more development

The narrator has realized that who he is as a person, his identity and experiences, aren't recognized by the Brotherhood. "Here I had thought they accepted me because they felt that color made no difference, when in reality it made no difference because they didn't see either color or men" (508). Even the people he was trying to reach with the Brotherhood don't see him, as evidenced by his journey through the city while in disguise. Those scenes of him being mistaken for Rinehart are pivotal for his development because they solidify his invisibility but also lets him see the benefits of being unrecognized. He discovers that this Rinehart character lives through different identities that seem paradoxical to each other; he exists as a gambler to some and as a reverend to others.The narrator has this revelation about Rinehart after reading the line "Let there be light" in the church that Rinehart apparently works at, which ties into the enduring theme of light and dark but also potentially serves as a throwback to the yam scene (498). During that scene, the narrator had a revelation about his identity that was spurred by a reconnection with his past, declaring to himself "I am what I am" and affirming that he doesn't need to fake who he is and what he feels (265-266). Later on in the church, he hears a prayer that he says he hadn't heard since leaving campus, and is mistaken for Reverend Rinehart shortly after and his perception of identity changes yet again (496). When that previously occurred, the narrator afterwards got involved with the Brotherhood, which he eventually became disillusioned with. Since the events in his life are a "boomerang," this feeling of possibility he currently has could reverse and be shattered by another disillusioning experience.

The narrator experiments with "being Rinehart" by giving the Brotherhood what they want to see while following his own plans. He intends to subvert them but given the statement "I am what I am," is he really being any different than they are? He goes along with their ignorance in order to hurt them but he is doing this at the expense of "the people." Also, the narrator invites Sybil over because he wants her to act a certain way for him and that backfires. During that disturbing scene the narrator thinks to himself "Such games were for Rinehart, not me" (523).

No Longer Afraid

The explosion at Liberty Paints has placed the narrator in the hospital; the factory hospital, to be exact. And in a vague resemblance to a superhero's origin story, he comes out of the accident a changed man. It's here that the tone of the prologue starts to trickle back into the narrative, as the narrator begins talking to people in a different manner, an example being when he asks the official that's discharging him if he knows who Mr. Norton is and laughs when he says he doesn't. As the narrator realizes after this exchange, there is no longer a fear of authority figures that keeps him from speaking out. This is because he now knows that since "there was nothing which I could expect from them, there was no reason to be afraid."

With this lack of inhibition, the next chapter sees the narrator start speaking to the riled up crowd gathered around the evicted elderly couple, one of whom had been struck by the sheriff overseeing the eviction. In his speech, the narrator repeatedly tells the crowd that they are a "law-abiding people," says that the couple's belongings are junk so they should be allowed to pray in their old home because religion is all they have. This scene initially confused me a bit, since I was unsure of what the narrator's intentions were for this speech; was he trying to defuse the situation or escalate it? Rereading a few parts, it appears that he himself was unsure of what to do, because in regards to the prospect of violence, he "both wanted it and feared the consequences, was outraged and angered...yet surged with fear" (275). However, he was not afraid of people being hurt but afraid of "what the sight of violence might release in me." After rereading I think I see that the speech was intended to use the old couple's belongings to point out what little the black people have, or what little direction they have, even though they've been law-abiding; he implies that more action needs to be taken so that they aren't dispossessed. I'm not completely sure, but I do know that the narrator's proactivity demonstrates his changed behavior. Following the impromptu speech, the crowd attacks the sheriff, who shoots back at them, but he's overpowered and beaten up. The narrator then calls for everyone to take the furniture back inside, but more police eventually arrive, which is when the narrator decides he should leave. These events wouldn't have happened if the narrator hadn't taken the initiative to speak up, which is something he wouldn't have done when he still had college officials to impress. And what he says is the opposite of what they'd like their students to believe.