Invisible

The exposition of Invisible introduces the internal and interpersonal conflicts of the story’s main characters and foreshadows the circumstances that will eventually bring them together, despite their differences. The opening scene immediately establishes the disconnect between the students and the adults in the room, as both the interviewer and the principal proceed to stereotype and patronize them when questioning them about how they helped Celeste and her daughter, Lisa. The interviewer, who is white and American, assumes that the five students are all of Mexican heritage despite the fact that only Sara is from Mexico. He assumes that they identify with one another because they all share a single culture, and even his understanding of what such a monoculture might be like is grossly overgeneralized, as is evident when he awkwardly asks, “Well, did you all come together because you’re all… um, Mexicanos?” (6). In this moment, Miguel’s irritation is clear, for a close-up portrait depicts him with his arms crossed and a look of disgust on his face. The others act as though they’ve heard such things before, but it is still clear that the process of constantly reminding people of their many cultural differences takes its toll on them. This scene therefore introduces the theme of Unseen Pressures on the Children of Immigrant Families, for there are expectations put on these students from all sides. From the school staff, they are bombarded by the expectation that they should all exhibit specific cultural behaviors and speak Spanish equally fluently.

Ironically, neither the principal nor the interviewer knows any Spanish at all, and they must leave the translating entirely up to the Spanish teacher. They also patronize the students by refusing to tell them why they are being interviewed and by drawing attention to the fact that some of them haven’t yet learned English. As George begins the students’ collective story, this pattern is reinforced by the fact that Mrs. Grouser also treats the students poorly based on her own assumptions about the children of immigrant families; in fact, she even goes so far as to berate them both for only knowing Spanish and in George’s case, for not knowing enough Spanish to suit her own needs.

Likewise, George also feels the Unseen Pressures on the Children of Immigrant Families in his daily scholastic life, for he is expected to always perform well in school and to demonstrate exemplary behavior. This is in part due to his own desire to receive a high school recommendation from Principal Powell, and it is also a result of his reputation as a gifted student who is expected to excel in academics. Just as the other students are worn down by the expectations and pressures placed upon them, George is also worn down by these expectations, which are heightened by the fact that he feels the need to hide his family’s current financial difficulties from people at school.

The students’ early interactions among themselves also reveal that they silently place a wide range of pressures and expectations upon each other, especially when it comes to their differing skill levels in Spanish. This dynamic becomes particularly prominent when Mrs. Grouser tasks George with translating her instructions into Spanish for the other students; when George admits that he does not speak much Spanish, the illustrations make it clear that some of the other students judge him for his lack of fluency.

Ironically, despite his frustration at being unfairly judged, George is also guilty of judging others, for he immediately pegs the community service group members based on overt stereotypes. Because of his shame at being accused of having a crush, he also hurts Sara on two occasions when he acts embarrassed to be seen with her. It is not until much later in the graphic novel that he finally begins to accept his own Puerto Rican heritage and embrace it more fully.

In another example of the pressures that children from immigrant families can experience, Miguel must also endure his father’s expectation that he will excel at baseball in order to gain access to a college education one day: a huge weight to place on the shoulders of a middle-school student. This moment of character development serves to highlight a common conflict faced by immigrants, for Miguel’s father tells his son that he will end up in a low-paying job if he doesn’t work hard enough in school. With the burden of this pressure, just like George and the others, Miguel struggles to find his own place in the tumultuous social landscape of this American middle school.

As the story begins delving into the complex politics governing Individual Identity and Group Solidarity, the artistic and literary styles employed by the novel’s author, illustrator, and color artist help to depict the shifting moods, encourage bilingualism, and bring vibrancy to a narrative that focuses primarily upon fostering strong dialogue and achieving conflict resolution. The opening page features a splash of the school, indicating the prominence of this setting as the novel’s primary focal point, as well as its overbearing influence on the students’ lives. It is the place where the students meet, where they experience discrimination, and where they will eventually work together to engage in an act of Kindness Inspired by Adversity. The solid color backgrounds of many of the illustrations also emphasize the different moods and tones of each scene. For example, when George first enters the principal’s office, unaware of why he is there, the background drips lines of pink and purple. This serves as a nod to an anime technique and indicates George’s mounting anxiety. The graphic novel also relies on conventions commonly used in comic books, such as dynamic insertions of onomatopoeia to imbue the story with the dimension of sound, along with the story, and the use of emanata to depict tension, motion, and emotion. (“Emanata” collectively refer to artists’ use of symbols such as tear drops, question marks, or motion lines near characters’ faces to imply and illustrate specific emotions; this technique is frequently used in both anime and graphic novels.)

In a stylistic choice that has become widely praised, Gonzalez also takes a unique approach by including bilingual Spanish and English translations for the dialogue that occurs between the students. This choice serves two purposes, for it characterizes the students while also making Invisible fully accessible to readers of both languages. As a beneficial side effect, speakers of one language can also choose to compare the translations and glean additional vocabulary in the language with which they are less familiar.

Finally, Gonzalez plays with the literary device of the unreliable narrator by creating a “patchwork” narrative in which the children interject and add to each other’s stories. This also allows for additional character development and interaction—a dynamic that is shown when Miguel interrupts George and accuses him of telling the story incorrectly. This argument continues throughout the novel as each student steps in to narrate their share of the story. Such interjections serve to remind readers of the larger “frame” story while also allowing each character the space to find their own voice and tell their side of the story.