Ralph Ellison’s Prologue to the Invisible Man

Ralph Ellison’s Prologue to the Invisible Man

The Invisible Man is not a story of things that go bump in the night, but of those in society who people refuse to “see”. The essay was written by Ralph Ellison, an African American writer of the 20th century, whose stories tended to focus on racial issues. The main character of this story’s prologue is anonymous and unseen. He resides in a basement and lives off stolen energy in Harlem New York. Throughout the essay it is hard to determine whether he prefers to be this way or not, but he does describe that he loves light and warmth. He is a character that most audiences can easily feel sympathetic for. Although the essay is a narrative story, on a more critical level it tells of the flaws of society, and how some people go unnoticed and unloved. It is also tells of the power and will of human spirit. Ralph Ellison’s Prologue to the Invisible Man is an effective essay because audiences can easily relate to it through its use of informal tone, subjective point of view, and its appeals to pathos.

With the use of informal tone Ellison is able to relate the story to the audience better. The prologue is written in the first person, everything in the essay is being told from the storyteller’s point of view. This makes the reader feel as though the character is personally talking to them and telling of the events. Ellison also personally addresses the reader as “you” this also enables the audience to relate to the story. One particular quote form the story that was very effective was “You ache with the need to convince yourself that you do exist in the real world, that you’re a part of all the sound and anguish.” It as though Ellison was truly talking with his audience in ...

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...n so emotionally, readers are able to easily associate themselves with it, and this allows the message of the paper to convey itself to the audience.

Ralph Ellison’s “Prologue from The Invisible Man” is a very successful and effective essay. By reading this it is possible to tell that Ralph Ellison is someone who may have first-handedly experience racism and unjust experiences. His essay tells of the negative aspects of society to generally overlook certain people of different races. However, on a more positive note, it also tells of the strength and everlasting hope of the human spirit. This text does indeed raise important issues and concepts to an audience. Due to its appeals to pathos, use of informal language, and subjective point of view, audiences are able to relate to Ralph Ellison’s Prologue to the Invisible Man, making it a successful essay.