Reflections on the Role of the Writer: Awareness of Different

While studying the assigned readings of American writers, the selected African American work, "Battle Royal" by Ralph Ellison, made me aware of how important writers can be in bringing readers an awareness of different. As a Caucasian, even one with a mixed-race sibling, I too often forget that my experiences of life in North America are vastly different than that of others, and that my family history contains little of the strife and hardship faced by some.

It's important to connect, even if only occasionally, to the different perspectives present even in our immediate worlds. When we do, we can gain a renewed appreciation for our own circumstances, and a better understanding of those around us. While I found the piece disturbing—it made me angry on so many levels to read of such inhumane treatment to other human beings—I also found myself wondering what it must have been like to go through such an experience, and to be treated that way. I do not think I would be as happy as the character in the tale to get the reward of a scholarship after such abuse, but then again, I haven't lived my whole life under the conditions depicted in the story. Yet, simply thinking about what it must be like, even if I can’t really grasp the full impact, opened my mind to possibilities I hadn’t considered before for my own writing, and gave me an appreciation for those like Ellison, who managed to accomplish so much even with the racism and segregation he lived with.