Invisible Man

Although he appears only in “flashbacks” in the protagonist’s childhood, his grandfather has a profound impact on the young man’s conception of himself as a Black man. The grandfather berates himself at the end of his life for being too submissive to White people (see Chapter 1). The protagonist begins his journey by not fully grasping or agreeing with that idea and trying to conform with the White-defined ideas of “success.”

However, the protagonist often thinks of his grandfather when he is grappling with a new dilemma surrounding race or success (see Pages 147 and 170 as examples). This indicates that his grandfather serves as a kind of “voice of conscience” warning the protagonist that whatever promises are made on the surface by White people are unlikely to be fulfilled. An example from the grandfather’s own life illustrates this as well: “The thing to do was to be prepared—as my grandfather had been when it was demanded that he quote the entire United States Constitution as a test of his fitness to vote. He had confounded them all by passing the test, although they still refused him the ballot” (315). His grandfather serves as a potent symbol of the fruitlessness of trying to gain the approval of the White people who seek to keep Black people oppressed.

Dr. Bledsoe, college administrator and antagonist, is skilled at appearing humble and submissive to White men while secretly holding them in contempt. He appears smaller than the White men at the college, “although he was physically larger” (115).

The protagonist’s admiration for Bledsoe is tempered, even at an early stage in the novel, by an unease that is made understandable by Bledsoe’s later betrayal. Bledsoe hides a ruthlessness toward those who “fail” in any way—even in a minor “mistake” like the one the protagonist makes—beneath the surface of genteel accomplishment: “He was our leader and our magic, who kept endowment high, the funds for scholarships plentiful and publicity moving through the channels of the press” (116). The ruthlessness has clearly contributed to Bledsoe’s success, but the protagonist decides that he doesn’t want to emulate Bledsoe in that regard and rejects him as an authority figure.

Jack, called “Brother Jack” in the text, in keeping with the Brotherhood’s convention, is a White leader within the organization who recruits and helps train the protagonist in his work. Like Bledsoe, Jack hides his true motives behind a veneer of calm rationality, efficient organization, and in the guise of trying to achieve greater social equality for Black people. He acts as an ally to the protagonist for much of the story, but he is actually an antagonist who will eventually abandon the protagonist to bear the brunt of the race riots at the end of the book.

Jack is a White man with red hair, physical traits that serve as a foil for the protagonist’s appearance. As he and the protagonist begin to disagree over the Brotherhood’s strategy and approach, it’s revealed that Jack has lost an eye in a protest or agitation for the work of the Brotherhood. While at first this might seem to deepen the protagonist’s respect for Jack, the disability is actually symbolic of Jack’s inability to truly “see” the protagonist or the issues facing the organization.