Ralph Ellison's Invisible Man is the epitome of oppression of the black race. It is the story of an educated black man who has been oppressed and dominated by whites all of his life. Within the covers of the book lie themes and episodes which support the idea that the white race is the supreme race. However, the main character, the narrator, demonstrates how complex simple and pure things really are.
             The first episode selected regards Dr. Bledsoe and his betrayal of the narrator. Essentially the narrator's idol, Dr. Bledsoe is the president of the college that the narrator attends. A very trusting Invisible Man meets Dr. Bledsoe early on. It is during this first meeting that Dr. Bledsoe exercises his truly hypocritical nature. However, this is not realized by the naive narrator until later on.
             Dr. Bledsoe's monologue describes his assumption that a black man demonstrates to a white person only what the white person wants to see. This assumption provides illumination and proof to the grandfather's saying, "...overcome 'em with yeses, undermine 'em with grins, agree 'em to death and destruction, let 'em swoller you till they vomit or bust wide open." It demonstrates how the blacks believe that the only way to survive and do well with whites is to appease and patronize them. The quote is further strengthened by Dr. Bledsoe's quote to the narrator, "You're black and living in the South-did you forget how to lie?" This can be paralleled with the episode in Frederick Douglass's Narrative about how no matter what you thought, what the truth really was, or what really goes on, when a slave is asked by a white person how the master treats them, the best answer is to praise the master, because you never know who you are speaking to. Also, I believe this can be paralleled to George Orwell's 1984. 1984 is not so much about oppression among races, but classes. The lead character Winston Smith follows the rule of the grandfather from In...