Voodoo In American Culture Essay

The “Voodoo” doll is one of the first items associated with the religion when it is discussed in American pop culture. With a prick of a needle, a Voodoo doll is a common figure identified with revenge. Much like the Voodoo doll, there are many elements of this religion that have been convoluted to fit into mainstream American society. The Voodoo doll serves as an exceptional example of how Voodoo’s principles have been so reduced, they have lost their meaning, all in the effort to make it a more appealing and marketable religion. Similar to the Voodoo doll, there are many facets of this religion that have been utilized by film in order to characterize this religion as one of mischief.
Imagery, rhetoric, and representation have an incredible

How is the media’s representation of this religion accentuating historical stereotypes about Voodoo, its practices, and its followers? Within this cinematic study, I hope to explore how the depiction of Voodoo has strayed from its original values. The research I will conduct examines the American reaction to Voodoo and how this speaks to a larger issue of anti-black imagery. This research is invaluable to the sociological and cultural anthropology domains. Looking at this particular set of questions, the information I will gather is significant to determining how American film audience consumes this religion, and in turn, how this is affecting portrayal of a historically stimagified religion. My contemporary historians that study this issue are focused on a time period that is no longer relevant to society. By looking at a recent film, Princess and the Frog, I will be able to see how this imagery and rhetoric has evolved over time to reiterate the stereotypes associated with Voodoo. It is critical that research on this subject is kept current because our society is expanding this stigma of Voodoo to anti-black imagery seen in the