Research Paper on:
Criticism of Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison Found in Ambivalent Man by Jesse Wolfe

Unformatted Sample Text from the Research Paper:
Wolfe, whose literary criticism was published in the 2000 issue of African American Review, ambivalence is the key to developing a full understanding of Ellisons controversial narrative. He appropriately  begins by equating ambivalence, as it is employed by the author, with contradiction. It is not simply a matter of selecting inaction because the narrator wants to do nothing;  it is about contending with a myriad of conflicting emotions and ideologies demanding equal attention and consideration, which often leads to indecision. Wolfes critique deals less with the texts  predominant theme of how racism denies the identity of an individual, but rather, concentrates on how the ambivalence that enables racism to be perpetuated from one generation to the next  is also exploited by ideological organizations like the American Communist Party (referred to in the novel as The Brotherhood), which serves to reinforce the vicious cycle of invisibility. According  to Wolfe, the novel "stands as a quintessential expression of New Liberalism--the anti-Stalinism of the post-World War II American left," and is not simply an attack on racism, but also  serves as a critique of the hypocritical philosophies of Karl Marx and Friedrich Hegel, which offer enticing alternatives to racism, but are, in actual fact, every bit as forged in  prejudice as American democracy. Wolfes essay is subdivided into a trio of sections. First, it offers a comparative analysis of Invisible Man and Hegels "Phenomenology of the Spirit"  in order to frame his examination/criticism of the novel within the historical context of the "Western intellectual tradition," with which Ellisons narrator is at odds for it has sown the  seeds of racism (621). Next, Wolfe narrows his critical observations to the post-World War II time period in which the novel was written. It should be remembered that