Racial Is An Everyday Battle .
"Battle Royal" by Ralph Ellison talks about a black boy trapped in a world of cruelty and social inequality with nobody to guide him. He is being ripped apart in two directions by the advice of his grandfather and by the wishes of the white society. While attempting to satisfy their wishes, he forgets that his own dignity is most important in life.
In the briefcase which was given to him as an award read, "To Whom It May Concern, Keep this Nigger-Boy Running" (Ellison 588). This message means no matter what, just give the nigger boy enough to keep him going in life because he is nothing. The reasons why because he lives in a society that does not except him as a person, but rather more like an animal that does not disserve any human rights. It took the black boy a while to learn the meaning of his grandfather's advice. He did not understand his grandfather when he referred to " the good fight" (Ellison 578). In trying to impress the high standing white members of his community, however, he allowed them to take advantage of his ambition. He wanted to impress them because he felt that they were the ones who mattered. His grandfather said, "Learn it to the younguns" his advice meant to put on a mask when with the whites (Ellison 578). The white's opinion did matter because it was them who controlled society and them who determined the quality of life in the black community. The agreeing and sucking up that was done had to be fake. .
In conclusion, I think this battle raises is the mental struggle that our people need to overcome. In order for the boy to be allowed to give his graduation speech, he needs to overcome an obstacle by participating in the "battle royal". This fight is one of the emotional struggles that he needs to conquer. His grandfather said, "Live with your head in the lion's mouth overcome'em with yeses, undermine'em with grins, agree'em to death.
