Flying Home A Living Story
Ralph Waldo Ellison is perhaps one of the most influential African-American writers of the twentieth century. Ellison is best known for writing about such topics as self-awareness, identity, and the racial repression of African-Americans in the United States. His masterpiece, Invisible Man, chronicles the story of a young man striving to find himself in a world where he is hardly noticed. This novel won him much respect in the eyes of the literary community. Earlier in his career, Ellison also wrote many influential short stories. "Flying Home", is one of Ellison's stories that call the attention of all concerned with the basic essence of human freedom. In "Flying Home", Ellison creates a provocative statement about the Black situation in the south in the 1940's that is rich with symbolism and personal experience. Born on March 1, 1914, in Oklahoma, Ellison was raised in an environment that promoted self-fulfillment. His father, who named his son after Ralph Waldo Emerson and hoped to raise him as a poet, died when Ellison was three. Ellison's mother enlisted blacks into the Socialist Party and was also a domestic worker. In the early 1930s, Ellison won a scholarship to Alabama's Tusk
Trimmer, Joseph F. Ralph Ellison's 'Flying Home'. "Flying Home", is the story of a young man who is one of a very small number of African-American pilots in World War II. The story begins as the young man, named Todd, crashes his trainer plane into a Southern crop field. Injured and unable to move, Todd is helped by one of the field workers, a black man named Jefferson. Todd, a man of the "white" world is overcome by feelings of disgust by the appearance and demeanor of Jefferson. Todd feels physically ill from having to deal with someone of such low class. At this early point in the story the reader wonders why Todd, a black man, would show such terrible feelings toward someone of his own race. This confusion of identity is one of the main themes in the story. A meaningful story from a great writer, "Flying Home" ties culture in with folklore in a symbolic, meaningful manner. Ralph Ellison, a distinguished thinker and true voice of the African-American population here in our country, has created a lasting impression with his work and his life. No matter what course is taken in a human life after flying away from what you know, a wise lesson is do not forget your past and leave time for 'flying home'. Being a flier in the army has made an impact on Todd. Though he has risen above most of his race and become one of a few to join this division of airmen, Todd has entered into a predominantly white world. Everything around him is white-made, white-owned, or white-operated while serving in the army. The impact of his solely being a flier has caused Todd to don a mask, a white mask. He becomes so accustomed to living the white way that he becomes ashamed of his heritage, scared to think about returning to his lower class life. Crashing his plane in the heart of "blackland" is confusing to Todd. He doesn't know just who he is, since in his mind, acting white was always the right thing to do to get ahead. The fact that he is hardly different than Jefferson bothers him, and plays with his self-image.
Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 1672
Approximate Pages = 7 (250 words per page double spaced)
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