Question

In Invisible Man, What is the legend of how Dr. Bledsoe first came to the college? What is the symbolic connection between young Bledsoe’s first job and his current position?

Answer 1

Answer:

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Study Guide

Dr. Bledsoe in Invisible Man

Dr. Bledsoe

Dr. Bledsoe is the president of the narrator's college, and the narrator looks up to him until he turns out to be a big fat phony. While Dr. Bledsoe preaches a doctrine of hard work and humility as the key to black advancement, he retains his power as president of the college by pandering to white people's expectations of how he should behave—he scrapes, bows, and all the while deceives the powerful white men upon whose patronage his power depends: