A Follow Up to Yams

Earlier in the semester when we were discussing Things Fall Apart by Achebe, I made a post about the importance of yams in the novel and how Kendrick Lamar still uses these yams as a symbol of power and influence in his song, King Kunta. While reading my independent study novel, Invisible Man, I noticed that yams play a really important role in the novel. When the narrator is struggling to find his identity along with his cultural identity, he comes across a yam vendor on the streets of New York. The narrator earlier in the novel has been embarrassed to do stereotypical things, but after having a crisis decides to buy yams and eat them on the streets of the city. This is the first time in the novel the narrator has not been embarrassed of his cultural identity. In Achebe's novel, he uses the yams as symbol for power and respect within Igbo culture. In Ellison's novel, however, he uses yams as a symbol and representation of black culture. Yams are clearly a significant symbol throughout literature and are still used as a symbol to this day.