Historical References
Invisible Man is a work of fiction that is historical in its reference to real people, places, events, and organizations from the twentieth century. It is semi-autobiographical in that many of the occurrences and locations mentioned in the book were based upon events in Ralph Ellison's real life. Take a look at the historical references in Invisible Man below.
Event in Invisible Man Historical Reference
Narrator attends an African American college on scholarship
The Founder at the narrator's college Narrator migrates to Harlem, New York City Men's House The Brotherhood Black Nationalism Harlem Riot |
Ellison attends Tuskegee Institute on scholarship
The Narrator's experiences at Tuskegee seem to be based upon Ellison's own experiences. See More Information. Booker T. Washington The narrator describing the statue of the Founder of his school as lifting a veil from the head of a slave —a gesture synonymous to that of the Booker T. Washington statue at Tuskegee University. The Great Migration After being sent away from his college, the narrator travels north to Harlem, New York City, in a journey similar to that taken by many blacks, including Ellison during the early to mid 1900s (called the Great Migration). See More Information. YMCA The narrator takes up residence at the "Men's House," an abode likely modeled after the Young Men’s Christian Association or YMCA where Ellison initially took up lodging after his migration. Communist Organization to Which Ellison Belonged The narrator's experience with the Brotherhood seems to reflect Ellison's experience with the Communist organization to which he used to belong. Ellison left because he began to doubt the Marxist ideology (Gates and McKay 1516), similar to the narrator's disillusionment with the Brotherhood's indifference to his personal situation. Ras the Exhorter The narrator meets Ras the Exhorter, a firm believer in African nationalism, who although fictitious in character, inhabits the ideologies of many black nationalists in Ellison’s day. Harlem Riot of 1943 Ellison worked as a reporter for the New York Times during the infamous Harlem Riot of 1943. The Harlem riot at the end of Invisible Man undoubtedly reflects some of his experiences. See More Information. |
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Tuskegee Institute
The African American college that the narrator attends is likely modeled after Tuskegee Institute (now Tuskegee University), founded by Booker T. Washington. We discover this when the narrator describes the statue of the Founder of his school lifting a veil from the head of a slave—a gesture synonymous to that of the statue of Washington at Tuskegee University. Ralph Ellison attended Tuskegee Institute for three years. The narrator’s experience at his college mirrors that of Ellison. Ellison too left his school due of its accommodating behavior to the white majority. Although he was not let go from the school like the narrator, Ellison viewed his school as compromising the inherent equality of African Americans. This belief of compromise can further be seen in Ellison’s disapproving reaction to Washington’s “Atlanta Exposition Speech,” which he ironically refers to near the novel’s beginning. |
Harlem
A large portion of Invisible Man occurs in Harlem, which is where, ironically, Ellison spent most of his time writing the novel. Living in Harlem as he wrote the novel enabled Ellison to take in the “voices, idioms, folklore, traditions and political concerns” (xi) of those sharing his cultural heritage and accurately portray such in his writing. Harlem is a significant landmark for African Americans, being the birthplace of the cultural, literary, and artistic revolution of the Harlem Renaissance. Ellison moved to Harlem after leaving Tuskegee Institute and was able to make connections with prominent black literary figures, including Langston Hughes and Richard Wright, in order to progress his career. The map to the left of modern-day Harlem gives an idea of where the novel takes place. The narrator stayed at the Men's House, which most likely resembled the YMCA, which is located on 135th street between Adam Clayton Powell Jr Blvd and Lenox Ave. The narrator mentions crowds father on 125th street during the Harlem riot, which was perhaps one of the prime locations of the 1943 Harlem riot. |
Riot of 1943
The 1943 riot began with a white police officer shooting a black man. Two days of intense rioting and looting ensued as African Americans reacted with anger to the discrimination and police brutality performed by white officers in the Harlem area. Damages reached over five million dollars. According to the New York City Public Library Archives and Manuscripts, six people died and over a thousand were arrested. Ellison describes such chaos, destruction, and looting in the final chapter of his novel, which also was instigated by the shooting of a black man. The Harlem residents steal from white stores, drink their beer, and then set fire to their very own houses in an act of organized, yet senseless chaos. |