Invisible Man
Chapter Three
On the way to the Golden Day, they are accosted on the way by a major. Mr. Norton is embarrassed by this. The narrator understands how the officer works, he then introduces Mr. Norton as General Pershing, a war General. He then explains to Mr. Norton that the men are shell-shocked vets.
The breathing of Mr. Norton is of great concern to the narrator. He then rushes to get him a drink and to get to the Golden Day before the Crazy hour. He knows that girls are visiting the patients today, so there might be rowdiness at the place.
When they get to the place, the narrator leaves Mr. Norton outside and rushes in to request a double shot of whiskey from Halley, the bartender. Halley refuses to sell alcohol outside the premises so Mr. Norton must be brought in. The narrator is surprised by the caliber of the patients in the bar which include the lawyer, doctors, and teachers.
The narrator rushes back to Mr. Norton, and he then discovers that Mr. Norton is unconscious. He runs back to the bar to pressure Halley to sell the drink that Mr. Norton is dying but Halley insists that Mr. Norton should be brought in.
Sylvester, one of the guys, offers to assist the narrator in bringing Mr. Norton in. They drag Mr. Norton into the bar unconscious. Someone in the bar mistakes Mr. Norton for Thomas Jefferson. Another person also slaps him on his face.
The narrator forces some whiskey into Mr. Norton and he wakes up and asks questions about the Golden Day. One of the vets tells him about his theory on the cycle of racial power and concludes that the black man will have his day again.
Supercargo, who is the attendant in charge, comes from the upstairs room and requests to know what is going on. He calls for orderliness when he hears that there is a white man in the bar. Some of the patients run up to Supercargo upstairs to tackle him, but they are defeated by Supercargo who deals with them and kicks them back downstairs.
This event resulted in pandemonium. Liquor bottles are thrown at the balcony and one hits Supercargo in the face. He is then dragged downstairs and they start kicking him. The ribs are already bleeding.
They also pour beer on him. His body is soaked with beer and blood. They left him at the bar. While the riot goes on, the narrator loses sight of Mr. Norton but later finds him lying under a stairwell. He is unconscious again. He continues shaking him, panicking.
A short man then comes and assists the narrator in carrying Mr. Norton upstairs. The man happens to be a medical practitioner and a patient at the Golden Day.
He runs some tests on Mr. Norton. During this period, some prostitutes gather around Mr. Norton discussing him, and describing the size of his balls. The narrator then rushes downstairs to get some ice for Mr. Norton so that he can wake up for them to go back to school.
Mr. Norton later wakes up and the narrator is worried about what Mr. Norton will think about where he has brought him to. He gives him water to drink. He then discovers that Mr. Norton is impressed with the vet’s accurate diagnosis.
The vet then explains that he studied in college to become a physician. He says that during the war, he lived in France with the Army Medical Corps and remained there to study and practice medicine after the war.
Mr. Norton is interested in listening to the story further, but the narrator wants him back to school. The vet also wants Mr. Norton to listen to his story. The vet continued that he got ulcers and realized that no matter what scientific breakthrough he made, he would not get the proper respect he deserved. In this instance, the narrator is afraid of how the vet talks to Mr. Norton freely.
The vet also comments on the narrator blaming him for his invisibility and says that he has all the senses but cannot appreciate his story. He says that it is normal as Mr. Norton and the narrator arrive at the Golden Day together because neither of them is aware of the actual circumstances. Mr. Norton now says they should leave when he feels irritated with what the vet is saying.
The place is still rowdy and with the appearance of the narrator and Mr. Norton, it becomes rowdier. The narrator is able to get out of the place but finds out that Mr. Norton is not with him. Halley then pushes Mr. Norton out unconscious again. Halley thinks that he is dead, but he later regains consciousness.
Chapter Four
The narrator drives Mr. Norton back to school. He feels that Mr. Norton will give bad reports about him to Dr. Bledsoe who is the head of the school. He then blames Jim Trueblood for what befalls Mr. Norton which results in taking him to the Golden Day.
He pitied Mr. Norton and also thought of the humiliation he was going to suffer when he got back to school. He hopes to apologize to Mr. Norton. When they get to Mr. Norton’s quarter, he apologizes to him and tells the narrator to go to Dr. Bledsoe.
When the narrator gets to Dr. Bledsoe in fear; the moment the man sees him, he knows something is wrong. He then briefs Dr. Bledsoe about what happened, Dr. Bledsoe is infuriated that Mr. Norton was taken to the slave quarters where Trueblood lives.
Dr. Bledsoe says he hopes the narrator had more sense than to do what Mr. Norton wanted, he says the narrator should have shown him what the narrator wanted him to see, not what Mr. Norton wanted to see. He then rushes to meet Mr. Norton while the narrator follows him.
Dr. Bledsoe made his unreserved apologies to Mr. Norton for the experience he passed through and promised him that the narrator would be seriously dealt with. Mr. Norton then responds that the narrator is not to be blamed. The narrator then appreciates Mr. Norton for the kind response. Dr. Bledsoe orders the narrator to go to the chapel.
The girl working as a receptionist asks the narrator to deliver a coded message to Jack Matson, his neighbor in the form who is her boyfriend. The message said, “The grass is green.” The narrator assumes that it is a signal for a booty call.
The narrator is worried a lot about his fate in the school because nobody can support him on what happened. He goes back to his dorm room and stays, checking his roommate who asks whether he will eat but declines. Freshman knocks on the door and delivers a message from Dr. Bledsoe to the narrator that he should meet him at Rabbit Hall where Mr. Norton stays.
When the narrator gets to Rabbit Hall, Dr. Bledsoe has left and Mr. Norton says he has explained to Mr. Bledsoe that the narrator is innocent. Mr. Norton is to leave that night and the narrator expresses his hope that he will know more about his fate when he meets Dr. Bledsoe again. He is worried and pessimistic about the possible outcome of his meeting with Dr. Bledsoe.