In the opening paragraph of Ralph Ellison's Invisible Man, the protagonist introduces readers to what he means when he calls himself invisible: the protagonist is seen only for the color of his skin, and therefore grouped into a general African-American population. In grouping the protagonist, white people not only refuse to see him but also forbid him from possessing an individual identity. Using Ellison's prologue to Invisible Man, Louis Armstrong's "Black and Blue" (referenced in the prologue), and further intertextual allusions, this essay argues that jazz music allows Ellison's protagonist to separate himself from the general African-American population. American and maintain its individuality; jazz music shows him that he already accepts his invisibility and that he listens to lyrics differently than others. The broader implication is that, by listening to jazz music, an invisible man is forced to act. He learns to exploit his invisibility to undermine the culture that oppresses him and be seen. For starters, Armstrong's version of "Black and Blue" — originally written about a dark-skinned woman who laments the infidelity of her lighter-skinned lover — transcends a person's microhistory and works to poignantly address racism and its effects on African-American macrohistory (Alger). Through key diction choices, including the repetition of the words “old” and “all,” Armstrong describes the omnipresent force that is racism and how it has affected the African-American community for generations (1-2; 3-4 ). In doing so, the singer turns a song about infidelity into an anthem that directly comments on white people cheating on African Americans. As such, Armstrong's "Black and Blue" aims to unite African-A......paper......and jazz music. He begins by playing music while eating his favorite dessert of vanilla ice cream and slee gin (7). The protagonist describes the scene as follows: “I pour the red liquid onto the white mound, watching it glisten and the steam rise as Louis bends the military instrument into a beam of lyrical sound” (7). The color images, of a white mound and red liquid, function to represent mass white genocide; the mound serves as a symbol of the decimated race of the people, and the red liquid serves as a symbol of their bloodshed. This scene satirizes Armstrong and the African-American population, who are simply driven to have fun or are unified by jazz music. In a different way, the protagonist thinks only of action when he hears Armstrong singing “Black and Blue”. He confirms this point when he refers to Armstrong's musical instrument as a “military” instrument”.” (7).