The idea of a completely equal social environment is impossible and this is proven through “Battle Royal” by Ralph Ellison. Cultural beliefs and differences will always prevent any possibility of social equality as described in “Social Equality” by Gunnar Myrdal. “Battle Royal” shows how cruel separation can be amongst races, but it also shows how truly impossible it is for the culture of the races to be equal because of white dominance. The representation of social equality in both pieces of literature is very connected through social dominance.
In “Battle Royal” the story focuses on a young African American man who is brought to a men’s club in hopes of giving his academic speech, but instead he has to literally fight for the chance to say what he wants to say (Ellison 1494).In modern society people still have to fight for the right to speak, but not exactly to the same extent. During the time period of “Battle Royal,” the characters were fighting racial segregation, but today it is more of a fight of social segregation. This social segregation is brought on by the idea that no one should have opinions other than what the majority of society believes, and these people are generally targeted after they say what they believe. In “Battle Royal” the young man has to physically fight to be able to speak what he wants, but when he has a slip of the tongue and says what the majority does not believe the crowd is quick to jump up and silence him (Ellison 1504). The white men in this story feel like they have to be dominant over the young African American man, to keep the purity of their race as mentioned in “Social Equality” (Myrdal 1515).
“Social Equality” by Gunnar Myrdal speaks of the issues of social equality and how an equal so...
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...in each literary work. The separation of races and the cruelty that goes with it is also highlighted in these works. Both authors have an intriguing view on social equality and how it is impossible and unnecessary, but acceptance is really the key to a better future. While racial segregation has weakened, “Battle Royal” and “Social Equality” are still evident in when they are applied to social segregation. The idea that people will never be equal will always be true, but if we just accept those around us equality isn’t even necessary.
Works Cited
Ellison, Ralph. "Battle Royal." Making Literature Matter. Eds. John Schilb, and John Clifford. 5th ed. Boston, MA: Bedford/St. Martin's, 2012. 1494-1505. Print.
Myrdal, Gunnar. "Social Equality." Making Literature Matter. Eds. John Schilb, and John Clifford. 5th ed. Boston, MA: Bedford/St. Martin's, 2012. 1513-16. Print.
John Perry Barlow once said, “Our identities have no bodies, so, unlike you, we cannot obtain order by physical coercion. We believe that from ethics, enlightened self-interest, and the commonwealth, our governance will emerge.” To me this quote means that race is an imaginary thing, and that there are no physical differences between any two people who are of different race. The only thing that is different between the two people is what they have learned, what they accomplished and what their interests are as individuals. Throughout history the issues between race, gender, and religion have always been seen as a social issue that has created great conflict between people. This topic is prevalent in Toni Morrison’s novel, A Mercy, which is set in the 17th century. The various voices in this novel show how conflict is stirred with the social issues dealing in that century.
Indeed, the narrator comes from a long line of black men who’ve felt the difficult struggles while trying to live alongside the white people. The protagonist speaks of his grandparents, who felt after the civil war, they were free, but on his deathbed, however, the grandfather spoke to the narrator’s father, telling the protagonist’s father that he himself felt like a traitor. He advised the narrator’s father to subvert the whites. The narrator recalls a speech he had given in high school—one that spoke of ways to advance as a black man in America. With great success, the protagonist is invited to deliver this speech to his community’s white citizens. Upon arriving, the narrator is told to take part in what is called a battle royal; believing its part of the entertainment, the narrator agrees to take part. The white men then blindfold the youths and order them to begin fighting each other. The narrator lasts until the last round, when he suffers a loss. After the men have removed the blindfolds, they lead the black men to a rug covered with coins and bills. The boys dive for the money, but discover that an electric current runs through the rug. Having endured the battle royal, and when it comes time for the narrator to give his speech, the white men all laugh and ignore him. When the narrator accidently says “social equali...
I selected Ralph Ellison’s short story “Battle Royal”, as this assessment illuminates the struggles of both race as well as issues oppression within society, in which many must continue to endure. The narrator, a young black teenager has attended an event absent of both law and order as a guest speaker only to be severed up as just another entrée for the prominent group of southern white ringmasters to feast upon. Subsequently, he now realizes “that it was on the occasion of a smoker, and I was told that since I was to be there anyway I might as well take part in the battle royal to be fought by some of my schoolmates as part of the entertainment.” Forced to fight for a right to speak, the young man is in the midst of an alcohol induced and cigar smoke filled circus of violence and sexual misconduct, which is fueled of force intimidation. Many of the symbols used in this story resonances of both race and inequality within a regime lacking integrity, where one is neither protected nor served fairly. Moreover, it is with this view of hopelessness, despair as well as mistrusts that offer a seed of change in society, in which the invisible becomes the visible.
The African Americans fought hard to make themselves equal to the whites, some of the leaders for this were Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X who spoke on behave of their people to try and fight through racism so that it can end. Unlike the African Americans, the Jewish people listened to the Germans, they followed all of their rules to stay alive because they were in a more life threatening situation; neither races deserved the treatment that they received. The racial differences, mistreatment of humans, and injustices between these two stories are similar but different, both authors tried their best to explain as much as they could on what they were personally experiencing or even telling a story on someone else’s experience, but no matter what in the end we are all equal
Meyer, Michael. The Bedford Introduction to Literature. Ed. 8th ed. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin's, 2008. 2189.
The 1940s represent a decade of turmoil for the United States in general. Perhaps no group of people struggled more during that time period, however, than African Americans. With racial segregation prevalent, particularly in the South, opportunity was lacking for African-Americans. However, Ralph Ellison suggests in “Battle Royal” that due to the lack of racial unity among black men as well as a certain amount of naiveté, black men prevented themselves from succeeding more so than their white oppressors.
Ellison, Ralph. "Battle Royal." Literature: an introduction to fiction, poetry, and drama. 9th ed and Interactive ed. Eds. X.J. Kennedy and Dana Gioia. New York: Pearson Longman, 2005. 555-566.
The fight for equality and human rights has been and still is a continuous battle played out on many fronts ranging from struggles between ruling governments and the people, the definition of societal roles and status, and also within the home on a domestic and individual level. The legacy for these battl...
Murphy, B. & Shirley J. The Literary Encyclopedia. [nl], August 31, 2004. Available at: http://www.litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&UID=2326. Access on: 22 Aug 2010.
Social equality is the concept in which all individuals possess the same fundamental basic liberties, opportunities, moral value/respect, and social benefits. The concept of ‘equality’ has a multiplicity of meanings and definitions, and with the rise of liberalization and democratization around the world ‘social equality’ has become the most predominant. As economic openness creates greater wealth disparities, the parallel rise of democratization has enabled citizens to demand more accountability measures and public welfare services from their governments in order to manage such disparities. Although the movement towards greater social equality has made significant strides with the establishment of equal rights (especially in the 1960s following the civil rights and women rights movement), inequality is still widespread in society among different ethnicities, social classes, and even religions. Inequality is not, however, a characteristic that only encompasses/embodies developing countries, but also embodies developed countries as well.
Charters, Ann & Samuel. Literature and its Writers. 6th ed. Boston: Bedford/St. Martins, 2013. 137-147. Print.
Lamb, Kevin. "The Problem of Equality". The Journal of Social, Political, and Economic Studies. v20, #4 (Winter 1995) 467-479.
Everyday, racism is perceived as one of the most negative aspects of society. When people think of racism, they obviously see hatred, evil , and ignorance. It has been a part of world culture since recorded history and , no doubt , before that. When one thinks of racism in the United States, invariably , though not only , the struggle of the African-American is singled out. That is the main issue Ellison so powerfully addresses in his short story "Battle Royal". In it the author allows us to see the world through the eyes of a young black boy who is struggling to succeed in a predominantly white society. The thing that is absolutely essential to our understanding of the story
...in a unique manner. Through his use of the extreme tasks subjected to the blacks of his story, he manages to convey the intensity of their struggle against cruelty and all its complications [Carlson, 2000]. His story deals with the topic of the fight against racism and as such is an attack on racism in general, no matter where it might be found. When a human being is underestimated because of his race, as is the case with the characters in Battle Royal, it is a disgrace to the entire human race; Ellison’s story tells of the great necessity to fight this evil at all times and under all conditions.
Throughout history, wars over the meaning to equality have being expressed in different ways for the purpose to establishing one standard meaning of equality. The meaning to equal is a state of being equal. What it means to be equal between males and females is being treated with the same amount of respect based on qualification, skills, knowledge and the ability to acquire qualification, skills, and knowledge. The social and economic system has benefited greatly with the deontology theory in defining and developing gender equality. However, it has been a slow process. The meaning of equality between males and females has not always had a message of clarity. Miscommunication and misunderstanding of the meaning of equality between males and females has been responsible for tyranny. Happiness, fairness, and dignity has risen from social roles, poverty, and health reform that defined the message to the question of what it means to be equal and unequal among men and women using the deontology theory as this essay will demonstrate.