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Recommended: Racism prejudice
Racism is a prevalent issue that has plagued society for hundreds of years. In fact, racism and discrimination in the United States has been a major issue since the colonial era. Nonetheless, the Spike Lee directed film Do the Right Thing, released in 1989, explores the theme of racism in a masterfully juxtaposed and politically driven story about tensions between an Italian family and local Bedford-Stuyvesant residents on a hot summer day in hopes of illuminating New York City’s racial climate during the time. Analysis of the film reveals that police violence and animosity between races were at the forefront during this period, which relates to the social expectations theory and the accumulation of minimal effects theory. In summary, Do the …show more content…
The social expectations theory states that human groups are governed by a set of rules, customs and expectations that we attain from family, peers, our communities, and school. However, in this modern era mass media also plays a significant role in how we act as a member of a group. In the film, many of the African-American characters took on over-exaggerated personalities in the film that served to emphasize the tension within the neighborhood. However, this also exemplified the social expectations of the black community by society, due to the fact that blacks were portrayed as loud, obnoxious, and crude. Many scenes in the film demonstrate this such as the trio “Sweet Dick Willie” and his friends chattering loudly as they discuss Mike Tyson, Buggin’ Out causing a commotion in Sal’s for something as minute as not having any famous African-Americans on the Wall of Fame, and one of the kids from the neighborhood yelling at Da Mayor for being a dead-beat drunk. Moreover, the controversy following the film’s release also exemplified the social expectations of African Americans because many public officials feared that the black community would riot in outrage after viewing the film, which establishes African-Americans as rowdy, quick to anger, and quick to resort to violence. In an interview with Rolling Stone, Spike Lee lamented on the controversy stating, “…my least favorite: the reviews of David Denby and Joe Klein saying that black people were going to riot after seeing this film. That they [black people] weren’t intelligent enough to make the distinction between what 's happening on screen and what happens in real life...” It is ironic that a film focused on racism and prejudice could conjure the same reaction from people that it sought to critically
Do The Right Thing was Spike Lee’s first landmark film. Do The Right Thing is a movie that brings awareness to the racial tensions when people in a Brooklyn neighborhood of different racial and cultural backgrounds coexist, which ends in a tragedy. The film was a great success receiving many of awards and earned two Academy Award nominations for Best Original Screenplay and Best Supporti...
Despite the passing of the Civil Rights Act and Affirmative Action, racism evolved from the blatant discrimination of the 1960s like segregation, to the slightly more passive racism of the 1990s such as unfair arrests/jail time (Taylor). Curtis’ writes three decades after the aforementioned progress and yet, looking back on the 90s, there is an alarming amount of similarities between the two.
Racial tension and cultural barriers has been a constant within our county and the rest of the world for as long as time has been around. Being segregation, to racial riots and sometimes even worse events can occur which has been proven by history in the past. Director Spike Lee’s 1989 film “Do the Right Thing” is a movie set in New York City neighborhood that is filled with many different cultures and ethnic groups being an Italian pizza shop, an Asian general store, an African American housing and residents. Sociology places a main role within the film in which we see how every person goes about their day. Peace and conflict are at an ever increasing war with each other. Above this the film takes place on only one day which happens to be the hottest day of the summer. The observation that we the audience make out is the highest tension is between the Italians and the African Americans. Granted, there are some that get along but for the most part the conflict is there. Whereas the Asian family in the film is the side group in which they are not shown in many scenes throughout the film. Spike Lee does a phenomenal job in portraying the races the way he see it from his perspective. The neighborhood
The first social issue portrayed through the film is racial inequality. The audience witnesses the inequality in the film when justice is not properly served to the police officer who executed Oscar Grant. As shown through the film, the ind...
Being one of the few black students to attend Tisch School of the Arts, the aspiring filmmaker’s first year at New York University was a particularly difficult one. Lee’s experiences, race, and upbringing have all led him to create controversial films to provide audiences with an insight into racial issues. Spike Lee’s first student production, The Answer, was a short ten minute film which told of a young black screenwriter who rewrote D.W. Griffith’s The Birth of a Nation. The film was not well accepted among the faculty at New York University, stating Lee had not yet mastered “film grammar.” Lee went on to believe the faculty took offense to his criticisms towards the respected director’s stereotypical portrayals of black characters (1).
Director and actor Spike Lee presents his "truth" about race relations in his movie Do the Right Thing. The film exhibits the spectacle of black discrimination and racial altercations. Through serious, angry, and loud sounds, Lee stays true to the ethnicity of his characters, all of which reflect their own individualism. Lee uses insulting diction and intense scenes to show how severe racism can lead to violence. The biases reflected through Do the Right Thing model those of today which has kept society in a constant feud for so long. In Oprah Winfrey's dynamic episode, "The Color of Fear", Mr. Mun Wah projects his strong opinion when he states, " . . . that racism is still going on today, that we've got to stop to hear the anguish and the pain that goes with that and then we'll survive." (3) People do not realize the severity of their own words. In the scenes of the movie that emphasize the shocking reality of failed interracial communication, racial stereotyping, trust or lack of trust, and acrimonious violence mirror the current concerns about race in America as reflected in "The Color Of Fear."
According to Newman in Sociology: The Architecture of Everyday Life, a social class “consists of people who occupy similar positions of power, privilege, and prestige” (Newman, 2012). Someone’s position in a social class can affect “virtually every aspect of their lives, including political preferences, sexual behavior, religious affiliation, diet, and life expectancy” (Newman, 2012). The social class that was represented in the film was the middle-class. The show, Pleasantville, portrays the 1950s in which the wife would stay at home cooking and cleaning while the father works. This show holds similar views to the show, Leave it to Beaver. The movie begins
The 1989 film Do the Right Thing explored the conflict of racial tension and unique camera elements. Directed and produced by Spike Lee, Do the Right Thing combined a series of low and high-angle shots while also incorporating close ups and slow motion. Through the use of panning, the audience was able to get a break from the action and reflect on the events of the film. Spike Lee’s collaboration of film components added humor and realistic emotions to the story. While the controversy of whether Mookie “did the right thing” will always be in favor of the viewer. Depending on how an audience member connects with the film will spark a variety of different emotions for that person. Do the Right Thing is a film that reflects both controversial ideals and unique film elements.
White people and rappers during the late 1970’s and 1980’s seem to be offended when asked about their role in the hip hop community. They think that black people are becoming a part of a cultural movement and they should join in. The heated responses from the white people in the film are typical answers. They symbolize people who are afraid. The white people are joining a movement that is becoming more and more popular. Black communities feel like others are joining in on their fun. They seem to not enjoy people of another race
Spike Lee is brand name when it comes to the film industry. When you try to ask any group of people their opinion about this man, you will probably receive numerous positive responses from the film community as well as the African American community. Do the Right Thing (Spike Lee, 1989) is a film that illustrates how racial conflict can become a reality while showing the repercussions that come with racial segregation. Spike Lee uses a number of tools to write and produce the film in order to ensure the message reaches his intended audience in the best way possible. The use of location, soundtrack, and dialogue is abundant in this film. Therefore, this film analysis paper is for Spike Lee’s Do the Right Thing (1989). It is a film in which racial segregation ignites riots in a neighborhood dominated by the black population. The heightened scene of this film analysis is where Spike Lee throws a trash can and it is from this that hell breaks loose and riots begin.
All through time, the world has been racist and intolerant of people different from themselves. Countless millions have suffered due to the bigotry of people that couldn't understand change or differences among one another. There was a time when any soul that wasn't blue eyed and blonde haired in Germany, anyone with darker skin where immediately classed as inferior and not human. Even now, when you are not aware, racism is still a considerable problem. But sometimes it isn't one person being racist against another, but rather one person being racist against them self. The movie crash shows good examples of how racism against oneself, caused by fear and misunderstanding, is just as malevolent and evil as racism against another person. Fear is what makes people act racist. Farhad is one of many examples in the movie of a person who recognizes his own race and paralyzes himself through his own fear. Farhad believes that since he is Persian he is immediately being persecuted against and cheated. He flips out at the gun shop when the owner was insulting him which just furthers his fear of Americans. After the events on 9/11, which are referenced a lot in the movie, Farhad thinks that anyone who is Middle Eastern isn't welcome in America. Even after the gun shop owner was rude; his shop was destroyed by racist people who hated him. It is this same fear of being cheated because of his race that makes him very untrusting to people he doesn't know. He calls a lock smith to come fix his door because it won't lock. He immediately thinks that Daniel is trying to cheat him and steal money from him just because of his past endeavors.
In John Grishams’ (1996) film “A Time to Kill” issues surrounding the racism in the Deep South take place and based on a true life experience of John Grisham. The novel, like the movie, opens with a very brutal rape scene. It’s the socio-politics that give this film an energetic and confrontational feel of southern racial politics. Racism was still very strong even some 20 years after the civil war (Ponick 2011). Hollywood and John Grisham wanted to make bold statement about racism and they accomplished this in the closing argument of the courtroom scene.
If this movie were to be summarized in one sentence, one may say that no matter who you are, everybody holds preconceptions and stereotypes against other people. For example, in this movie, an upper-class white woman sees two black men so she clings to her husband, showing she is scared of them. Even though this woman had no idea who they were, she still jumped to a conclusion that they were going to harm her because of the color of their skin.
... supremacist gang, to rioting in an Asian owned grocery store, to finally brutally murdering someone. We observe as family ties become increasingly strained in every way, the viewer can easily conclude that Derek’s racism as well as his eventual influence on his younger brother ultimately contributed to their own downfall. As controversial as this movie maybe for the offensive language and brutal violence, it is a movie that deserves to be seen, and even discussed. It really provides insight into some factors within society that cannot be contained by the law or even deterred by even the harshest punishments. Even though American society is becoming more modernized as time goes by in terms of tolerance, racism will unfortunately always be prevalent in society and inevitably it will also lead some individuals to violently express their distorted mentalities.
Many times in Hollywood, a movie that intends to portray a novel can leave out key scenes that alter the novel’s message. Leaving out scenes from the novel is mainly do to time limits, however doing so can distort the author’s true purpose of the story. In history, Movies were directed to intentionally leave out scenes that could alter the public’s opinion. This frequently let novel 's main points be swept under the rug. There were times of this at the beginning of the Civil Rights Movement, where white Americans were the only ones making movies. Not many African Americans had the opportunity to be involved in the process of major productions. Because racism in To Kill a Mockingbird, written by Harper Lee, is underplayed in the film, it shows