In 1952, Ralph Ellison introduced a new kind of black protagonist: The Invisible Man was educated and self-aware, and had a broad intellectual curiosity. He was invisible, Ellison wrote, but not insubstantial. Today, Ellison's legacy is potent and still controversial. Arnold Rampersad is a leading scholar and biographer of both Langston Hughes and Jackie Robinson. He has written a new biography of the complex writer.
Arnold Rampersad, author of Ralph Ellison: A Biography
Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.