Invisible Man: Chapters 13-15

Chapter 13 

1. Peter Wheatstraw foreshadows the encounter with the yam seller. How do these encounters differ? What changes are revealed in the narrator’s identity? How is his change in identity linked with his desire to show Bledsoe as a fraud? The encounters between the yam seller and Wheatstraw differ because the narrator no longer wants to hide his Southern heritage claiming that "[he] is what [he] is". This change in identity links with his desire to reveal Bledsoe as a fraud because he emulated Bledsoe's act, putting in on (supposedly) out of fear for powerful men. Now that he's not afraid of them, he's not afraid of retribution from Bledsoe.
2. In the eviction scene, the narrator makes his second speech of the novel. Study it carefully. Compare it to the first speech. Take notes about the narrator’s developing identity. While the first speech was made to a white audience on the virtues of "social responsibility" and accommodating white people (more like letting them walk all over black people), this speech is made to a black audience that has already been roused to anger over the eviction. Now, the narrator realizes that despite everything that he/the Provos have done for the benefit of white people, in the end, they receive no benefits from it. The narrator also continues being unafraid of "powerful men", even when the white man has his pistol on him. 
3. How does the narrator meet Brother Jack? The Brotherhood is a thinly veiled version of the Communist Party. Richard Wright, Ellison’s first mentor, was an active member in the Communist Party. At Wright’s request, Ellison wrote a number of articles for leftist publications between 1937 and 1944, but never joined. He objected to the Communist Party’s limitations of individuality and personal expression. The narrator meets Brother Jack on a street corner following the forced eviction. The two of them end up sharing a meal at a cafeteria nearby.
4. What new piece of paper replaces the letters from Bledsoe as the narrator’s identity? The envelope Brother Jack gives him with a number to call for the organization he is trying to recruit the narrator into.

Chapter 14 

1. What pushes the narrator to accept The Brotherhood’s offer? The fact that Mary Rambo is taking care of the narrator (being short of money already) and he was not contributing at all.
2. Note that the building is called the Chthonia. In Greek mythology, this is another name for Hades’ realm, the underworld. What descriptions and images can you find that convey the sense of entering an underworld type of realm? Why is entering the world of The Brotherhood like entering the underworld? The entryway was lit by "dim bulbs set behind frosted glass", similar to how when one is dying there is supposedly a light to go towards. The soundproof elevator and lack of knowledge about the direction (up or down, as elevators go) continue the idea of unfamiliarity and relative darkness. Entering the world of The Brotherhood is similar to entering the underworld of Greek mythology because of the darkness and protection surrounding the area either to keep people from entering against their wishes or keep members insulated in the organizatio).
3. The phone number has been replaced by a new name in an envelope? Why? Why are we never told of this new name? The new name is the "identity" of the narrator as given to him by the members of The Brotherhood. We are never told of this name because as this story is being told in the past tense, he no longer associates with the organization and lets them have that control over him.
4. How does the party scene remind the reader of how limited and/or hypocritical most whites are in the understanding of the treatment of Blacks? The (white) members of The Brotherhood claim to be for civil rights for people of color, but not only control what the narrator is called/told to talk about/what to represent in The Brotherhood but also commit several racist microaggressions like asking the narrator to sing (specifically spirituals) and Emma claiming that the narrator should be "a little blacker".

Chapter 15 

1. Think about the symbolism of the Sambo bank. Is it related to Clifton’s Sambo doll? What about the fact that it belonged to Mary Rambo? What about the bank’s “grinning mouth” that swallows coins? Think back to the Battle Royal in Chapter 1. The Sambo doll is related more to the Battle Royal than the bank is, highlighting the fact that for black people to survive in this time, a lot of them had to work for the entertainment of white people (dancing in the case of the doll, fighting in the BR). The Sambo bank and its "grinning mouth" symbolize the fact that black people have to do this essentially with a smile on their faces, despite being complicit in their own dehumanization. They need the money bad enough. Mary owning it is a sign that she has bought into the work as well, either currently or at some point in her life, understanding that, well, that's just how things were at the time.