Symbolism of African Oppressio

Ralph Ellison’s Battle Royal depicts how the narrator’s, who is a young, unnamed, African-American, day’s events are representative of the hardships and obstacles African Americans faced. Throughout the story, one can see numerous symbols that fall into a general symbolic meaning of the various obstacles African-Americans faced. The symbols are seen in what the narrator says, sees, and does. The symbols include the way the narrator described himself, the female stripper, the battle royal, and the electrified rug.

The description the narrator gives himself is the main symbol in the story. “I am an invisible man,” (Ellison 231) is what the narrator tells us the reader in the first paragraph of the story. Since, the narrator is a young African-American we already know that narrator is at the bottom of society. The invisibility of the narrator suggests the unwillingness of others to see the individual as a person. Thus, the narrator is invisible because people see in him only what they want to see and not what he really is. Furthermore, the invisibility, in this sense, has a strong sense of racial prejudice. The invisib

ility of the narrator can also suggest a separation from society. While the narrator is in his imaginary hole away from society, he is invisible and he cannot be seen by society. Thus, he is invisible because he chooses to remain apart. Moreover, the invisibility, in this sense, is associated with hibernation, with the narrator’s conscious choice to remain in his hole and cogitate.

The final symbol was the scene in the story about the electrified rug. This was where the boys were given an opportunity to get more money than they received from the battle itself. Yet, beyond the boys’ initial knowledge the rug was electrified. The electrified rug was, "covered with coins of all dimensions and a few crumpled bills" (Ellison 236) and portrays two items. The first is the self-prostitution of desperate boys for pocket change. Thus, allowing the boys to go buy and do what they could rarely do before. The second is the appearance of economic advancement for African-Americans that never existed. Yet, as soon as they headed for the advancement a barrier thwarted them, the electricity for the boys and the caucasians for the Africans.

The next major symbol in the story was the white, female stripper. During this event, the narrator along with nine other African boy

Some topics in this essay:
African Americans, African Americans', Battle Royal, battle royal, Bedford/St Martin’s, Michael Meyer, symbol story, electrified rug, SHS English, Ellison Ralph, Ellison’s Battle, ellison’s battle royal, numerous symbols, invisibility narrator, invisibility sense, african boys, female stripper, soon africans, society invisible,