The Controversy Of Broken Blossoms By D. W. Griffith

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Topic: How did critics respond to a specific silent era film when it first appeared, and how has the critical response changed over time?

The Controversy of Broken Blossoms by D.W.Griffith
Mahra Salem AlShamsi
American University of Sharjah
Fall 2013
FLM 201
Prof. Tim Kennedy

Introduction
One of the most talked about film from the silent era is Broken Blossoms, or the Yellow man and the Girl. Released in May, 1919 , the movie was directed by D.W Griffith a pioneer film maker and one of the greatest filmmakers of his time. Broken Blossoms is based on Thomas Burke’s book the Limehouse nights. The movie tells the story of a young girl who is physically abused by her father. According to Flitterman-Lewis (1994), the film was included

by the Library of Congress in the preservation list of the United States National Film Registry. Films selected for preservation either have to be "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant" (Lewis, 1994).The film Broken Blossom sent a successful message during the 18th century interms of elminating prejuidece views when it was first released. However the critics response has changed and it was seen as being sexist and racist.
Plot
The storyline begins in China, where a young Chinese man, Cheng Huan sets off on a journey to America to preach Buddhism to the western world (Merritt, 1993).

Chen views the westerners as violent and in need of gentleness. However, soon after his arrival in London, the harsh realities of London’s inner city see him lose his idealism. Cheng opens a shop and starts smoking opium showing his desperation in life. Soon after, he meets Lucy Burrows also referred as the “broken blossom” he falls in love with her (Flitterman-Lewis, 1994). However, the beautiful girl is a victim of abuse from her father, Battling Burrows. Her father is a bigoted prize fighter who is very intolerant and brutal towards his only

daughter.
One evening, Lucy is badly beaten by her father and thrown out into the street. According to Lesage (1987) burrows beats Lucy to helplessness and she is half dead by the time she falls unconscious on Cheng’s door. With nowhere to go, the scared girl takes refuge in Cheng’s house, described by Lesag (1987) as beautiful and exotic. Cheng nurses Lucy back to health an act that is described by Flitterman-Lewis (1994) as watching over her with a love so pure as to be wholly “unnatural and inconsistent”. Therefore, the story is meant to depict the solidarity of two individuals who have been discriminated in society. However, when the father learns that his daughter is being sheltered by a Chinese man, he becomes enraged. Her father forcefully drags her from Cheng’s house and proceeds to punish her for her involvement with an outcast in the society. She tries to escape her father’s brutal attack by locking herself in a closet. However, Burrows breaks into the closet using an axe.
Learning that Burrows has taken Lucy away, Cheng goes to Burrows’ house to attempt a rescue (Lesage, 1987). However, when he arrives at Burrows’ house, Lucy is already dead. While Lucy lifeless body lies in one room, the remorseless father continues drinking in the next room. The enraged Cheng looks at Lucy’s face and wonders why somebody could murder such an innocent soul. Cheng confronts Lucy father who is trying to make his escape and for a while the two men stare at each other spitefully. Burrows however rushes at Cheng with a hatchet, no doubt intending to kill him too. In retaliation, Cheng empties the rounds of his Shotgun on Burrows killing him instantly. Cheng carries the lifeless Lucy to his home where he performs a rite to Buddha. At the end, Cheng stabs himself in the stomach taking his own life
Early Reception by Critics
The film was very well received by critics when it was released. Earlier, the Director D.W Griffith had been attacked by Critics for the earlier film Birth of a Nation that depicted the Ku Klax Klan as heroes and Negroes as brutal savages (Lesage, 1987). However, critics were more pleased by Broken Blossoms which attacks racial intolerance and the patriarchal characteristic of the society in the early 19th century (Marchetti, 1993). Set in a period when racial intolerance against oriental people was at its peak, Critics saw Broken Blossoms as an attempt to urge the American people to change their prejudiced view of people from Asia. According to Lewis, Griffith and Crespo-Kebler (2008), Asians were characterised as unkempt, lazy and opium addicted brutes. The critics who originally reviewed Broken Blossoms concluded that it was an attempt to reduce these stereotypes and thus result in a more tolerant society. Other critics praised D.W Griffith’s bravery in expressing support for Asians in a period where Anti-Asian sentiments were very high. “Yellow peril” was a popular term in this historic period and expression of the xenophobic feeling of the period (Dong, 2008). Griffith’s suggestion of interracial relationships also went against the white supremacist ideas that were dominant in the American society. A few years later, the immigration Act 1924 burnt marriages between white men and Asian women (Dong, 2008).
Earlier critics interpreted the film as an attack on a racist society which was very intolerant against people of other races. According to Lynn (1990), Broken Blossoms was open minded and could be termed as liberal in reference to its target audience and time of release. Blossoms were a gentle nudge to the xenophobic American society towards becoming a more racial tolerant community. Some of the scenes in this popular movie go against the established racial relations of the day. According to Marchetti (1993), interracial marriages in 1919 were a crime, and thus the scenes were Cheng almost kisses Lucy serve to show that a relationship between a Chinese man and Caucasian woman is impossible. According to critics the attitudes to race in Broken Blossoms are more positive and well-meaning than Griffith’s earlier film Birth of a Nation (Dong, 2008). In some scenes, the scenes almost lead to a physical relationship between the Yellow man and Lucy. By virtue of holding the notion a white woman could sleep with a Chinese man, critics saw Griffith as more liberal and racially tolerant individual.

Broken Blossoms Depicted as Sexist
Broken Blossoms is viewed by feminist critics as a sexist film that seeks to show that women are inferior to men. According to Lynn (1990), the film comprises of acts that can be considered sexual excesses or crimes, perversions, rape, sadisms, incest paedophilia which have no place in modern film making. Interracial sexual relations are the least innocent representation of women in Broken Blossoms. One critic credits Broken Blossoms sexist attitudes to its director’s sexual pervasion. Griffith liked to bring out underage girls as objects of erotic desire in his films.
According to Marchetti (1993) in her book; The Rape Fantasy in The Cheat and Broken Blossoms accuse Broken Blossoms of disrespect to women and treatment of women as objects of sexual desire. She characterizes Broken Blossoms as a pornographic text. She describes how scenes in Broken Blossoms are designed to arouse the sexual interest of the audience. In her views erotic involvement of the male view takes precedent over the anti-racist message of the film. Broken Blossoms superficially characterizes the West as brutal, violent and racist and society that treats outsiders and women indignantly (Lesage, 1987). However, the themes of compassion for women and racial harmony are intertwined in a rape fantasy that further lower the dignity of women.
According to Lesage (1987), the plot of Broken Blossom is concerned with masculine sexual competition for Lucy. It must be remembered that Lucy is 15 year old girl and thus two grown men have no business in showing sexual desire for her as seen by Marchetti (1993). If set nowadays, Broken Blossoms would be met with public uproar as it depicts the seduction of a child. Both the father and her Chinese admirer have some type of sexual contact with the young girl.
Rape in Broken Blossoms is symbolized by Lucy’s father breaking into the closet with Hatchet. Later, he drags a petrified Lucy between the boards (Marchetti, 1993). Most scenes involving Battling Burrows and his daughter suggest a sexual relationship between the two. Merritt (1993) asserts that Burrows treats his daughter as his wife and abuses her the same way he would abuse his wife. When Burrows is stressed by life he takes it out on the hopeless young girl, much the same way stressed working men beat up their wives. Furthermore, the bed forms a strong sexual connotation in the Mise-en-scene and the visual composition (Lesage, 1987). According to Lesage (1987) the bed is always predominantly visible in the room while Burrows is inside drinking. The Sexual pervasiveness of Broken Blossoms is indicated by how some scenes are portrayed.
Another example of Broken Blossoms sexual pervasiveness is when Lucy spends a night at Cheng’s home. Although the relationship between the two is portrayed as tender and innocent, this is not the case (Lesage, 1987). At some point, Cheng lust for the young girl and advances to kiss, but she holds him just in time. Lucy wears Cheng’s Oriental lobe which is described by Lesage (1987) as womanly. While she is delighted with the Doll she has in her hands, Cheng is thinking of getting sexual pleasure from her. This scene is intercut with a scene where Burrows is fighting and being cheered on by men. Later in the Cheng and Lucy scene we see Lucy who is no longer delighted but has fear in her eyes, while the Chinese man displays an ecstatic smile and goes away. This scene suggests that Cheng was within minutes of seducing Lucy to engage in an intimate sexual encounter. However, the intertitle announces that the relationship between the Chinese man and the young Lucy is pure. According to Marchetti (1993), the intertitle overapologizes for Cheng’s sexual intent and suggest that Cheng might have been sexually attracted to the Child.
Broken Blossoms depicted as Racist
Later critics of Broken Blossoms also say it was as racist as Griffith’s earlier film the Birth of a Nation. According to Lesage (1987), Broken Blossoms reinforced D.W Griffiths reputation as a racist filmmaker. She further argues that Broken Blossom is just a subplot of The Birth of a Nation. Further she reasons that Broken Blossoms was only a representation of Asian self-loathing. The later critiques of Broken Blossoms therefore accuse it directors of propagating the racial stereotypes associated with early twentieth century white American Culture.
According to Koshy (2001), Griffiths’ attempt to make a racially sensitive film failed miserably. In her views Broken Blossoms enforced the racial prejudice against Asians especially Chinese men. Instead of criticizing the theme of “Yellow Peril”, Griffith seems to give it precedent in Broken Blossoms. The “Yellow peril” is described as the belief people of the East Asia posed a threat to white America society (Dong, 2008). According to Dong (2008), the American whites avoided the genetic mix-up of Anglo-Saxon blood with oriental blood. First, Broken Blossoms characterizes Chinese men as weak and feminine. Broken Blossoms portrays Cheng main character trait as effeminacy. When Cheng sees American dock men fighting he cowers in fear. This characterization of Cheng gives the audience that the notion that Cheng is a coward therefore denying him sympathy from the audience.
Secondly, Cheng and another Chinese character the evil eye are also portrayed as having predatory sexual desires towards white women (Lesage, 1987). In one scene the Evil eye is following Lucy and at some point seems to harass her. This characterisation of yellow peril shows Griffiths is loathe to sexual interactions between white women and oriental men which may threaten the racial purity of the White American society. Furthermore, Broken Blossom also portrays Asians as people who engage in pervasive sexual acts. Lucy is only 15 years old and therefore a child, Cheng’s sexual interest in the young woman can only be termed as indecent. This portrayal of Cheng as somebody who participates in child seduction further strengthened the stereotype that Chinese men were a threat to American women.
According to Koshy (2001), the portrayal of Evil eye in Broken Blossoms is in line with the portrayal of Asian men as rapists and villains, one of the deeply rooted stereotypes in the early twentieth century. This view is supported by Evil eye’s action who sexually intimidates young Lucy. This prejudiced view of Asian men was also seen in the characterisation of Asian Character in The Cheat and other Asian fiction movies.
According to one recent critic, Cheng scenes in Broken Blossoms are deliberately shot to make the yellow man appear non-human (Koshy, 2001). Lucy looks very old in the movies, and therefore makes Cheng appear to be a lustful Chineseman who wants to exploit a young child sexually. Koshy (2001), says the prejudices against Chinese people were reinforced by the film that appalled even liberals. Consequently, even the most liberal person was afraid to employ Asian worker in his compound if she had young daughters.
Cheng’s transformation from a humble Buddha missionary to an opium addict is also another sign of prejudiced perception of Asians. Broken Blossoms suggest that the Chinese ways of gentleness are not a solution to western problems. According to Lesage (1987), Cheng’s Merchandise sends forth Asian smells, while his living quarters is filled with varius oriental artefacts. This depiction identifies London’s East end as an unfamiliar capital of the Orientals. According to Kirby (1978), Cheng is never identified in the film by name and is only referred to as “Chink Shopkeeper” or the “ Yellow man”. At some point, Lucy refers to Cheng as Chink a derogative term (Lewis, Griffith and Crespo-Kebler, 2008).
In more recent critics, Broken Blossoms has been criticized that it only attempted to reverse racial stereotypes against Asians only (Lewis, Griffith and Crespo-Kebler, 2008). In contrast, prejudice against Black American’s was not criticized by anyone. Broken Blossoms advanced the racist ideas that all non-black people were superior. Therefore, Broken Blossoms is a film that is racially tolerant to Asian communities, without taking a stand on Black community who were affected by D.W Griffith’s intolerance in Birth of a Nation.

Conclusion
Broken Blossoms opened in 1919 to very positive review by critics.

According to those who reviewed the film upon it release say that it was liberal and open minded. In contrast, to films of it’s era where highly prejudiced and interracial relationship between a white girl and a Chinese man was impossible. Later, critics noted that the deeply rooted stereotypes and prejudices used to bring out the movie plot as very racist. Griffith continued to depict the Asian man with the stereotypes attached to him in that culture. He also depicts women as objects of desire to gratify men by their pervasive appearances. Therefore, any response to a film is based on the time the review is done and how societies view the themes espoused in the film change over

time.
References
Dong, L. (2008). Cinematic Representation of the Yellow Peril: DW Griffith's Broken Blossoms. Color, Hair, and Bone: Race in the Twenty-First Century, 122.
Flitterman-Lewis, S. (1994). "The Blossom and the Bole: Narrative and Visual Spectacle in Early Film Melodrama," in Cinema Journal (Austin, Texas), 33 (3),
Kirby, J (1978). “D.W. Griffith’s Racial Portraiture, Phylon 39 (2): 118-27.
Koshy, S (2001), The After-Birth of a Nation: Broken Blossoms and Racial
Reconstructions, Differences 12 (1): 50-78.
Lesage, J. (1987). Artful Racism, Artful Rape: Griffith's Broken Blossoms. Home Is Where the Heart Is: Studies in Melodrama and the Woman’s Film, 244-252.
Lewis, L., Griffith, G. A., & Crespo-Kebler, E. (Eds.). (2008). Color, Hair, and Bone: Race in the Twenty-first Century. Associated University Presse.
Lynn, K. S.(1990). MOVIES: The Torment of DW Griffith. The American Scholar, 59(2), 255-264.Vanoye, Francis, "Rhétorique de la douleur," in Vertigo , no. 6–7, 1991.
Marchetti, G. (1993). The Rape Fantasy in The Cheat and Broken Blossoms. Romance and the “Yellow Peril”: Race, Sex, and Discursive Strategies in Hollywood Fiction.
Merritt, R. (1993). In and Around Broken Blossoms ," in Griffithiana (Gemona, Italy), October 1993.