In Ellison's the Invisible Man, the eponymous narrator is faced with adversity throughout his journey of self-discovery. First, when he is forced to leave his college and move to New York City. He again struggles when he is blown up in a chemical explosion at a paint factory, leaving him jobless and nowhere to go. Finally, when the Brotherhood kicks him out and he does not know what his future holds, he must decide how he will respond to his hardships. 
The Invisible Man is not treated well during his time in the South and not treated well in the North either. "I was pulled this way and that for longer than I can remember. And my problem was that I always tried to go in everyone's way but my own. I have also been called one thing and then another while no one really wished to hear what I called myself." The narrator must decide who he is and what he aspires to be, rather than listen to what outside sources tell him he should be. By choosing to overcome his struggles, he develops into the man he is supposed to be. The adversity the Invisible Man faces is first outside people making him decide who he wants to be, but eventually it turns into an inner struggle within the narrator. He must fight himself to decide who he will become. The inner battle to find oneself is much needed and helps the character move forward and eventually overcome the outside forces which were influencing him. He chooses to stay true to who he is and what he believes in, rather than buy into other people's ideas. He overcomes the outside voices and listens to his own.
