Ralph Eddison’s Invisible Man: Develop your own argument that answers an interpretive question about Invisible Man.

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Ralph Eddison’s Invisible Man.

  • Develop your own argument that answers an interpretive question about Invisible Man.
  • Support your argument with close reading, using secondary texts to define, defend and support your terms precisely.
  • Begin with the historical and theoretical texts that we discussed in class with the novel: Marcus Garvey; WEB DuBois; Ellison’s Working Notes; Claudia Tate/Todd Lieber articles).
  • Do research of a critical nature and engage those sources in your paper.

You can choose one of the following topics or come up with your own:

  1. Invisibility in the novel.
  2. The role of music in the novel.
  3. What does it mean to be “plunged outside of history”?
  4. IM in relation to: Jim Trueblood, Mr. Norton, Lucius Brockway, Dr. Bledsoe, Brother Jack, Mary Rambo, Tod Clifton, Ras the Exhorter/Destroyer, Rinehart.
  5. The role of white women in the novel. [“Magnificent Blonde”, Emma, nameless wife, Sybil]
  6. The dreams described in the novel.
  7. The impact the philosophies of Booker T Washington, W.E.B. Dubois, and Marcus Garvey [and the characters who represent them] have on stages of IM’s life.

Essay should be between FIVE and SIX (5-6) pages, or 1,250 to 1,500 words.

All papers should be typed, double spaced, with standard margins and in Times New Roman 12pt. type and formatted according to MLA style.