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The Representation of Whiteness in Ralph Ellison's Invisible Man

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The Representation of Whiteness in Ralph Ellison's Invisible Man Alya Zulfikar The Representation of Whiteness in Ralph Ellison’s Invisible Man The Representation of Whiteness in Ralph Ellison’s Invisible Man Alya Zulfikar, Ahmad Bukhori Muslim* English Language and Literature Universitas Pendidikan Indonesia [email protected] ABSTRACT Racism has always been a never-ending issue in society; one specific racist act is whiteness. The issue of whiteness is still considered an inevitable issue that is still happening until today, and it gives negative impact on the non-white. The issue of racism is often analyzed as a form of prejudice, stereotype, and discrimination. However, the issue of racism is a general issue. Thus, the present research attempts to portray the specific act of racism, which is whiteness. The novel Invisible Man (1952) by Ralph Ellison brings the issue of racism. By using Garner (2007) theory of whiteness, the issue of racism that is present in the novel is analyzed under the four themes of whiteness to provide an alternative understanding of the issue of racism through the lens of whiteness. This research entitled “The Representation of Whiteness in Ralph Ellison’s Invisible Man” attempts to reveal how whiteness is constructed as a racist act in the society which becomes the central issue of the novel. This research employs Young’s (1999) theory of representation and Garner’s (2007) theory of whiteness to provides another perspective of whiteness by portraying the themes of whiteness, and how it is constructed in society. The findings show that the issue of whiteness is dominantly exercised through terror and supremacy, and it makes the non-white feel inferior to the White. Keywords: whiteness, white privilege, white supremacy 1 Passage 2019, 7(2), 1-18 INTRODUCTION Until today, the issue of racism is still raise humanity issues because happening. Back into the age of everyone can relate to literature. slavery, White enslaved the non- One such work is Ralph Ellison’s white. The aftermath of slavery can be (1952) Invisible Man, which brings seen in how society was then the issue of racism by showing the constructed. White define themselves discrimination towards Black in as “The Self” and assign the non- American society. Set in New York white as “The Other”. White is City, the major center of African- influential because they have the American culture. The narrator, who advantage to define people of is a black man, is portrayed as the different skin color as a result of the invisible man. The term “invisible construction of their whiteness; they man” in the novel does not refer to a exercise their power to discriminate person who is physically invisible or the non-white. As history shows, has the power to be invisible in front White used to enslave the non-white of other people. It refers to someone and also used to colonize other who is invisible in the eye of the countries of the non-white. majority members of the society who Nowadays, although the colonial era are White. His invisibility is mainly has ended, discrimination to the non- because of his skin color. white are still happening. Some of the White still think that they are superior White, in the story, exercise their because they are white. It is apparent power of being White by that White is giving unequal rights to discriminating Black through racist the non-white. This issue is often acts which dehumanize them as a raised in the literature, as “Literature human. They look down upon Black is one of the most interesting and and treat them as non-human being. significant expressions of humanity,” The issue of racism, which is done by (Barnum, 1866, p.13) express that White in the novel has attracted the literature is one of the mediums to writer to conduct research on this issue because the issue of racism done 2 Alya Zulfikar The Representation of Whiteness in Ralph Ellison’s Invisible Man by White is interesting to be further practices). According to Rosado investigated. A particular term used in (2012), disregardful actions are only this issue is Whiteness. classified into prejudice and discrimination because prejudice Whiteness is the idea of being already includes stereotype. As this white and of having inherent novel raises the issue of racism done privileges of being white. This by White toward the Black, the theory privilege of being white has created of Whiteness is best implemented to inequality or injustice among other show how the novel represents races in society. More specifically, Whiteness. Garner (2007) categorized the practice of racism done by white the kinds of Whiteness into four is called as white racism as coined by forms: Whiteness as terror and Hill (2008). White racism refers to supremacy, Whiteness as a kind of practices of racism which is done by absence, Whiteness as contingent White, and it is not only a mere hierarchies, and Whiteness as values, American history, but it is organized norm, and cultural capital. by white-dominated institutions and White as an individual. This research also employs the theory of representation in examining White racism is derived from the the data. regarding the issue of construction of whiteness in society, whiteness. Hall (1997) explains that and it leads to a racist act. Glasgow representation is the process of (2009) states that the racism derives meaning-making by which meaning from disregard, more generally, as a is produced between members of a form of ill will towards the other culture; the process of the meaning- races. Thus, racist actions will be making itself covers the use of hostile and disrespectful for the language, signs, and images which victims. Berman and Paradies (2010) represent an object. The theory of note that racism can be expressed representation is best applied to through stereotype (racist beliefs), support the research in examining the prejudice (racist emotions/affect), and representation of whiteness as it helps discrimination (racist behaviors and 3 Passage 2019, 7(2), 1-18 to establish a better understanding of racism towards the Black. Rezazade the issue. Young (1999) states literary and Zohdi (2016) analyze color works can also be a source of blindness in the case of racism in knowledge through the theory of Nelle Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mocking representation. He further explains Bird and found that being color-blind there are three types of literary is one of the solutions to the issue of depiction that helps to examine the racism, as color-blindness is the represented issue. Thus, the use of the ability to see with the transparent theory of representation helps to eyeball and preventing the act of portray how whiteness in the novel racism. Pfeifer (2009) found that the Invisible Man and to present white and black function as a understanding of how the issue of profound metaphor or binary whiteness is exercised in society. opposition. Pfeifer found that the Dark Continent is an explicit symbol There have been many of the opposition between forces of researchers who conducted studies on ‘civilization’ and images of the issue of racism that is represented ‘savagery’ and dark primitivism. in literary works. Wilson (2014) These symbolisms presume the found that there remains the dualistic splits of White/non-white. overrepresentation of White and invisibility of racial minorities as an Meanwhile, the novel itself has impact of racial representations in been analyzed by some researchers. children’s picture books. Szulkowska Lamm (2003) analyses the issue of (2017) studies the relationships visuality and Black masculinity, between White character and Black which focus on the visual character in Katherine Stockett’s The representations of the black male. Help, specifically about racism Wilcox (2007) analyses the issue of experienced by African Americans. Black power, which leads to the idea She then found that through The Help of the prototype for a Black cyborg people are aware of the problem of subject. Another research regarding white supremacy and the damage of the novel is Widyana’s (2006) 4 Alya Zulfikar The Representation of Whiteness in Ralph Ellison’s Invisible Man research on the issue of racism in general, identity, alienation, discrimination. She focuses on the color blindness, and the impact of race relationship between White and racial representations. As most of the Black. Most of the researchers focus previous studies only focus on the on the issue of invisibility, issue of racism in general, the main discrimination, and racism. None of focus of this research is the issue of the research specifically focuses on whiteness. The research is expected to racism done by White. provide information on the issue of whiteness, which is represented in the The previous studies on this novel novel by showing its construction in have already examined specific issues society and how it is exercised as a that are raised in the novel. It includes racist act. METHODOLOGY by using numerical and interpretative analysis. In order to analyze the representation of whiteness in the novel Invisible In relation to Bernard and Man, this study used textual analysis Ryan (1998), textual analysis, approach. This approach was chosen according to McKee (2003), is an since the data of the representation of approach where the researchers whiteness is based on the text in the gather information about how people novel. According to Bernard and make sense of the world. In other Ryan (1998), textual analysis words, textual analysis is a method involves the examination of words, where researchers make an “educated sentences, paragraphs, ideas, guess”; the interpretation is created meanings, paralinguistic features, based on the analyzed text. documents, and another aspect that is Furthermore, he explains that textual missing in the text. Subsequently, the analysis is not used to find a single researchers should interpret, mark, correct interpretation.
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