Invisible Man

by

Ralph Ellison

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Mr. Norton Character Analysis

Mr. Norton is a white trustee of the college from Boston. Norton believes that though his donations he understands the black community, but in reality he is clueless, a fact that is exposed by his experience with Trueblood and at the Golden Day. He is obsessed with his “destiny,” believing that he is responsible for the fate of young black men like the narrator. Mr. Norton also has a strange obsession with his daughter, a facet of his personality that is revealed when listens to Trueblood’s story with a little too much excitement.

Mr. Norton Quotes in Invisible Man

The Invisible Man quotes below are all either spoken by Mr. Norton or refer to Mr. Norton. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Race and Racism Theme Icon
).
Chapter 25 Quotes

I looked at Ras on his horse and at their handful of guns and recognized the absurdity of the whole night and of the simple yet confoundingly complex arrangement of hope and desire, fear and hate, that had brought me here still running, and knowing now who I was and where I was and knowing too that I had no longer to run for or from the Jacks and the Emersons and the Bledsoes and Nortons, but only from their confusion, impatience, and refusal to recognize the beautiful absurdity of their American identity and mine.

Related Characters: The Narrator (speaker), Dr. Bledsoe, Mr. Norton, Brother Jack, Ras the Exhorter, Young Emerson
Page Number: 559
Explanation and Analysis:
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Mr. Norton Quotes in Invisible Man

The Invisible Man quotes below are all either spoken by Mr. Norton or refer to Mr. Norton. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Race and Racism Theme Icon
).
Chapter 25 Quotes

I looked at Ras on his horse and at their handful of guns and recognized the absurdity of the whole night and of the simple yet confoundingly complex arrangement of hope and desire, fear and hate, that had brought me here still running, and knowing now who I was and where I was and knowing too that I had no longer to run for or from the Jacks and the Emersons and the Bledsoes and Nortons, but only from their confusion, impatience, and refusal to recognize the beautiful absurdity of their American identity and mine.

Related Characters: The Narrator (speaker), Dr. Bledsoe, Mr. Norton, Brother Jack, Ras the Exhorter, Young Emerson
Page Number: 559
Explanation and Analysis: