Ralph Ellison "A Party Down at the Square"

I chose the Ralph Ellison section because I really enjoy his writing style.  He writes in such a vivid and uninhibited way that his writings have this gut wrenching quality.  No other scene from literature has stuck with me the way some of the scenes from Invisible Man have stuck with me.  I read this novel about five years ago and I can still remember the way I felt when reading about the underground fight the narrator is brought to by a group of white men.  The way that Ellison is able to transport the reader to a specific place and time and make them actually feel an emotional reaction to the situation is what makes him a great writer.

I was reminded of Ellison's gift for imagery when I read "A Party Down at the Square".  The way Ellison so vividly describes what is being done to this man is hauntingly beautiful.  While reading this short story, you can actually feel the heat of the flames and see the red glistening blood on the victim's black skin.  I don't mean to glorify the act that Ellison is portraying, for it actually sickened me to think that this has actually happened in the past.  Rather, what I mean to emphasize is Ellison's amazing talent.  For just by using words he has painted this vivid scene for the reader, so vivid in fact that it makes one almost sick to read it.  We have been transported through his writing and are now able to use all five of our senses to understand the scene that he is creating.