Synthesis Post 1-7

Synthesis Post - Chapters 1-9 

Sex is a weapon in Invisible Man. It is a weapon that is used to further the power of the white men. The first instance of this occurs in the first chapter, and is foreshadowed in the prologue with the moment concerning the slave woman. The stripper in chapter one is being lorded over by the white men surrounding her until she is eventually attacked by them. The Invisible Man connects to her on page 19, saying, "I had a notion that of all in the room she saw only me with her impersonal eyes." This symbolizes the connection that Ralph Ellison is making between the oppression of women and the oppression of black people. Both groups are under the power of the white men. This is proven when the white men around her attack her. She is also used as a weapon against the black boys in the room, because while she is a naked woman, they are not supposed to be attracted to her.

Sex is a demonstrated to be a weapon used by the white men against the oppressed groups, and this is demonstrated again in chapter two. The sexual misconduct that Jim Trueblood committed is being used as a weapon against him. It's being used to prevent him from ever letting go of a traumatic memory and a blemish on his and his family's history because the white men who come by his house are paying him to tell the story. The sin he has committed is being used to keep him, once again, underneath the thumb of the white man. He needs the money, and thus he must keep telling the story.

Finally, in the Golden Day, a hooker is offended by Mr. Norton, a white man. Not just a white man, however, he is the only white man in the situation. He rejects her and offends her and only the uninvolved black men in the scenario are the ones harmed. The sex that Mr. Norton had the power to reject threw the blame onto the other men in the Golden Day.