The minstrel show is considered by many as the first American form of musical theatre (Bordman, 2010). However, the tradition of minstrelsy, in various forms, dates back to well before Thomas Dartmouth Rice first jumped Jim Crow. In the sixteenth and seventeenth century, it was common for actors to darken their faces for dramatic effect, as illustrated by Shakespeare’s Othello (Strausbaugh, 2010). It could be said that minstrelsy continues to be alive and well today, in the form of reality television and hip-hop culture. While opinions on what may be considered minstrelsy today may differ, there is no denying that Rice revolutionized how the centuries old tradition of blackface was used to create a new art form, the minstrel show. For the purposes of this paper, minstrelsy is defined using Fee’s (2003) six core characteristics: authenticity, malapropisms and dialect, physicality, gender representations, playfulness, and anonymity. Authenticity refers to a performer’s claim that the characters he or she is presenting are based on actual people. The second characteristic, malapropisms and dialect, refers to changing dialect and speech patterns to reflect the intended person or people being represented by the character. The use of malapropisms, the mistaken use of similar sounding words, is particular to Blackface minstrelsy. Thirdly, the performer seeks to “accurately” convey the physical characteristics of the represented subject. This effort can range from exaggeration of facial and body parts to replicating the movement of the mimicked subject. Gender representations refers to the tendency to either minimize or exaggerate the masculinity or femininity of the character. The characters are often either hypersexualized, like the Bla... ... middle of paper ... ...logy. Callaloo, 34(3), 943-958. doi: 10.1353/cal.2011.0135 Smith-Shomade, B. E. (2008). Surviving In Living Color with Some White Chicks Whiteness in the Wayans’ (black) minds. In D. Bernardi (Ed.), The Persistence of Whiteness (pp. 344-359). New York, NY: Routledge. Sparknotes Editors. (2004). Sparknote on Birth of a Nation. Retrieved November 26, 2013, from http://www.sparknotes.com/film/birthofanation/ Strausbaugh, J. (2006). Black Like You: Blackface, Whiteface, Insult & Imitation in American Popular Culture. New York, NY: Penguin Group. Tillotson, M. (2013). Black History/African Background. Personal collection of M. Tillotson, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA. Yang, G. & Ryser, T. A. (2008). Whiting up and Blacking Out: White Privlege, Race, and White Chicks. African American Review, 42(3/4), 731-746. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/40301264
Since minorities have gained a more significant role in movies, it begs the question: what happens to them after they become the “magical negro” in the horror genre? Does the min...
A Comparison of the Representation of the Afro-American Actresses Hattie McDaniel and Whoopie Goldberg in the Scam Scenes of Gone With the Wind
Grossberg, L., Nelson, C., & Treichler, P. A. (1992). Representing whiteness in black imagination. Cultural studies (pp. 338-346). New York: Routledge.
Turner, Darwin T. "Visions of Love and Manliness in a Blackening World: Dramas of Black Life Since 1953." Black Scholar 25.2 (1995): 2-13. EBSCO. Wake Co. Public Lib. 5 Jan. 2001 <http://www.ebscohost.com>.
Buford, Larry. "Motown, Civil Rights - Blackface and the Civil War." EURweb. 18 Dec. 2013
Rogin (1996) argues that American films became popular from popular images at the time of caucasian people painting an image of African Americans using the well known "Blackface".
For many years, African Americans have faced the challenge of being accurately and positively portrayed within mainstream media, such as American made films. They are often represented as people who are inferior to those of the Caucasian race, and are frequently presented with problems that are related to racial discrimination. The portrayal of African Americans in media such as movies has often been considered a large contributing factor to the racial tensions that still exist in our world today (Lemons, 1977). The movie, To Kill a Mockingbird, sheds light on the portrayal of African Americans in movies, and how stereotypes can greatly impact the lives of those who are not of the Caucasian race.
Lawrence, L. (2007). Black Culture and Black Consciousness: Afro-American Folk Thought from Slavery to Freedom. London: Sage Publishers.
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.
It has been said by many scholars that the arts of a society can serve as a social barometer. Popular, influential, and controversial theatrical pieces offer a window through which one can observe aspects of a culture, including values, virtues, and ideas on a particular subject. Hence, in looking at and comparing the eras of the pre-Civil War and the Harlem Renaissance, in regard to the ideas held on mixed race relationships and individuals, one needs to consider theatrical pieces of the ...
Their content satirized blacks and mocked the entire race to white audiences. The minstrel shows initially featured White actors with dark makeup that portrayed a distorted form of an African American. The lack of African Americans in the first minstrel shows prompted the development of black makeup and its later uses as Black Face. The image on the left is the Virginia Serenaders, which were a group of white actors that took on the guise of African American individuals. These actors were quite more famous amongst the public. The poster allows the viewer to see the transformation from a white man to an African American man, highlighting the profound effect of “black face”. Moreover, it reinforced how society viewed African Americans, since there is a major contrast between the stature of the white men and their black face characters. The white actors appear to be sophisticated and well kept while their black counterparts appear to be loud and rambunctious. Physical appearances were not the only aspects that were mocked by the shows, they also mocked the way African Americans spoke. Blacks in the shows were often staged to appear illiterate and their dialogue significantly contrasted with that of their fellow white castmates. Lines such as “I believe dis is de place…” or “I’s gwyne to tell you. ” (5), demonstrated the fact a stereotype that was perpetuated
The structure of the minstrel shows and the stock characters performed in minstrels shows influenced the development of black stereotypes. These stereotypes had a great impact on the entertainment industry and society at large. The dances performed in the acts were derived from the plantations in the south. Through minstrel shows, they gained popularity by crossing racial and social
In Stuart Hall’s “What is This “Black” in Black Popular Culture?” the historical implication of popular culture in the U.S is examined and the influence that blackness has in it is deconstructed. According to the text, the departure of European concepts of culture after WWII sparked a hegemonic shift as the United States emerged as a world power. Due to this, the U.S. became the epicenter of global culture production. However, since America has always had a large ethnic population due to slavery, the true face of American popular culture was black American vernacular traditions. Even today, slang that emerge from black ghettos and communities become highly popular with people of other races. In fact, much of black culture is not just our culture,
Thomas, Deborah A. "Modern Blackness: "What We Are and What We Hope to Be"." Small
Krasner, David. Resistance, Parody, and Double Consciousness in African American Theatre: 1895-1910. Basingstoke: MacMillan, 1997. Print.