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Stereotypes in hollywood essay
Media stereotypes for african americans
African American stereotypes in media
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Stereotypes within Hollywood Cinema Over the past 20 years Hollywood cinema have steadily maintained and produced cliché and stereotypical images of African Americans’. These clichés vary from African Americans’ being violent, simple minded, poor, and helpless. Through such films as Boyz in the Hood, A Time to Kill, Django Unchained, and Do the Right Thing accompanied by past discussions about the films. These stereotypes exists and have been maintained to present day. Boyz in the Hood, filmed in 1991 is an example of how African Americans are portrayed in a cliché fashion in film. Having every aspect shaped by hip hop (Donalson 38). Paula Massood, author of Out of the Ghetto, into the Hood stated that movies revolving around the black urbanscape …show more content…
Within the film, Blacks are portrayed as the ones who “throw the first punches and a black character throws the firebomb that ends up killing…” (Finley and Finley 231). Within these films it is often times White people that are the heroes and the ones that bring justice to the system (Finley and Finley 233). This is evident within A Time to Kill when the protagonists Jake Brigance (Mathew McConaughey) helps by steping up above everyone else to save a wrongfully acquitted Black man. The film vitalizes the Hollywood cliché of Blacks needing Whites and how White people are always saviors and …show more content…
But over the years these stereotypes have lessened, not by much, but it has. The belief that Hollywood cinema has maintained their cliché images is true, but what is also true as seen in Django Unchained is that simultaneous to the cliché images, an era of film making has emerged where Blacks can be seen as smart, willing to overcome, and able to step away from racially charged roles and violent
Film Historian Donald Bogle, the author of “Toms, Coons, Mulattoes, Mammies, & Bucks: An Interpretive History of Blacks in American Films,” offers compelling and informative examples of various stereotypes of African-Americans performers. He emphasizes on historical characteristics of gifted black actors/entertainers; renovating their roles to disseminate specific representations that are significant to the economics and history of America’s shifting environmental circumstances.
In his documentary Classified X, Martin Van Peebles describes three areas where African-Americans could be receive some sanctuary from the racism that pervaded almost all Hollywood films. These three places were: the Hollywood version of an all-Black film, the church, and entertainment. Black culture and music is prominent in mainstream society, but the people behind this culture don’t always receive recognition and respect for their creations. Mainstream White pop culture excitedly consumes and appropriates Black culture, but disrespects the source.
It is often the case that media and more specifically, film, perpetuates the stereotypes of black men. These stereotypes include not showing emotion, being physically aggressive, embrace violence, supposed criminality, associated with drug use, lack a father figure, sexually exploit women, and others. In the film, Boyz n the Hood, Tre’s father, Furious Styles, encourages Tre to demonstrate loyalty to other people in relationships, resist aggressive behavior, and foster and exhibit sexual responsibility. Thus, throughout the film, Tre challenges the society’s stereotyped norms of black masculinity and what it means to be a black man.
Describe some ways in which business values and artistic values in Hollywood contend with one another.
Boyz N the Hood was a film created to convey an anti-gang message as well as to provide societal members an in-depth look at life in “the hood” so he or she can expand their culturally awareness of identifying societal issues (Stevenson, 1991). Upon the debut of “Boyz N the Hood” violence erupted at theaters across the nation, resulting in multiple shows pulling the film from scheduled showings to alleviate future violent behaviors (Stevenson, 1991). The film profoundly illustrates the realty of the events revealed within the storyline that frequently occur on a daily basis within every impoverish community; however, is overlooked by the individuals who are not directly involved and or affected (Leon-Guerrero, 2016) Children of lower socioeconomic status often are raised in ghetto neighborhoods where they often witness, crime, violence, gang activity, abuse, and drugs (Leon-Guerrero, 2016). Ghetto communities envelop tumultuous cycles of violence and substance abuse creating a pervasive occurrence within the residents of the community. This is prevalent in lower developed communities that unfortunately many children and the youth populace indirectly inherit and sadly conform to, as there are no other means to an end for them (Leon-Guerrero,
The movie 'Ethnic Notions' describes different ways in which African-Americans were presented during the 19th and 20th centuries. It traces and presents the evolution of the rooted stereotypes which have created prejudice towards African-Americans. This documentary movie is narrated to take the spectator back to the antebellum roots of African-American stereotypical names such as boy, girl, auntie, uncle, Sprinkling Sambo, Mammy Yams, the Salt and Pepper Shakers, etc. It does so by presenting us with multiple dehumanized characters and cartons portraying African-Americans as carefree Sambos, faithful Mammies, savage Brutes, and wide-eyed Pickaninnies. These representations of African-Americans roll across the screen in popular songs, children's rhymes, household artifacts and advertisements. These various ways to depict the African ?American society through countless decades rooted stereotypes in the American society. I think that many of these still prevail in the contemporary society, decades after the civil rights movement occurred.
In the movie “Boyz in the Hood” director John Singleton, paints a clear image of the problems that happen very often in the African American communities. The movie deals with issues such as: the importance of a father in a young man’s life, the ongoing violence of black on black crime, and how black people are put in situations where they are put to fail and not succeed in life.
Through its remarkable breakthroughs in film and what the camera could do, Birth of a Nation can be explored as a film that set the standards for future film development and masterpieces. However, one can never look past the way that African-Americans were horribly represented and depicted on film. This has caused this film to be such a great film to explore when studying film and especial minorities in film. This debate will continue way past my life and beyond. One must hope and believe that the ignorance of the few that still see this as a positive image of reality can be overturned and that this film can only be seen as a studying device for all those that look to explore the art of film and the sad realities that can come from the ideals of those who create film and movies.
Besides, in cultivation theory, George Gerbner proposes that heavy users of media treat the content of media as a primary source to perceive the world and assert what they see in media is very similar to the reality (Bryant, Thompson and Finklea, 2013), so there is a high possibility that audience will bring the perception of stereotyped portrayals of African-American from media into the real world. Based on the above unhealthy situations, this paper is going to illustrate how the racial stereotypes in media negatively affect people’s perception, attitude and behavior toward African American in the reality....
The White Savior Complex is a damaging subconscious underlay of the Hollywood system, and more broadly all of western society. It is used to further separate the notions of “us” and “other” by creating a firm separation fueled by self-righteousness, and a sense of entitlement. Hollywood attempts to address race relations, but fails because of this trope. Kingsle, from the article “Does My Hero Look White In This?” described that both racism and colonialism are acknowledged, but not without reassuring that not only were white people against the system of racist power dynamics, but also were actively fighting against it in leadership roles (2013). In the remainder of my essay I will be commenting on many modern films and their use on this trope, and why subscribing to this filmmaking strategy is problematic.
Stewart, Jacqueline Najuma. Migrating to the Movies: Cinema and Black Urban Modernity. Berkeley: U of California, 2005. Print.
Not all African Americans are thugs and people that do not work. A lot of them have successful careers and have put in the time and effort to have good work ethic and be good people. African Americans have had a difficult history in the American film industry. During the early 20th century of filmmaking, blacks were stereotyped as not worthy of being in films, and they were only certain types of characters such as servants, mammies, and butlers. From several decades of filmmaking, African Americans have been sought out to be trouble makers, incapables, intellectually limited, and also lazy. Although blacks have won Academy Awards for acting, screenwriting, and music production they still find trouble in getting quality roles within the film industry. (Common Black Stereotypes)
Woll, Allen L and Randall M Miller. Ethnic and Racial Images in American Film and Television: Historical Essays and Bibliography. n.d. Print.
... model for how the entertainment and media industries depict black people must change. Despite the progress that blacks have worked toward since the days of slavery, society continues to give in to the monetary benefits of producing self-disparaging entertainment and media. It is not only up to the directors, editors, producers and writers to establish this change, but it should also be the demand of the people, or the consumer. If the images of black people in the media are improved the outlook within the community will improve as well. Not only will positive goals and achievements become more realistic for black people if the media outlets discontinue their practice of equating blacks with aggression, lawlessness and violence, but a greater good will also result for whites, which would be represented by a true autonomy and equality in American society.
Over the course of approximately one-hundred years there has been a discernible metamorphosis within the realm of African-American cinema. African-Americans have overcome the heavy weight of oppression in forms such as of politics, citizenship and most importantly equal human rights. One of the most evident forms that were withheld from African-Americans came in the structure of the performing arts; specifically film. The common population did not allow blacks to drink from the same water fountain let alone share the same television waves or stage. But over time the strength of the expectant black actors and actresses overwhelmed the majority force to stop blacks from appearing on film. For the longest time the performing arts were the only way for African-Americans to express the deep pain that the white population placed in front of them. Singing, dancing and acting took many African-Americans to a place that no oppressor could reach; considering the exploitation of their character during the 1930's-1960's acting' was an essential technique to African American survival.