Ellison uses the symbol of blindness many times within The Invisible Man as an obvious allusion to the feeling that the narrator has about his invisibility to the rest of society whom are blind to his existence. The narrator struggles blindly against reality, just as he struggled in the blindfolded boxing match. Ellison uses another symbol of blindness; Reverend Barbee is a blind preacher who delivers an inspirational sermon. Ironically, this is a literal case of the blind leading the blind, a blind preacher who is preaching to the blacks who were blind to the conforming attitude the college they attend teaches. The veteran is another character that society portrayed as being blind, although this time he is blind to reality; he is mentally ill. Ironically, he was the only person in the whole novel that spoke the truth about the white man's need to "support" the black man. The veteran told our narrator that he should use the power of invisibility to his advantage. This scene is compared in many ways to the encounter with Trueblood. Trueblood did something that is disgusting; he slept with his daughter and got her pregnant. It is ironic that Mr. Norton gives one hundred dollars to Trueblood, a man that degrades his own community. This is another instance where the narrator should have realized the duality of the white man and his motives.
Later when the narrator starts his training in the Liberty Paint Factory it is worthwhile to note how the paint the narrator mixes becomes whiter when drops of black are added to it. The symbolic suggestion in the context of the novel is that a necessary element of blackness in society serves only to enhance the overwhelming whiteness in it. All this symbolism is perfectly placed within the novel to show the importance of the black man’s blindness to his treatment by the society he lives in. If the narrator could remember his own identity and value himself, he would not overvalue white men. This exemplifies the advice with which the Grandfather gave our narrator at the beginning of the novel: to understand that he is above the white men because he is invisible to them. And with this knowledge our narrator is supposed to take advantage of the white men, “overcome them with yeses.” Although this is so, the narrator's exaggerated sense of the white man's worth is what gives the white man power over him.
The narrator gradually comes to realize that he must find a way to identify fully with all social groups, especially his own group of blacks, if he is to act responsibly. At one point, he sees a few women being evicted from their apartment, he identifies with them, and he acts to help them. This act of responsibility for his own people forms the first thoughts of his realization about the society he lives in. Another scene where the narrator starts to realize the truth about his identity as well as his environment is when Ras the Exhorter tries to convince the narrator that he is a traitor to the black people by helping ex- slave holders and calling them brothers because there are white men in the Brotherhood. Ras goes on to explain that white men will only call him a brother, as long as they can, until they achieve their goals. And this is the essence of the problem within the brotherhood; the brotherhood uses our narrator for the purpose of their own goals even though they might not be a benefit to him or the black community. These convoluted workings of the brotherhood are made clear to the narrator when he buries Clifton. The brotherhood calls him to headquarters to question him about the unauthorized funeral for Clifton, whom they call a traitor. When he says he has acted out of “personal responsibility”, they question his use of the phrase in a way that it is similar to the earlier scene where he is told not to use the words "social equality". The narrator now started to feel uncomfortable with the Brotherhood. The leaders of the Brotherhood begin to reveal their philosophy toward the black community that states they are not capable of deciding their own best interest, so someone (the white man) must help. This way of thinking is almost the same as Booker T. Washington’s philosophy for the black community. This time as appose to the previous encounter with the phrase social equality, personal responsibility is stated. The contrast between the two phrases shows that the narrator starts to realize his personal (social) responsibility by acting upon his words and burying Clifton. This behavior shows another step of our narrator’s realization of his situation within the society he lives in.
The climax of the novel is when our narrator realizes the truth about the society he lives in and more importantly how his individuality relates to it. When the narrator is caught up in the Harlem riots, the racism almost kills him, as he is being sought by Ras and other enemies. Luckily for him, the narrator falls into a manhole, which offers him protection in the total darkness of an underground world. In this environment the darkness blinds the narrator, the climax occurs, for the narrator finally puts his life into perspective and sees his invisibility and his identity in a new light. The true moment of climax occurs when he burns the symbols of his past, which he has carried in his briefcase; once freed from these, he can think clearly about his true self and his future. The falling action centers on his coming to grips with a philosophy of the diversity of life, which is not all black or all white, all good or all bad. The epilogue then serves as the final conclusion to the plot, revealing why the narrator has written the book and explaining that he is ready to emerge from the underground and live life as a changed and more hopeful man.
Throughout the novel, as the narrator becomes more and more disillusioned by his experiences and loses his blindfolds are ripped away; by the end of the novel, the narrator can see clearly. The words of his Grandfather are finally accepted to be false in the sense that the way to deal with whites and society is to overcome them with understanding them, and thereby understanding your place in society. Not by conforming to what society says you should be, but rather look into your invisibility so that you can find yourself and your place in society. As a result of this realization that our narrator had he wrote the novel with the purpose of sharing his experiences and lessons with others, hoping they will identify with and benefit from what he has learned. The narrator concludes his story with a telling sentence: “maybe on some lower frequency I speak for you”
