Battle Royal

The narrator's story is symbolic of black man's struggle in America and his own struggle to find dignity because he and many others are constantly battling other forces. These forces include whites, white society, racism, and a deep history in America of a separation between blacks and whites. Unfortunately, America has had a long history of slavery along with racism. Only in the last 50 years has it gotten better for blacks. One example of this in the story is that the narrator has to go through so much to get what he longs for, an education or a scholarship. He gets what he wants but not without paying a severe price for it- constant humiliation. The question then becomes, is him getting this scholarship really worth it? Think about it. Even after he goes to college and gets "a higher education" he will still be humiliated, intimidated, laughed at, harassed, and whites claiming he's being "smart with them" for talking a certain way and therefore risking his life just because he's black...
The title, "Battle Royal" reflects the meaning of the story by playing with the meaning of words. To get where the narrator wants to go, he has to "battle" all the way. And in using the word "royal" the reader assumes that the battle is important and of great significance, in other words- "the royal battle".
-katthegreat08