Senior_Thesis

Kameron Carter Title Modern literature often shows that individuals of the lower classes struggle to elevate themselves through their own choices, although sometimes fate intervenes. This is made evident through the twentieth century novel Invisible Man, where an unnamed protagonist struggles through racial boundaries to achieve an upper class level of success. Little Bee, a novel of more current proportions, also portrays the efforts of an African native at social acceptance in a class dominated by white, middle class English. Finally, Howards End demonstrates the clash of caste systems and how one man goes against the odds to feel loved and acknowledged amongst individuals who care so much about where one comes from. Through choice, these socially unfit people strive towards lofty pedestals of class. However, in some instances, fate takes control and dominates the outcomes, letting these protagonists know what is actually in control. Born into a time where his ancestry were slaves (Ellison 15), the unnamed narrator of Invisible Man, fatefully existed in the lower class. In fact, at this time, though he lived in an “equal” and “free” society, one could almost consider his class to exist below the lower class. Constantly, he was referred to as a “ginger-colored nigger”, “sonofabitch”(Ellison 21), and other various profanities. The diction used by Ellison in this modern writing proves the social standing the narrator and his fellow people had with white society. Moreover, the class of white and black is compared between the narrator and a white man, Mr. Norton. Metaphorically, Ellison compares Mr. Norton to the supreme deity of God himself. He was “‘not a man…but a God, a force—’”(Ellison 93). All power belonged to the whites, giving them authority over the Negro race and furthermore, the world. However, blacks such as the narrator were considered children, or even worse, things. Ellison’s powerful comparison of the black man to “‘a black amorphous thing’”(Ellison 93) shows the state at which Negroes lived in the dominated white society. They were nothing; scum so low that they were referred to as “things” instead of concrete beings. This statement clearly showing the class of Negroes poses as no surprise to the repression that they had under the white rule. Although evident of the narrator’s circumstance, fate seemed to take control of his life when he was administered an “official-looking document” which contained “a scholarship to the state college for negroes” (Ellison 32). This life altering news foreshadowed a possible promising future, in favor of our protagonist. Here the narrator was given a chance to rise higher than his lower class, repressed state and become an outstanding, educated citizen in society. Through this education, the narrator set goals and became completely focused on achieving them. One individual whom the narrator “hoped to be” was Dr. Bledsoe, a man who through struggles and tribulations had acquired a high status even amongst white society. Dr. Bledsoe had it all, “two Cadillacs, a good salary and a soft, good-looking and creamy-complexioned wife.” Not only was this man wealthy, but also he was “a leader of his people” and “made himself of more importance in the world than most Southern white men”(Ellison 99) which was definitely an achievement in that day and time. This vivid imagery painted the picture of not only a powerful man, but a successful man. Even though black, his high status made it impossible for him to be ignored (Ellison 99). Consequently, it is apparent why that the narrator aspired to become a man of such an astute nature. After entering into the college, the narrator homed in on a road to success. He desired to be a doctor, lawyer, preacher, teacher, politician, or any other profession that received esteemed praise (Ellison 73). His strategy to reach this goal was through the act of humility, a repeating motif mentioned throughout the novel. Ellison writes that he “knew also that it was advantageous to flatter rich white folks”, an example of humility to the higher power. The narrator acted in such a way to earn “a large tip, or a suit, or a scholarship next year” (Ellison 38). Moreover, he did his work, studied, and showed the white man his potential in all that he did. However, all these actions backfired and caused him expulsion from the college in his junior year. Due to an accidental occurrence involving himself and Mr. Norton, the narrator’s actions resulted in his leave from the college. Uncertain of his mistakes, he contemplated his plan laid out in the beginning. He had walked a path unswerving, trying to be everything he was expected to be and do everything that he was expected to do; and instead of accolades of success he “was stumbling along, holding on desperately to one of my eyes in order to keep from bursting out my brain against some familiar object swerved into my path by my distorted vision”(Ellison 144). This imagery gives the sight of someone who has lost his/her way and doesn’t know where to turn. Instead of taking what one thought to be the narrow path towards victory, the individual is lost in a land of confusion and frustration. This is quite similar to the narrator where his experience had led him to believe that humility did not guarantee him success after all. Humility made oneself weak and a coward instead of a strong determined individual. With this in mind, the narrator set his mind on an opposing plan that one had to work in order to achieve. As the narrator’s journey to societal success continued, he stayed focused on his new plan. The “plans” as he called them, were his priority. After meeting a poor bystander on the streets, he emphasized the importance of sticking to the plans that one has for oneself (Ellison 172). Here, the narrator is under the false impression that his goal can only be attained if he follows his plan to the letter. However, he is naïve in the fact that his previous attempts at “sticking” to the plan failed him and cost him his expulsion from the college. Even so, his sketch of the future was by choice to separate himself from essences that would be a distraction such as love. The poor man spoke on love, and yet the narrator couldn’t understand how he himself could love or be loved. In the end he concluded that “Perhaps everyone loved someone; I didn't know, I couldn't give ... much thought to love; in order to travel far you had to be detached…”(Ellison 174). Here, Ellison speaks of another motif that in order to attain societal success, one must make the choice to detach oneself from the distractions of society, love being a distraction. Similarly, the “cynical”, “dissenting” words of his dead grandfather continuously played back in his mind, telling him that he would not succeed. Instead of allowing those foul words to hinder him, the narrator made the choice to “keep it pressed down”, “it” referring to the negative comments from the mouth of his grandfather (Ellison 327). On and on, the narrator walked his path towards societal success. After joining the Brotherhood, the narrator finally experienced a sort of power to which he had been striving for. He had risen from a naïve schoolboy to an educated man in only a short span of time and he wasn’t going to stop until he reached the peak of success. “The Brotherhood was a world within a world and I was determined to discover all the secrets and to advance as far as I could. I saw no limits, it was the one organization in the whole country in which I could reach the very top and I meant to get there”(Ellison 371). Here it is indicative the determination that the protagonist possesses. Not only had he entered the Brotherhood, but it was his desire to learn the system inside and out, up and down until he himself controlled it. He may not have risen to the standards of the white man, but he would without a doubt have power over the Negro people. And yet, the narrator was under the false thematic notion that power came with authority. His desire for power caused him to go the distance, journey across the land to win the respects of the white people and those of his own race. However, he would soon discover that those who climbed the ladder to success could only climb so high before being knocked down. In Little Bee, the modern novel based on the interlocking lives of a Nigerian girl and a middle class English woman, the protagonist also feels that making educational choices will prolong her existence in an alien country. She stated that she was “only alive at all because I learned the Queen’s English”(Cleave 2). In Nigeria, English was more of a broken language but in England, it was more sophisticated. Her speech evolved from “end in a bad bush” to “that it wouldn’t end well” (Cleave 3). In this novel, Little Bee’s choices were mainly made upon her willingness to survive. There were only two ways to survive in the more civilized English world: either “look good or talk even better”(Cleave 3). Little Bee’s efforts were especially important considering her caste. At the time of her release from the detention center and throughout the entire novel, Little Bee was an illegal immigrant. Technically, she wasn’t even apart of the caste system because she wasn’t even a citizen. People of England turned their noses to immigrants, especially the illegal ones. In their eyes, she was “a halfling, a child of an unnatural mating, and unfamiliar mating, and unfamiliar face in the moon”(Cleave 8). This negative diction gives rise to such demeaning connotations helping one realize how low Little Bee was in society. She was so low in society because she actually wasn’t a part of the country. She wasn’t even one of them. She was the girl that didn’t belong (Cleave 8). Ultimately, it was the acceptance of English society that Little Bee desired. This was proved through the fact that she wished to be “a British pond coin instead of an African girl”(Cleave 1). Although an interesting metaphor, it explained the acceptance that each one had. British pound coins were accepted as friends, parts of the ever-growing English society. “A pond coin can go wherever it thinks will be safest. It can cross deserts and oceans and leave the sound of gunfire and the bitter smell of burning thatch behind”(Cleave 1). Through this metaphorical personification, Cleave explained the ease of living the life of a British pound coin. A pound could flee from danger, retire from all fears, and live the so-called good life. If she were a British coin, Little Bee could escape her melancholy past littered with loss, death, destruction. British coins didn’t have troubles, problems, or fears. They just existed in a safe world were all was sunny days and perfect weather. Moreover, everyone liked pound coins. In fact they were highly desired over ignorant, naïve Nigerian girls. If she were a British coin, “everyone would be pleased to see me coming”(Cleave 1). To gain her acceptance and have a chance at survival, Little Bee taught herself. For two years, she was locked away where she learned the Queen’s language in an immigration detention center (Cleave 3). She learned “the Queen’s English from books and newspapers” (Cleave 4), she fixed her eyes upon the essence of television and watched programs like Hell’s Kitchen and Who Wants to be a Millionaire' (Cleave 49), and she read informational books such as LIFE IN THE UNITED KINGDOM in which she “began to understand how your country worked”(Cleave 49). More extensively, she “looked up every word in my Collins Gem” dictionary given to her. She continuously practiced for hours on end in an effort to perfect her speech, her pronunciations spoken effortlessly (Cleave 49). All these actions show Little Bee’s determination at achieving societal acknowledgment and acceptance. Cleave also iterates the idea similar to Ellison that an education guarantees a social right standing with those of the higher class. If one strives to educate oneself, he/she can reach that lofty pedestal in a culture. Those of the lower class will remain where they are unless they are educated. Just because an individual has monetary values, that doesn’t mean that they are socially wealthy. Even those who come across good fortune must elevate themselves through learning and instruction. Education is the primary key to societal success and concrete acceptance. Leonard Bast, a poor clerk the Porphyrion Fire Insurance Company in E.M. Forster’s Howards End, is a prime subject that faced a societal struggle. Forster writes that “he knew he was poor, and would admit it”(Forster 360. At first Forster seems to portray that Bast has accepted his level in the caste system for he is unafraid to admit it. However, succinctly after this statement, he furthermore quotes that “he would have dies sooner than confess any inferiority to the rich” showing that he is discomforted by his stage in society when it comes to the rich. Forster structures these statements perfectly in an interesting style. Even though Bast knew the truth, he would rather not admit this sad truth to those who would belittle him, which is understandable. Moreover, Bast was “inferior to most rich people…He was not as courteous as the average rich man, nor as intelligent, nor as healthy, nor as lovable”(Forster 37). In fact he lived in one of many “flats, constructed with extreme cheapness”(Forster 37), a place he otherwise labeled as “a semi-basement”(Forster 38) which in itself gives a negative connotation. These unpleasing descriptions of Bast give the notion that this man was just of low nature in general which almost makes one sympathize with his sorrowful state. And I feel that for this reason, that individuals can understand his desire to be more. In fact, after his encounter with the “Miss Schlegels,” “his first care was to prove that he was as good as the Miss Schlegels”(Forster 37). And here began his struggle to reach a social acceptance. At first, Leonard Bast lived by the notion that “some are born cultured: the rest had better go in for whatever comes easy”(Forster 44). However, he soon denoted the last portion and began to apply himself to books, books of the most respected upper class. Books by Ruskin, influenced him to better his English. “My flat is dark as well as stuffy” became a building with “the absence of ventilation” causing “its obscurity”(Forster 40). The style here suggests the seemingly more esteemed language of the rich and wealthy, to which Bast aspired to be apart of. It was his choice to be greater, and he surely would achieve it. At Bast’s next encounter with the “Miss Schlegels, he put his learned skills to the test. Convinced that the wealthy were well into books, he repeatedly pestered them about authors and their novels. From the Ordeal of Richard Feverel, to Stevenson’s Prince Otto, to E. V. Lucas’s Open Road, Bast knew them all (Forster 93, 94). And yet, Margaraet Schlegel, the elder of the “Miss Schlegels” knew all to well what she was faced with: “the vague aspirations, the metal dishonesty, the familiarity with the outsides of books. She knew the very tones in which he would address her”(Forster 92). Clearly, Margaret Schlegel wasn’t blind to Bast’s attempts to impress them. Possibly people of his type visited often, flaunting off there mediocre book knowledge and expert use of vocabulary. She wasn’t fooled, and yet, she was still impressed. Tibby, the younger brother of the Schlegels was not, however. He was so annoyed with Bast’s attempts that he exited himself from the room. “He knew that this fell would never attain to poetry, and did not want to here him trying”(Forster 94). Unlike his sisters, Tibby displayed a sense of pride and superiority of himself and his family. He, like his sisters, could see right through Bast’s faulty head knowledge. Bast was a fake, a scam, a disgrace to the rich, intolerable to even be in the same room. Even Bast himself seemed not fooled by his façade that he had put on. After using such eloquent diction and profound speech, he used the word No, and all began to fall apart. In fact, “down toppled all that has seemed ignoble or literary in his talk, down toppled tiresome R. L. S. and the ‘love of the earth’ and his silk top hat”(Forster 95). Here he realized the falseness with which he carried himself. He hadn’t risen to such a high status, because his whole essence was a joke. It was then that he understood that “he spoke with a flow, an exultation, that he had seldom known”(Forster 95). And yet, he tried to recover his dignity by speaking more on “—Borrow, Thoreau, and sorrow. R. L. S. brought up the rear, and the outburst ended in a swap of books”(Forster 96). Still, he faltered several other times as he slowly starter “becoming again the naïve and sweet-tempered boy for whom Nature had intended him”(Forster 96). The way in which Nature is used here almost suggests an essence of fate playing a role in Bast’s life. He was not born into a wealthy, made to speak their language or live their way of life. His efforts to esteem himself to those worthy were against what fate had intended. He even stated further that his “wife would never understand—not if I explained for days”(Forster 96), which is all quite all right in the reality that Bast was trying to live a false life aside from his poor lower class standing. Fate had other plans in Bast’s life, and yet, he would not accept them but falsely understood that he had to be of the upper class to be loved and accepted. Even after his unsuccessful meeting with the Schlegels cut short, he still thought that “books, literature, and clever conversation” was the elite culture. “One raise oneself by study, and got upsides with the world”(Forster 99). Under the false premise, expressed by Forster that education equals class, Bast lost a part of himself that day. He truly believed that his choice to educate himself would rise him above his lowly unsatisfying class to the upper crust of society. Unfortunately he was wrong. Education didn’t necessarily mean power or success, especially if it changed who one really was. In the end, he was engrossed with the wealthy and their way of life, therefore totally missing out on what fate had in store for him. Throughout certain points in each of our protagonist’s lives, there were those who repressed their striving nature, people who found it wrong, rude, or dangerous to lift oneself to such lofty heights in a society. In Invisible Man the narrator was repeatedly haunted by the last words of his deceased grandfather. In stead of encouraging his grandson to exit himself from the low depressive society of the Negro life, he stated to “‘Live with your head in the lion’s mouth. I want you to 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’”(Ellison 16). The structure and style of this statement disproves that those who work steadily and make the choice to elevate themselves succeed in the higher class. Instead the narrator’s grandfather suggests that it is safer for the black man to stay enslaved by the white man. Stay under their rule for as long as possible. Rebellion and force was not the answer, but humility would release them from the captivity of the white man. Showing them constant respect that they returned with hatred and degradation and submitting to their petty instruction and heinous ruling would put them on the path towards victory. And yet, the narrator constantly repressed these words and moved forward. Once achieving a high standing in the black society with plans to move higher, the narrator was yet, hindered again by the words of his brethren. Understanding his circumstance, the brethren suggested that the narrator slow down and rethink his plans. If he rose too high, the white man would cut him down. It was smarter to work for the Negroes and advance them in the dominated white society. Similarly, if he worked too hard or moved too fast for the Colored people, they themselves would shut him down and crush all that he had worked for. In the end, his plans would run more smoothly is he stayed humble and became content (Ellison 374). From the words of a concerned brethren Ellison was not being completely repressive towards the narrator’s success, but just cautious. Amongst the common white man, being an educated black man was already a change that they were adapting to. They knew that the day was coming and that they couldn’t “keep the black man down” forever. However, white society was definitely too stubborn and rooted in their ways to allow a “ginger colored nigger” (Ellison 21) to rise out of the earth and take over the old way of life. The white man’s idea was to “‘Keep This Nigger-Boy Running’”(Ellison 33), otherwise, have him twirling in circles, thinking that he was achieving, but was actually in a state of perpetual confusion and failure. They wanted to keep the black man smart—only in his own mind. In the case of Leonard Bast, he was not necessarily repressed, nor were his efforts at achieving societal acceptance encouraged. The “Miss Schlegels” found him quite interesting that they honestly wanted to help him and see what he really was on the inside. They could see right through his educated façade and persisted on unraveling him until they reached the man he was born to be. Tibby, they younger Schlegel was the only one of the siblings who found Bast outright repulsing, to the point that he had to distance himself (Forster 94). His action displays a sort of embarrassment he had for Bast on top of reality that he himself should not be affiliated with those who pretend to be wealthy. Bast was mere insignificant fool with no right to grace Tibby with his presence, especially if he attempted false advertising his true personality. As previously stated, the ultimate goal of the narrator in Invisible Man is to be accepted by white society or from his standpoint, be seen as visible instead of invisible. At the beginning of the novel, he is perceived as invisible, a non-entity floating around in a world that refused to see him (Ellison 14). Isabel Allende more broadly states that, “the narrator inhabits a world that is ‘unreal’ both because it is governed by different laws and because it is, for the same reason, not recognized by dominant society”(Allende 38). The “dominant society” mentioned here represents the white society which is considered dominant in a time where black was wrong and white was right. Due to this reality that the narrator learned to accept, he attempted a elevating himself to their status, so that he could be recognized and “visible.” However, before he could even try, he was repressed by his own grandfather who believed that white power could only be overruled if the black man feigned acquiescence (Allende 38). These controversial thoughts—on top of the reality that educated blacks who had previously tried to attain power under the white man, were cut down and sent to the Golden Day asylum, where there rotted in their own failure (Allende 38)—gave the image of a dull hope for our aspiring protagonist. Even with this negative past looming in his conscience, Allende further states that the narrator regains focus of his endeavors towards reception as “the ‘old freezing unit’ which had conditioned him to accept his status begins to melt (IM 226)”(Allende 38). In the same mind as Allende, it is further indicative that this negative energy given off by family and cohorts strengthens the narrator’s desires. Any stumbles that he faces are minor up until the point to where he is ultimately cast back down into invisibility. But for his journey all together, he only sees the light when other see a path towards destruction. A struggle to be recognized in a social hierarchy is especially difficult when fate rightfully takes control. Throughout Howards End, Leonard Bast had specifically struggled with being accepted in the eyes of the Schlegels and Wilcoxes. He persisted in his struggle to attain their respect that be buried himself in books and concentrated heavily on affluent speech and the knowledge of kings. Even with this in mind, Jonathan Rose states that Leonard Bast’s “attempts to acquire culture are hopeless” (Rose 3-18). His reasoning is explained through his quite logical quote: “Lets face it, says Forster, he is ‘inferior to most rich people.’ He is ‘not as courteous as the average rich man, nor as intelligent, nor as healthy, nor as lovable.’ He plays the piano ‘badly and vulgarly,’ and, what is worse, he plays Grieg, a bad and vulgar composer. [4] In literary conversations he is only capable of repeating cant phrases and dropping names. The problem, according to Margaret Schlegel, is that ‘His brain is filled with the husks of books, culture—horrible; we want him to wash out his brain’”(Rose 3-18). His point is clear and one could quite agree that fate is entirely in control of Bast’s life. He was born a poor man and lived his life, not necessarily in poverty, but not in excessive richness either. His occupation was an insurance clerk, a fairly noble job. It was surely not Bast’s desired job, for her found it uncomfortable to discuss it in front of the “Miss Schlegels” and felt that they were only befriending him for “official information” when in reality, they truly wanted to just know more about him (Forster 114). Unable to accept his present estate, Bast’s wrongfully fought against fate by trying to educate himself and become a stranger to others and his own self. His only priorities became books and elegant speech and a high-class education. So enticed was with these otherwise unimportant entities, that he became lost in a world that he didn’t belong. His disobedience to fate’s purpose and way in his life, resulted in a dastardly accidental affair, birth of his child, and ultimately death by books. Quite literally, Bast was “crushed and killed by the weight of books”(Rose 3-18). Forster almost made this irony comical in the fact that Bast was killed by the entity that enticed him to act so falsely: books and knowledge. In this ultimately fatal act, fate revealed to Bast that it was in control of his life and that for his continual disobedience and unhappiness, he had to suffer, eternally.