Analytical Essay On The Butler

867 Words2 Pages

Introduction
The film I chose to analyze was The Butler, a film that depicts the internal battles of the civil rights movement and the struggles of serving those with the ultimate power to bringing about change without being able to voice out their concerns without fear of repercussions. In my personal opinion, The Butler is the epitome of film displaying the concepts of intercultural communication with prominent elements of ethnocentrism, racism, stereotyping, verbal and nonverbal communication and cultural beliefs.
Analysis
Throughout The Butler, Cecil Gaines went through many social and cultural identities changes both voluntarily and involuntarily. One of the first recognized changes occurred when Cecil transitions from his sheltered …show more content…

Cecil struggles between protecting his sons from the experiences with racism by following the rules set by the white man, while constantly hoping for a change. While his son Louis struggles with convincing his father to change his mindset and take action. Therefore leading him face discrimination, prejudice, and racism head on by joining the freedom riders in the quest for equality. As stated by our text, “When discrimination is the expression of prejudice, the prejudiced person will attempt to exclude all members of the group in question from certain types of employment, residential housing, political rights, educational and recreational opportunities, churches, hospitals, or other types of social institutions” (pg.175). Cecil and Louis both face many examples of this throughout the movie. Cecil experienced unequal pay for the Caucasian and African American workers in the White House, the governments minor concern for change in the rights for African American mostly focused on the African American vote to “maintain the power of the dominant groups over subordinate ones” (pg. 173) and denial of advancement within the serving jobs. Louis experienced forced removal from segregated establishments, beatings, bus burnings, and jailing. In addition the film also shows the evolution on the moral standards of the changing Presidents. However, prejudice can be shown here as well, especially with the highlight of President Kennedy being killed after his speech supporting the rights of the African American

Open Document