Invisible Man

by Ralph Ellison

Without light I am not only invisible, but formless as well; and to be unaware of one’s form is to live a death. I myself, after existing some twenty years, did not become alive until I discovered my invisibility.

Please, a definition: A hibernation is a covert preparation for a more overt action.

Irresponsibility is part of my invisibility; any way you face it, it is a denial. But to whom can I be responsible, and why should I be, when you refuse to see me?

Responsibility rests upon recognition, and recognition is a form of agreement.

I was looking for myself and asking everyone except myself questions which I, and only I, could answer.

Live with your head in the lion’s mouth. I want you to overcome ’em with yeses, undermine ’em with grins, agree ’em to death and destruction, let ’em swoller you till they vomit or bust wide open.”

I am standing puzzled, unable to decide whether the veil is really being lifted, or lowered more firmly in place; whether I am witnessing a revelation or a more efficient blinding.

Already he’s learned to repress not only his emotions but his humanity. He’s invisible, a walking personification of the Negative, the most perfect achievement of your dreams, sir! The mechanical man!”

“You’re nobody, son. You don’t exist—can’t you see that?

you learn where you are and get yourself power, influence, contacts with powerful and influential people—then stay in the dark and use it!”

Two things our people must do is accept responsibility for their acts and avoid becoming bitter.”

If you made an appointment with one of them, you couldn’t bring them any slow c.p. (colored people’s) time.

“The only trouble with ambition is that it sometimes blinds one to realities

What and how much had I lost by trying to do only what was expected of me instead of what I myself had wished to do?

the longer I remained unseen the longer I’d be effective,

The thing to do was to be prepared—as my grandfather had been when it was demanded that he quote the entire United States Constitution as a test of his fitness to vote. He had confounded them all by passing the test, although they still refused him the ballot

“And do you know what makes us so uncommon?” I whispered hoarsely. “We let them do it!”

Why did they have to mix their women into everything? Between us and everything we wanted to change in the world they placed a woman: socially, politically, economically. Why, goddamit, why did they insist upon confusing the class struggle with the ass struggle, debasing both us and them—all human motives?

Why should he choose to disarm himself, give up his voice and leave the only organization offering him a chance to “define” himself?

All things, it is said, are duly recorded—all things of importance, that is. But not quite, for actually it is only the known, the seen, the heard and only those events that the recorder regards as important that are put down, those lies his keepers keep their power by.

I was simply a material, a natural resource to be used. I had switched from the arrogant absurdity of Norton and Emerson to that of Jack and the Brotherhood, and it all came out the same—except I now recognized my invisibility.

And I looked up through a pain so intense now that the air seemed to roar with the clanging of metal, hearing, HOW DOES IT FEEL TO BE FREE OF ILLUSION