Dr. Bledsoe Character Analysis in Invisible Man

Dr. Bledsoe is the president of the all-black college that the narrator attends in his youth. The narrator is extremely impressed with Dr. Bledsoe for reaching the top of the black community, and Bledsoe is known far and wide as a statesman and educator. Outwardly subservient to whites, Bledsoe prides himself on being the black man who can tell white men what to think. Ultimately, Bledsoe is more concerned with holding onto his small enclave of power than anything else.

Dr. Bledsoe Quotes in Invisible Man

The Invisible Man quotes below are all either spoken by Dr. Bledsoe or refer to Dr. Bledsoe. 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:

The white folk tell everybody what to think—except men like me. I tell them; that’s my life, telling white folk how to think about the things I know about.

Related Characters: (speaker)

Page Number and Citation: 143

Explanation and Analysis:

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: (speaker), , , , ,

Page Number and Citation: 559

Explanation and Analysis:

Dr. Bledsoe Character Timeline in Invisible Man

The timeline below shows where the character Dr. Bledsoe appears in Invisible Man. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.

...the Golden Day. They stop at Mr. Norton’s rooms and Mr. Norton asks for Dr. Bledsoe, the school president. The narrator tries to apologize to Mr. Norton, but Mr. Norton is... (full context)

Walking to Dr. Bledsoe’s office, the narrator reflects that Bledsoe is everything he wishes to become: successful, well off,... (full context)

Dr. Bledsoe rushes to Mr. Norton’s quarters with the narrator behind him. Dr. Bledsoe, after composing himself,... (full context)

...I.” Filled with anxiety, the narrator returns to his dorm room, unable to understand Dr. Bledsoe’s un-humble words. (full context)

...him and heads off to dinner. A small student appears and tells him that Dr. Bledsoe wishes to see him now in Rabb Hall, where Mr. Norton is staying. (full context)

...narrator knocks and enters Mr. Norton’s room. Mr. Norton greets him, telling him that Dr. Bledsoe had to leave, and to see him in his office after chapel. Mr. Norton reassures... (full context)

Up on stage, Dr. Bledsoe is attending to the gathered millionaire donors. The narrator notices that Bledsoe is able to... (full context)

...girl singing a cappella in the rafters. The black man on stage other than Dr. Bledsoe, later named as the Reverend Barbee, a fat and ugly man with black-lensed glasses, gets... (full context)

...holding the audience in rapture. He recalls a tour of several states, during which Dr. Bledsoe was present as well. The Founder was still spreading his message of freedom and cooperation.... (full context)

...his deathbed on the train, and that with his last words the Founder told Dr. Bledsoe that he must “Lead them the rest of the way.” (full context)

Barbee tells of the funeral and aftermath of the Founder’s passing. Dr. Bledsoe presided over the events, taking up the Founder’s mantle. The “sorrowful train” toured the Founder’s... (full context)

...speech. As he wipes his eyes, he hears a commotion. Barbee has tripped over Dr. Bledsoe’s legs, and two white trustees give him his cane. The narrator realizes for the first... (full context)

...service ends soon after, and the narrator realizes it is time to go see Dr. Bledsoe. He is sure Bledsoe will be unsympathetic after Barbee’s rousing sermon. (full context)

...chapel to their dorms, talking about Barbee’s speech. He enters the building that contains Dr. Bledsoe’s office, but panics and rushes back out into the night. He follows a group of... (full context)

In Dr. Bledsoe’s office, Bledsoe begins softly. The narrator hopes that Mr. Norton has helped soften his punishment.... (full context)

Bledsoe criticizes the narrator for his stupidity, telling him that as the driver, he should have... (full context)

Bledsoe asks the narrator about the ex-doctor, and the narrator repeats part of his story, including... (full context)

Bledsoe tells the narrator that he has disgraced the college and the entire race. He says... (full context)

At first Bledsoe seems enraged by the narrator’s show of disobedience, but he then becomes merely amused. He... (full context)

Bledsoe continues, telling the narrator that he is “nobody,” and that white men like Mr. Norton... (full context)

After this, Bledsoe calls the narrator a “fighter,” and that he likes his spirit. He tells the narrator... (full context)

The narrator leaves Bledsoe’s office, barely able to walk after the news that he is to leave school. The... (full context)

The next day, the narrator returns to Bledsoe’s office and tells him that he is already prepared to depart. He apologizes again, and... (full context)

...celebrity with his knowledge of New York. He is excited about his letters from Dr. Bledsoe, and imagines himself acting sophisticated in his business meetings. (full context)

...Bible. The Bible reminds the narrator of the home, and he thinks both of Dr. Bledsoe and his father’s attempt to establish family prayer. (full context)

The narrator is proud of the letters from Dr. Bledsoe, and wishes he could show them to someone. He plans to look for a job... (full context)

...that he is part of a plan that he doesn’t understand. He imagines that Dr. Bledsoe and Mr. Norton are somehow behind his lack of success in finding a job. The... (full context)

The narrator thinks about Dr. Bledsoe, noting that the students never know how he acts when he’s away from campus. He... (full context)

When asked, the narrator tells young Emerson that his career goal is to become Dr. Bledsoe’s assistant. He asks the narrator how many letters of introduction he was given, to which... (full context)

...way, young Emerson opens the letter of introduction and lets the narrator read it. Dr. Bledsoe’s letter instructs Mr. Emerson to mislead the narrator, allowing him to hope that he will... (full context)

...everyone else seems to have one. At home, the narrator is filled with anger toward Bledsoe. He begins to laugh and plot his revenge, telling himself that this time he will... (full context)

...replies that he does not know him. The narrator jokes that Mr. Norton and Dr. Bledsoe are old friends of his. He is surprised by his new way of speaking to... (full context)

In the lobby, the narrator hears a man holding forth whom he mistakes for Dr. Bledsoe. Instinctively, he empties a spittoon over the man’s head. The narrator immediately realizes that the... (full context)

...are ashamed of their own culture, even the things that they like. He imagines Dr. Bledsoe’s shame if the narrator were to accuse him of being a “chitterling eater.” He resolves... (full context)

...course and deciding that he’s not really sure what it means. He then thinks of Bledsoe and Norton, and laughs that their efforts have made him even more important and dangerous... (full context)

...a prisoner of all his past enemies, including Ras, Brother Jack, Mr. Norton, and Dr. Bledsoe. The narrator tells his captors that he is done running. The captors castrate the narrator... (full context)

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Dr. Bledsoe Character Analysis

Dr. Bledsoe Quotes in Invisible Man

Dr. Bledsoe Character Timeline in Invisible Man

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