Part 1 of Essay
Dolls. We are surrounded by dolls. G. I. Joe, Barbie, Polly Pocket, and WWF action figures. Prior to our plasticene friends we had paper dolls, marionettes, and delicately featured porcelain dolls. We are strangely fascinated by these cold, lifeless objects that look so much like ourselves. Children clutch them and create ....

Part 2 of Essay
.... of doll imagery comes very early in the novel with the Battle Royal scene. The nude, blonde woman is described as having hair "that was yellow like that of a circus kewpie doll" (19). Ellison draws a very strong connection between the plight of the Negro man and the white woman. The fact that they are both shown as puppets or dolls in the work is no coincidence. The woman and the African are merely show pieces for the white men in the novel. Tod Clifton's dancing Sambo dolls are the most striking example of ....