Having published only one novel, Ralph Ellison gained and retained a reputation as one of America's premier authors. Though urged by his admirers and by critics to write more, at the time of his death in 1994 Ellison's renown rested upon a novel published in the 1950s. He remained at the peak of his eminence, acclaimed principally for this single work. But this astonishing book was Invisible Man, one of the cornerstones of modern American literature. In these interviews the author of this masterpiece proves himself intellectually vigorous, witty, and sometimes combative. These conversations about himself and about literature show him to be strongly independent, whether his remarks consider race, art, writing, or culture.