The Meaning of Mr. Norton and Destiny in Invisible ManIn his novel Invisible Man, Ralph Ellison developed the invisible man using the actions of other characters . Through his prophecy, Mr. Norton has ensured the fate of the narrator, himself, and all the people in the novel. Mr. Norton foreshadows that the narrator will determine his fate, but Mr. Norton does not realize that the determined fate is universal: that every being is invisible and without this knowledge, people are blinded by their own invisibility. The narrator manages to come to terms with this self-realization at the end of the novel and, in doing so, has become an individual and a free man of society, which in essence is what Mr. Norton had. first symbolized in the narrator's mind. Ultimately, however, Mr. Norton will symbolize a blind and shameful society to which the narrator becomes invisible. The narrator was only able to become invisible thanks to Mr. Norton's foreshadowing; since it was he who guided the narrator towards the North and accompanied his destiny. Norton, a wealthy white Southern trustee, claims that the narrator and blacks "were somehow closely linked" to his fate. This man contributed funds to the college as a tribute for his late daughter, which surprised the narrator, because this white man opened his heart to him. "It was something I had never done; it was dangerous. First, it was dangerous if you felt that way about anything, because then you would never understand it or something or someone would take it away from you, then it was dangerous because no one understood you and they laughed and thought I was crazy,” (Ellison 43 ).The narrator is afraid to open up for a...... middle of paper ......www.english.upeen.edu/~afilreis /50s/ bellow-on-ellison.htmlEllison Ralph. The invisible man. New York: The Modern Library, 1994. Fabre, Michel. "In Precious by Ralph Ellison." Unpublished manuscript. 1996. November 30., 1988.