"Life is to be lived, not controlled; and humanity is won by continuing to play in face of certain defeat....Because, Mr. Norton, if you don't know where you are, you probably don't know who you are." (Ellison, 577)
This statement made by the Narrator was the moment during reading where I really felt that he had come as close as he could get to self-realization. He started interpreting his grandfather's advice correctly and realized that by moving so much he could never reach that self-realization he was looking for because it was simply trying to catch up to him every time he moved. He had to remember where he came from and its importance to understand his self.
What Ellison has said has also helped me in my quest. Going off to college next year is a time where I could begin to forget where I've come from in relation to where I am, like the Narrator. I have no doubt that I could very well end up like the Narrator, feeling invisible. But knowing I can recognize where I am and whether I want it to influence where I came from makes me feel confident in the upcoming transition.
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