American History X is an American film released in 1998, directed by Tony Kaye (his first feature film) starring Edward Norton and Edward Furlong in the leading roles. The film tells the story of the two Vinyard brothers, Derek and Danny and their family living in Venice Beach, California. Derek is a member of a neo-Nazi group and is very involved in the defense of the white race he calls '' higher '' while Danny, younger, admires his brother and just wants to behave like him. Sentenced to three years in prison for the murder of two black criminals trying to steal his car, Derek leaves Danny alone with no marks and under the influence of the neo-Nazi group and its founder Cameron Alexander. Although intelligent but young, Danny seems lost and falls into racist ideas that the milieu he frequents keeps hammering him. It begins to affect his school work where, one day, he writes an essay praising Mein Kampf. Dr. Sweeney, the black Principal of the Venice Beach High School, is almost paternal to Danny and tries to help him despite his xenophobic and dangerous behavior. The film's title is actually the name Dr. Sweeney gives private lessons he decided to teach himself to the young Danny, his first duty being to write a new essay about his brother, which will serve as a guideline to the film. The Principal aims at preventing Danny from having the same fate as his brother and eventually ending up in jail, because he has hope in him and does not want to abandon him in this unhealthy environment, starting with Seth, the former obese friend of Derek, deeply racist and hateful toward African-Americans. After his release from prison, Derek realizes the consequences of his behavior on Danny and in what situation he has left his family. Follows... ... middle of paper ... ...y the sudden death of the little brother, his blood splashing symbolically his essay in the school toilets as a finger salute to this attempt to break this cycle of violence, as if it always had the last word. It's a bit the feeling that the viewer at the end of the film because all the efforts of two brothers to restore order in both of their lives are ruined by this murder committed by a black classmate Danny with whom he had an altercation earlier. The helplessness and the inevitability feelings in a society where hate always ends up winning, but also bitter, seeing the waste of two lives. This is thus a very pessimistic message that is conveyed at the end of the film, contrasting with the encouraging conclusion that Danny writes in his paper with a quote from Abraham Lincoln, full of hope and friendship, and witnessing the progress he has made, although in vain.
I had learned lots of new things this year and especially this semester in U.S. History Since 1877. This history course required all students to complete twenty hours of service learning or to write a term paper. After considering the two options, I decided to give the service learning a chance because I thought it would be an interesting experience. There were a variety of projects to choose from, but I felt that the Sustainability Project was the right fit for me.
The 19th century set the stage for different policies that lead to the extending of America’s power, which is defined as imperialism. Imperialism started for different reasons like the Americans wanting the U.S. to expand or explore the unknown land, or even some feared existing resources in U.S. might eventually dry up. The reason imperialism started doesn’t really matter, but more of what it caused. Imperialism lead to Cuban assistance, the addition of Hawaii and Alaska to America, and Yellow Journalism.
The Asian American history is the history of the ethnic and racial groups in the United States who are of Asian descent. Spickard (2007) shows that the "'Asian American' was an idea created in the 1960s to bring together the Chinese, Japanese, and Filipino Americans for a strategic and political purposes.
“If there is any period one would desire to be born in, is it not the age of Revolution; when the old and the new stand side by side...when the glories of the old can be compensated by the rich possibilities of the new era? This time...is a very good one.”
American History X is a great film that delivers a very strong message about deviant behavior. The story of Derek Vineyard and Danny inspires a lot in terms of changing the deviant behavior through various social concepts. The film shows good application of these theories and it involves the audience into a gripping tale of the change one hoes through to fight deviance and get through the tough journey of correcting oneself and choosing the right path.
Humans have a tendency to to change with time. Human are the most intelligent creatures and can adapt and survive in any environment. People evolve as time changes. It is human nature to want for new things and new change. United States changed a lot since the mid-1400s till today. Some are good, some are bad. But even though change is inevitable, there are lot things that are still common. Some things never change. From the time Columbus discovered America till today, a lot of things have changed. He is known as the father of this country. Even though he didn’t have the end that he deserved, he is the reason for this great country to bloom out of sheer darkness. Great leaders like Thomas Jefferson have played an important role to shape America to what it is right now. John Winthrop was the first governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, the chief figure among the Puritan founders of New England. He was the one to establish a civilized society in the middle of nowhere and help United States bloom. Thomas Jefferson- author of the Declaration of Independence, third president of United States and the founder of the University of Virginia- crafted the freedom of the United States from the brutal British regime. Jefferson was an exceptionally vivid man, and very politically motivated. He helped found our country, nurturing it along in its youthful, tempestuous beginnings, and he struggled to improve upon it in many ways. As time passes, we see a lot of differences and somewhat similarities in racism, gender equality, freedom, religion, slavery, and standard of life and these factors are responsible for the America we stand upon today.
Slavery was one of the most disturbing acts to ever happen to African Americans. It was considered inhumane to the abolitionists in the North. Slave owners and the people of the South would use the Bible to justify their despicable actions. It all began when slaves were brought to the North American colony of Jamestown, Virginia to help with the production of crops such as tobacco. Slaves endured many hardships such as being raped, beaten, and overworked by their slave masters. They were hardly considered as people to the white Americans.
United States (History), story of how the republic developed from colonial beginnings in the 16th century, when the first European explorers arrived, until modern times. As the nation developed, it expanded westward from small settlements along the Atlantic Coast, eventually including all the territory between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans across the middle of the North American continent, as well as two noncontiguous states and a number of territories. At the same time, the population and the economy of the United States grew and changed dramatically. The population diversified as immigrants arrived from all countries of the world. From its beginnings as a remote English colony, the United States has developed the largest economy in the world. Throughout its history, the United States has faced struggles, both within the country—between various ethnic, religious, political, and economic groups—and with other nations. The efforts to deal with and resolve these struggles have shaped the United States of America into the 21st century.
Slavery has been a problem in many societies throughout all of history. It is not always out of prejudice or racism, often times people of the same ethnicity and nationality enslaved each other because of debt or some other reason. However in the instance of the African slave trade, it was without just cause and an extreme display of racism. Slavery in America was a horrible thing. Blacks were subject to overworking and humiliation by white men. Although this was not the case in every slave to master relationship, owning another person as property when they owe you no debt is still degrading, no matter how you treat the person. African Americans have suffered many hardships through slavery, were set free as a result of the Civil War, fought for their rights in the civil rights movement, and are on both sides of the coin when it comes to racism in America.
Giving more insights about how racist ideologies are born or even transmitted from one generation to another is probably the main mission of this movie. This is definitely a movie about racism which does not follow the traditional way Hollywood has of showing the victim’s side of the story. The audience of this movie will be attached, this time, to the racist’s point of view, thanks to the help various film elements and a literary design that are used to force the viewer to empathize and maybe even like the hero/bad guy of the story.
One of the more prevalent themes of this movie is racism, and how prejudicial mindsets ultimately lead to one’s own demise. The movie outlines how racism, among other things, can adversely affect someone’s judgment. After the father died, we see how the family gradually deteriorates financially as well as emotionally after Derek (the older brother played by Edward Norton) turns to a neo Nazi gang for an outlet, which eventually influences his younger brother Danny (played by Edward Furlong) to follow down ...
American History X (1998) illustrates how segregation is aggravated by missing father figures as well as the herd mentality of the characters in the film. German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche’s concept of the herd mentality states that people need a concept or a worldview to adopt in order to give meaning to their lives. This herding of people who choose to adopt this certain ideal or ideals in effect causes the stifling of individual thoughts or creativity because everyone chooses to think a certain way (Floyd). This mindset that people are attracted to is not always chosen or forced but is rather seen as an obligation because of loyalties certain people have to others.
American history, though nowhere near as epic as the history of Europe, is wrought with its own heroes and legendary personalities. The three most important span political, economic, and social borders. In its 300 years, the United States has not seen finer heroes than Benjamin Franklin, Alan Greenspan, and Martin Luther King, Jr. Their contributions in politics, regulation of the US economy, and roles in racial diversity, these legends have no precedent. Benjamin Franklin contributed to the culture of the US through his literature and his political presence. Franklin was born in the early 18th century, when England still had a grip on the politics of the colonies. Following the revolutionary war, in which he had important diplomatic duties, Franklin was one of the key framers of the Constitution. By then, Franklin was a ripe 81 years old, in the twilight years of his life. During his youth, he was an important author, contributing to one of the first papers, and also writing the Poor Richard’s Alamack. His autobiography is also a very important work to this day. Franklin was also an important scientist of his time. His personality influenced many of the leaders of the baby American government. This coupled with his exceptional achievement made Franklin a great inspiration to the people of his time that lasts to this day. Alan Greenspan is a recent figure in history, but his impact on the present and future economics of America is incalculable. The chairman of the...
Slavery is the practise of treating people as human cargo and selling, buying and forcing them to work without a compensation for their service. Chattel slavery or traditional slavery is when a person is treated as the property of another. Slaves are inherited from parents or given as gifts. Forced labour is when people are forced to work for another without compensation for their services. Slavery was found 4000 years before the Christian era in Egypt to build pyramids and in Greece (mainly Athens and Sparta). In the instance of slavery at the Cape, slaves contributed greatly to the building up of the colony and to the economic state of the slave owners and their country of origin.
“We fight each other for territory; we kill each other over race, pride, and respect. We fight for what is ours. They think they’re winning by jumping me now, but soon they’re all going down, war has been declared.” Abuse, Pain, Violence, Racism and Hate fill the streets of Long Beach, California. Asians, Blacks, Whites and Hispanics filled Wilson High School; these students from different ethnic backgrounds faced gang problems from day to night. This movie contains five messages: people shouldn’t be judgmental because being open-minded allows people to know others, having compassion for a person can help people change their views in life, being a racist can only create hate, having the power of the human will/goodness to benefit humanity will cause a person to succeed at any cost and becoming educated helps bring out the intelligence of people.