Access over 20 million homework & study documents

Battle royal analysis

Content type
User Generated
Rating
Showing Page:
1/5
Surname 1
Student's name
Instructor
Course
Date
Battle Royal Analysis
Battle Royal is a short story written by a renowned American novelist named Ralph
Ellison. It is one among many chapters of the book Invisible Man told from a first person
narrative point of view. The narrator expresses his thoughts, perceptions, emotions and views
detailing various points of life moments; past and present. It is however vital to take into account
that the first person narrative is very subjective and that the narrated events may and may not be
factual. Nevertheless, they are true to the eyes of the narrator in regard to their perceptions and
life experience. As a result, the readers and general audience experience the short story
intimately through the eyes of one of its main participant. The main protagonist is a young black
boy who struggles to find his place in a largely white society. He continuously tries to achieve
his goals through adhering to his dying grandfather’s words, “Live with your head in the Lion’s
mouth. Ralph Ellison (1994, p.230). The primary focus of the story is continued occurrence of
racial profiling and racial inequality, issues of gender and class where the narrator (one of the
black community members) must accept and acknowledge as he searches his identity in the
white America.
Ralph Ellison (1994), explores in depth the words of the grandfather to his grandson, “I
want you to overcome the with yeses, undermine them with grins, agree ‘em to death with
destruction, let them swallow you till they vomit or bust wide open” (p.230). This indicates that
his grandfather wanted him to fit in in the white man’s society. The theme of symbolism plays a

Sign up to view the full document!

lock_open Sign Up
Showing Page:
2/5
Surname 2
vital role in how Ellison’s story takes its course. I believe the author tried to pass an even deeper
meaning to his audience. The story not only symbolizes the young boys life but also the
hardships that the people of color had to endure as the minority in the white man’s land.
The narrator of the story was born and raised in the southern region of the United states.
He, however, later moved to Ney York city suburbs, in a small neighborhood called Harlem. The
neighborhood is a world renowned center for the black community and the black culture as
explained by (Hutchinson, 1995). He is dumbfounded by what he witnesses, there is a huge
difference between the south and the north according to his perception, he finds it interesting that
the white drivers adhered to the instructions given by black traffic policemen. Moreover, the
narrator also claims to have more freedom in the north as compared to the south. Perception of
who an individual is was placed solely on their racial background. Eventually, it is only through
plunging into a manhole and remaining invisible from the eye of the white man society that the
speaker can attend to his matters in a setting that allowed him to be himself.
The writer has managed to establish a strong ideology through characterization in the
narrative. Ralph illustrates the lonely speaker’s quest in his scramble for his identity as well as
his apprehension of his life moments. The establishment of various character lays a vital bedrock
for his comprehension. Through the difficulties of corruption and deceit, the speaker traverses
through a series of events and occasions which in a way enriches his contributions and
experience as he struggles to discover his true identity. The “invisible man is the main speaker.
Since he tells the story from his own perception, we the audience/readers cannot ascertain
whether his memories are factual or otherwise. Furthermore, rather than posing a judgement, a
reader has no choice but to understand that the story is solely based on its writer’s perception
speaking from a personal level. He therefore, helps shed some light in what the reader may have

Sign up to view the full document!

lock_open Sign Up
Showing Page:
3/5

Sign up to view the full document!

lock_open Sign Up
End of Preview - Want to read all 5 pages?
Access Now
Unformatted Attachment Preview
Surname 1 Student's name Instructor Course Date Battle Royal Analysis Battle Royal is a short story written by a renowned American novelist named Ralph Ellison. It is one among many chapters of the book “Invisible Man” told from a first person narrative point of view. The narrator expresses his thoughts, perceptions, emotions and views detailing various points of life moments; past and present. It is however vital to take into account that the first person narrative is very subjective and that the narrated events may and may not be factual. Nevertheless, they are true to the eyes of the narrator in regard to their perceptions and life experience. As a result, the readers and general audience experience the short story intimately through the eyes of one of its main participant. The main protagonist is a young black boy who struggles to find his place in a largely white society. He continuously tries to achieve his goals through adhering to his dying grandfather’s words, “Live with your head in the Lion’s mouth.” Ralph Ellison (1994, p.230). The primary focus of the story is continued occurrence of racial profiling and racial inequality, issues of gender and class where the narrator (one of the black community members) must accept and acknowledge as he searches his identity in the white America. Ralph Ellison (1994), explores in depth the words of the grandfather to his grandson, “I want you to overcome the with yeses, undermine them with grins, agree ‘em to dea ...
Purchase document to see full attachment
User generated content is uploaded by users for the purposes of learning and should be used following Studypool's honor code & terms of service.

Anonymous
Excellent! Definitely coming back for more study materials.

Studypool
4.7
Trustpilot
4.5
Sitejabber
4.4