Bingo Game Symbolism

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In King of the Bingo Game there are many moments where Ellison focuses in on the little things, then later on goes to show how they are related to real world problems. An example of this would be when Ellison puts heavy symbolism on the bingo wheel. Which the unnamed man would see as a life or death situation. Then later, the reader comes to realize that the wheel stands for the powerlessness of blacks in America. Ellison displays a lot of interesting literary devices throughout this story, which are really detailed and important to the theme of fate and free will.

The protagonist begins to realize that the bingo game determines his fate. To distract him from the chance of failure, he says he is the King of the Bingo Game. He does this …show more content…

Ellison puts a huge emphasis on the wheel and what it symbolizes throughout the story. “Undoubtedly, the most important symbol Ellison employs is the bingo wheel, representative of Life's destiny and the ‘system’ that decides the fate of blacks”’ (Saunders 3). The wheel in the story is the deciding factor on whether or not the man will be able to pay for his bedridden wife’s care or not. The system in our country is slanted towards whites which really has a drastic effect on blacks. Also, the wheel is symbolic of his destiny and if he can’t control it then he will die. In addition, if blacks can’t gain influence in the system, then they too would figuratively die (Saunders 3). This is yet another comparison Ellison makes that relates to real world problems. The symbolism over the bingo wheel in this story is overwhelming. The wheel is like a life or death decision maker in a sense for the protagonist. At many different points when he is on stage, his mood changes from an optimistic one to a pessimistic one. He is delirious during the game thinking that he controls his fate when he actually comes to realize that the wheel controls his …show more content…

When the man calls himself the King of the Bingo game, he shows that he believes that he can control his own fate. Also, the wheel symbolizes the fate of blacks in America. Then, the small details throughout the story show a variety of ways the man does control his own free will. To sum up everything, Ralph Ellison has a unique writing style in The King of the Bingo Game which illustrates real world problems while showing the reader interesting insights to the overview of the

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