Chapter 17 is found on pages 347-373. At the beginning of the chapter (four months later than where the previous chapter ended having Iman (short for the invisible man) go off to study with Brother Hambro), Iman is taken to the El Toro Bar with Brother Jack. Here, Brother Jack tells him that he is to be the new Chief Spokesman of the Harlem District. They then leave from the bar and go to the district offices to take a look at Iman's new office; they have a brief encounter with Brother Tarp.

The next day Iman is introduced to the Brotherhood, and they give him a new identity. Brother Clifton accompanies him on a trip to the city and the Brotherhood has a brief run-in with Ras the Exhorter's gang. Clifton and Iman come face to face with Ras, the leader, and Ras goes on a tirade about how Clifton and Iman are betraying "Mama Africa" by including white men in the Brotherhood. Before running off, Clifton wounds Ras.

Iman continues his hard work for the Brotherhood; he forms the People's Hot Foot Squad to advertise the Brotherhood.

The settings for this chapter are the El Toro Bar (at the beginning), the Brotherhood's headquarters, and downtown in the streets of Harlem. There are three important characters introduced in Chapter 17. Brother Tarp is the first new face to appear in the chapter. Brother Tarp is the secretary for the Brotherhood. He is "old physically, but ideologically he's a vigorous young man. He can be depended upon in the most precarious circumstance"(353).

The next character to be introduced is Brother Tod Clifton. He is one of the younger members of the Brotherhood who is similar in age to Iman; he has very black skin and is distinguished looking. Iman compares Clifton's features to "the chiseled, black-marble features sometimes found on statues sometimes found in northern museums and alive in southern towns..."(354). Because Clifton is someone that Iman can relate with (because of age and situation), they quickly become friends, and they work together often just in this chapter. Iman calls him a "hipster, a zoot-suiter, and a sharpie"(357).

The last character Iman meets is Ras the Exhorter, a black nationalist who leads a group of thugs around and makes speeches to campaign black supremacy. He claims he is from Ethiopia or Africa, and he speaks with a strong, Jamaica-like accent. He is a "wild man," and his group is extremely violent and radical; they denounce the Brotherhood for working with the white men.

Several selected quotations in this chapter are important to certain themes in the novel. The first quotation occurs when Iman and Brother Jack are at the El Toro Bar. Jack is lecturing Iman about the Brotherhood's ideas and practice.

"Say what the people want to hear, but say it in such a way that they'll do what we wish...Remember too, that theory always comes after practice. Act first, theorize later..."(350). - Brother Jack

Although Iman is supposed to be the chief spokesman of the Harlem District, he still cannot say what he feels is right for the people. Brother Jack is only interested in telling the people what they want to hear, instead of telling them what they should hear.

This next quotation comes from the scene where Clifton and Iman have to face Ras the Exhorter; Ras goes on a long and violent speech about what he believes.

"It took a billion gallons of black blood to make you. Recognize yourself inside and you wan the kings among men! A mahn knows he's a mahn when he got not'ing, when he's naked-nobody have to tell him that" (364). - Ras the Exhorter

Ras is trying to make Clifton remember the hardships that African Americans have felt in the past and how much has happened since then. He feels that Clifton has the potential to be a famous black hero and that he should not use the help of white people to get him there. Men often become too overshadowed by luxuries and masks. This is the reason why Ras says that a man knows he is a man when he is does not have anything. He becomes strong in acquiring something when he has nothing. This strength makes him a man.

The next quotation is at the end of the chapter when Iman is meditating about his role in the Brotherhood and what it means to be a part of something.

"I was dominated by the all embracing idea of Brotherhood. The organization had given the world a new shape, and me a vital role. We recognized no loose ends, everything could be controlled by our science. Life was all pattern and discipline; and the beauty of discipline is when it works. And it was working very well." - the invisible man

This chapter is the first time that Iman has something good happen to him. For once he is a part of something monumental in shaping the Harlem community. Since this quotation is at the very end of the chapter, it shows that Iman leaves us on a high note which is in contrast to the beginning of the novel. This sudden luck that Iman has leaves the reader somewhat skeptical as to what will occur on the next page.

In addition to new character and important quotations, there are also a number of pertinent symbols and motifs. At the beginning of the chapter when Brother Jack takes Iman to the El Toro Bar, two different painting are observed inside the bar. The first painting Iman sees is of a matador fighting a bull in an arena. Iman describes the bull and the matador "blend[ing] in one swirl of calm, pure motion" (349). This motif symbolizes the relation and the friendship between Iman and the Brotherhood. He is part of something just as the matador (Iman) appears to be part of the bull (the Brotherhood). Later on, Iman notices a different painting in which the matador is "being swept skyward on the black bull's horns" (350). He notices this painting around the same time that Brother Jack begins to lecture him on theory and practice. This painting is foreshadowing what will happen to Iman in the Brotherhood; although he has the title of "chief spokesman," he still has people (the bull) telling him what to do and what to say. This will ultimately lead to his downfall. In the end, the bull gets the matador. The second painting also symbolizes the power that the Brotherhood has over Iman and the violence involved with that power.

However, after continuing onto Chapter 22, one will realize that this chapter links directly to Chapter 17; thus, my opinions of the motifs and symbols changed somewhat. I see a direct correlation between the first painting and the way Iman is feeling in the meeting when he is fighting off accusations. He describes his surroundings as merry-go-round looking, and everything is blended together. This sounds very much like the first painting where the bull is blended in with the matador just as the blacks in the room are blended with the whites. In the second painting the bull is throwing the matador upward with its horns; this seems very similar to the situation Iman is in during the meeting. At first he is the underdog and he is outnumbered by the committee, but as time progresses during the meeting, Iman gets up his confidence and defends himself with his ideas not to mention his confident remarks. He is somewhat tossing Brother Jack around just as the bull is tossing the matador around. Clearly, these paintings definitely foreshadow the chapters to come.

During the fight between Ras, Clifton and Iman, Iman notices a sign in the vicinity that reads "CHECKS CASHED HERE." Because this sign is mentioned more than once indicates that it has some significance. First of all, the sign is red which causes the reader to think of blood; the neon sign casts an eerie red color around the area where the men are fighting. This is evident when Ras's tears appear to be blood in the red lighting. I interpret "CHECKS CASHED HERE" as "BLACKS KILLED HERE." This sign is appropriate to the fight scene, but it sounds like Ellison has intended it to carry a hint of sarcasm. The men fight there to "cash" in their lives for what? For blood? This sign symbolizes sacrifice for the Brotherhood. Although Clifton is not killed, he comes dangerously close, and he is only spared by Ras.

Clifton's act of striking Ras is his way of stopping himself from betraying the Brotherhood. After he does this, he confesses to Iman that "for a while there [he] thought [he] was gone" (369). Clifton's actions symbolize cover-upand betrayal. He could not just walk away from Ras because he was hypnotized by his persuasive tirade, so he has to break the spell by stopping Ras from speaking.

The portrait of Frederick Douglass that Brother Tarp hangs up at the Brotherhood's headquarters is a cover-up of Iman's grandfather. It helps Iman forget the tormenting words of his grandfather; it forces him to focus on the issues at hand. It serves as a blockade between Iman's bad memories and his optimistic future.

The theme of escaping and running is mentioned when Iman compares himself to Frederick Douglass. Douglass came north to escape and find work in the shipyards; he had also "taken another name" much like Iman had done(372). Iman is similar to Douglass because, like Douglass, he runs from his problems to create a new life in a new job with a new identity. He also recognizes the fact that Douglass expected himself to be a boatman, but it was his orations that made him a success. This symbolizes mistaken identity; although Iman sees himself as a great speaker, he may end up not being remembered as that at all.

by Elizabeth Holloway