battle royal symbolism

In the story "Battle Royal" by Ralph Ellison, he uses a white, naked, exotic dancer as a big symbol in the story. Tattooed on the girl that the narrator is directing his attention to is an American Flag. The symbol of the American flag on the naked blonde girl relates to the many themes of the story such as the struggle for equality. To understand how the American flag plays its role in the story …

…when the group of black guys got in the boxing ring and had a big "battle", but there is another way the author could have gotten the title. It could have been from the struggle of the narrator to become equal among everybody else and maybe, even to strive in that position. The narrator doesn't win the battle in the ring but he is one step closer to winning the bigger battle, to become equal.