Every time I googled ‘Invisible Man’, option for ‘The Invisible Man‘ popped up. I read a summary of ‘The Invisible Man’, and it sounded interesting, so I thought it would be fun to imagine these two characters meeting. This short story is very short, so I hope it makes sense. The picture I found is from the film adaptation of ‘The Invisible Man’, so it is different from the way I described him. Enjoy!
The Man who has no name sat at the bar one night. He does not have a name, because he is invisible. If no one can see him, then why would he need a name? He is not really invisible though, he only believes he is because that is what the world tells him. He especially does not go out at night, because that is when the world refuses to see him the most. 
He picked up a paper and read as he sipped his whiskey. The door opened across the bar and a strange looking man lumbered inside. He had on a heavy coat, a top hat, a thick layer of scarves, cloves, sunglasses, and bandages across his nose. The Man studied the stranger carefully, and noticed that his nose looked like it could fall off any second.
“I would like a beer please.” he said when he sat at the bar.
The Man went back to reading the news paper and drinking his whiskey. He did not look at the other man again until he elbowed him.
“Oh I’m terribly sorry. I did not see you there.” He said.
“It’s okay.” The Man said as he tried to ignore him.
“I’m Griffin. What is your name?” Griffin asked.
“I’m not sure anymore. I stopped giving it to people when I realized I was invisible.” The Man said. He realized that Griffin did not have any part of skin showing besides his nose. It was warm in the bar, so there was no reason for him to still have so many layers on.
“Oh sure it is! Also, I can see you. You’re not invisible, but if you want to be, I could use you.” Griffin said.
It was then that Griffin sneezed and his nose went flying across the room. He quickly hopped out of his chair and ran across the room to grab his ‘nose’ before anyone stepped on it. He grabbed a roll of tape out of his coat pocket and quickly taped his nose back on his face before anyone noticed.
“Sorry about that. It’s windy outside so my nose got a little loose.” Griffin said.
The Man stared at him. “Your nose just flew off.”
“Yeah… about that, I really am invisible.” Griffin removed his glove to show that there was no hand there. “That’s why I thought I could help you out.”
The Man looked at him skeptically. “Alright, please explain.”
“You’re already living as if you are invisible, so why not come with me? I turned myself invisible. Now I can get anything I want! I don’t know how to turn myself back, so I am stuck like this, but I realized that I love being invisible! You should join me.” Griffin said.
The Man sighed and quickly drank the rest of his whiskey. He sat the empty glass down and let out a refreshed sigh. “You see, that’s the difference between you and I. You had the option to be invisible. I never wanted to be invisible. I grew up being ignored by the white society, and now other people like me have to go about life being ignored all because white people choose not to see them.”
“Sorry. I didn’t mean to offend you.” Griffin said.
“You didn’t. I have a choice in life. I am in college and trying my best to use my voice to speak out for people like me so we can be seen. I know how to fix my invisibility, so I advise you to go back to your lab and try to find a way to reverse your invisibility. I know sometimes you might like being invisible, but no one really wants to go about life not being seen.” The Man laid down some cash for the bartender. “Good luck, Griffin. I hope to see you one day.”
Griffin watched The Man walk out of the bar. He pulled out his notebook from his coat pocket and began to scribble down ideas for a way to turn himself un-invisible.
Very interesting connection between the trope of invisibility in Ellison and the pop-cultural phenomenon that was The Invisible Man. I thought it interesting that Griffin, in the original Wells book, is an expert in optics. It’s almost as though Ellison takes that literal scientific trope of invisibility and transforms it into a socio-cultural trope related to our ability to metaphorically “see” other people. Interesting as well is how, in the The Invisible Man, invisibility breeds violence–something about the corrupting inability to see, and how not being seen, in turn, has its own degrading effects on the “invisible” one. As with other posts, I’d love to hear more about the choices you made here–why, beyond the surface level temptation to sit these two down in a bar, you thought this a particularly apt creative re-framing. I think much of this reasoning would rest on the casual line offered by the metaphorically or socially invisible mane: I hope to see you. There’s something to that–the charge of recognition, rather than the more causual “hey, I”ll see you around–that captures something important about themes of blindness and insight.