walks down the street, he is waved at and recognized as Rinehart as well. Another woman stops him, then realizes that his shoes aren’t the same. In essence, he is wielding the power of identity; he makes the other people who see him think that he’s someone he’s not.

People Have their Own Power

“They had a plan.” (546).

Invisible Man goes back to Harlem and sees Dupre and Scofield organizing the rioters without either the Brotherhood or Ras’s men. He sees this and is glad that the people are successful in organization without the influence of these self-seeking organizations, and he joins their efforts. As he sees this, he becomes more responsible and decides to end his invisibility, because he too can truly have an effect on his surroundings.

Conclusion

Power is a prevalent motif in Invisible Man largely because of its absence among the main character’s possessions. He feels powerless in many situations, especially because of his skin color. He witnesses his expulsion from his college as a result of a power-play, Bledsoe’s continuing influence in New York and his constant subjection to those hungry for power (i.e., Brockway). Nearing the end of the book, Invisible Man discovers that everyone does have power, it’s more of a whether you choose to use it or not issue. He takes off his invisibility, accepts responsibility, and gains power.