In Ralph Ellison’s Invisible Man, the narrator goes through many obstacles throughout the novel.  The narrator realizes that Tod Clifton, an intelligent black youth leader has disappeared. He later finds Clifton, in Harlem selling Sambo dolls right before he was shot in front of the narrators eyes. The narrator gives a speech during Clifton’s funeral, but doesn’t have much to say. “His name was Clifton, Tod Clifton, and, like any man he was bore of woman to live awhile and fall and die… His name was Clifton and for a while he lived among us…” (Ellison 455) from the shock that Clifton is dead, the narrator keeps repeating himself throughout his speech. The brotherhood becomes furious because the narrator is speaking during a funeral that he has no permission to speak at. This incident later leads Ras the Exhorter, a black nationalist leader, to also become furious with him and complains about the brotherhood and their failure on Clifton’s funeral. Ras later sends men to find and beat up the narrator for the failure on Clifton’s funeral. The narrator realizes the intentions that Ras has towards those of the brotherhood and himself which forces the narrator to disguise himself. Throughout the novel the narrator is called different names as though he doesn’t have his own identity. In the beginning of chapter twenty three, a new identity is given to the narrator, Rinehart. The narrator doesn’t know who this Rinehart person is but soon learns from those around him that he is a very known person throughout the neighborhood. At first the narrator was waiting for a cab and felt as there were some people watching him. the narrator waits for a cab but the cab never arrives. The narrator then sees three men with suits and wearing dark glasses. The narrator then goes into a store and buys the darkest glasses to blend into those around him. As the narrator continues to walk through Harlem, some people approach him and call him Rinehart. As the Narrator says: “Who was this Rinehart and what was he putting down? I’d have to learn more about him to avoid further misidentifications…”. (Ellison 484) At first the narrator was confused as to why they would call him Rinehart but later enjoys it and plays along. Even with the narrator finding his own identity, he was interested into Rinehart and who he was. Although the Narrator is trying to blend into those that are around him, now that he is wearing the dark glasses it’s impossible for him to become the “Invisible Man” knowing he looks exactly like Rinehart.

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