Wednesday, April 15, 2015

Invisible Man Reading Questions: Chapters 23-24

Chapter 23
1.     What symbolism do you find in the narrator’s purchase of dark glasses?
They could symbolize invisibility, when the narrator puts on the sunglasses everyone confused him with a man named, Rinehart. The narrator used the sunglasses as a disguise because he realized that it changed his identity completely.
2           2.  What are Rinehart’s various identities?
-       Numbers runner
-       Preacher
-       A sugar daddy (has many woman)
3           3.   Is there any symbolism in Rinehart’s name (Rind and heart)?
He represents the different identities that people in general have. For example, I have a different Identity with my parents, with my friends, and teachers.
Rind= a tough hard covering, just like the glasses and hat that invisible man wears or like the facade that Rinehart puts on.
Heart= The heart part of his name could actually be referring to his actual heart. If you put these words together it could be saying that Rinehart means a person that has a covered heart, a heart with many identities.
Has Rinehart learned to play an identity game?
He has learned to play an identity game.

Chapter 24

1.     Contrast the narrator’s encounter with Sybil with that of the woman in red whose husband came home early.
Both of these women are a representation of Ellison’s idea that white woman are attracted to black men. These women are both obsessed with black men. They have a big fantasy of having inmate relationships with black males.
2.  What is the significance of the last line in the chapter?

The significance of the last line in the chapter is a representation of the narrator’s internal conflict, often we see this scene in movies when a character feels confused and sad, he just runs out of his house in the night crying and confused. The narrator at the end is questioning himself. He doesn’t know, he isn’t conscious of where he was or why he was there.

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