Battle ROyal
"Son, after I'm gone I want you to keep up the good fight...Live with your head in the Lion's mouth"(174). In Battle Royal, by Ralph Ellison, the protagonist is dealt many expectations. The unnamed narrator is placed in a situation where he instantly must choose between his own dream of college and his grandfather's hope of equality. He remains unnamed throughout the story because he has no sense of self. Contrary to his grandfather's last words, he fights a battle within his own race, living up to the expectations of the white men and thus losing sight of his duty to stand up for his race as a black man. Ironically, the boy fights a battle not with the white race, but within his own race. He physically participates in a brawl that leaves the fighters bullying members of their own breed. This battle among the black race consists not only of physical trauma, but emotional trauma as well, for the boy believes he is somehow not connected to the black race. As he waltzes into the hotel, the boy feels as if he is on a higher level than his fellow black men because he is educated, and he says of his racial equals, "I felt superior to them in my way, and I didn't like the manner in which we were all crowded toget
her into the servants' elevator"(175). The boy undergoes a realization that he is, in fact, not a Booker T. Washington as he plans to be in life, but merely a common black man who is in disagreement with his own race. He comes to this realization after being victimized by the white men and forced into battle with men of his own ethnicity. "All my life I had been looking for something and everywhere I turned someone tried to tell me what it was. I accepted their answers too, upsetting his superiors-the white race. On graduation day, he gives a speech that declares that humility is the only way that blacks will progress in life. He admits to himself that he does not believe this idea because of his grandfather's declaration, yet, he proceeds to announce before a congregation of black men, women, and children that they must be docile to the white man's command. He uses terms such as "social responsibility" (175) to emphasize his point of submissiveness. His speech is so white-man oriented that he is invited to speak in front of the town's leading white officials. While speaking in front of the white community, the boy transforms into a scared little boy, much different from his demeanor at graduati
Some common words found in the essay are:
MC Gentlemen, Ralph Ellison, Booker Washington, Son I'm, white race, own race, head lion's, expectations placed white, placed white race, head lion's mouth174, black race, placed white, losing sight, social responsibility, fights battle, battle own, fellow black,
Approximate Word count = 818
Approximate Pages = 3 (250 words per page double spaced)
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