Stereotypes In The Jazz Singer

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The motion picture has become the most popular medium of storytelling today, an awe-inspiring idea of fiction that developed just over 110 years ago. The complex characters and engaging storylines allow for film to often impact the audience the same way a direct experience would. Film has allowed people to understand others they never would have met otherwise. Therefore, it is important to many that the people portrayed in film be true to who they represent. The American Jew is no different and has come a long way from the simplistic manifestations of their stereotypes. Jews in America have faced many challenges since their arrival in 1654, with their film representations being an example (Diner 225). Similar to many other ethnic groups, stereotypes …show more content…

While the motifs and characters were distinctly Jewish, the themes allowed the movie to garner huge success at the box office. This is due in part to its publicity as the first motion picture with synchronized audio. Jewish actor, Al Jolson’s portrayal of aspiring singer/entertainer, Jakie Rabinowitz, allowed people who perceived Jews as too foreign to reconsider their perspective (Diner 225). The plot revolves around his desire to leave the family tradition of being a cantor and become an entertainer in the secular world. In the film, Jakie is introduced as Jewish in his first scene, yet his problem is as American as they come; the internal conflict presented by a desire to assimilate into secular and maintain family traditions is an issue found in many American children and their families. Al Jolson himself was a product of assimilation upon his arrival in the United States, treading carefully between his Jewishness and the secular environment now surrounding him (Brook 402). With the ability to utilize his own experiences in his acting, Jolson has created a Jew that gentiles could relate to in The Jazz

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