Media Essay 2nd Draft

"Films now represent a positive moment in black cultural history. Blacks are given strong heroes who do not get dragged down but who actually escape the ghetto. Black audiences were given images that articulated their anger and give them a positive outcome."[1]

An investigation into the way black characters are represented more positively in contemporary films such as “Snakes on a Plane” and “The Pursuit of Happyness”. How does this contrast with dominant, more negative,e representations of past eras.?

Can racist­­­­­ hegemony still exist in such a time where colonialism has supposedly disappeared within many cultures? When looking back at the first half of the century, black people were often depicted as dumb, evil, lazy, poor, animalistic, uncivilized, un-Christian people[2] . The early British colonist brought these initial thoughts with them to the US and white colonists commonly believe that black people were inferior to white people. These ideologies helped justify black slavery and the introduction of many laws that condoned inhumane treatment and sustained black people in a lower socioeconomic position.

“Snakes on Plane” and “The Pursuit of Happyness” are films the star black males and both films received major awards and nominations such as Oscars. Both films depict the lives of two men, in hope of success and salvation. They are represented as strong masculine males who fight for freedom and power. Stuart Hall states that “Black actors agitated for and got wider variety of roles in films and black cultural identity was growing in rapid speed”[3]. Black actors were now recognised for their talent and were given respect for their expressive aptitude; however this representation has changed significantly in the last decade as they weren’t always represented in this positive manner but subjected to racial discrimination. An example of this is ‘The Birth of a Nation’ which is a 1915 silent film portraying how difficult it was for black people to achieve freedom in the slavery era. This film connotes obvious racism both on and off screen in the way that it depicts black characters facing torture, humiliation and death. One central character within the film begins as an esteemed officer but ends up going through slavery and death by the racist reactionary organization the Ku Klux Klan which originated in American in the 18th century. This film continues to cause major controversy as the director/writer of the film, D.W. Griffith, has been accused of reviving the ‘Klan’ as he shows a positive portrayal of slavery. Griffith’s off screen opinions of black people are portrayed within the film as the black character (Gus) is played by a white actor Walter Long who was in blackface, which demonstrates the harsh treatment of black people in society (to be inferior to white people) as they do not even have the right to be in films. "Then there is a 'native figure' who is dignified but ultimately becomes barbarism and savagery” [4], and it can be seen as black characters are exploited and greatly misrepresented within this film.

The rise in slavery films increased in the 60s up to the 90s, and the way black characters were portrayed within films then, were to reminisce and have homage to the true events that occurred in 18 century. However in recent films in the 90s, ‘Amistad’ (1997) is about how a man gets abducted in his own village and sold as a slave, within this film the black man is always shown as inferior to the white man as the camera angles suggest this, i.e. the white man standing above the black man looking down at him and using abusive language connoting the ‘binary opposition’[5] between the two men. The representation of black characters within this film connotes dominant negative stereotypes of them being represented as animals and aggressive; which is a major misrepresentation of black people. As this film is directed by Steven Spielberg, who is a white male director/producer indicates that his representations of black people are sensationalized in the film as he portrayed them to be rebellious, weak and inferior. "Blacks are natural causes of tension within films"[6] this creates a significant statement as to why black characters were given such a cruel part within films as it was enough for them to create tension and suspense. The film ‘Amistad’ was criticized for the historical inaccuracy and the misleading characterizations of the Amistad case as a "turning point" in American perspective on slavery. Eric Foner wrote that "In fact, the Amistad case revolved around the Atlantic slave trade, by 1840 outlawed by international treaty and had nothing whatsoever to do with slavery as a domestic institution. Incongruous as it may seem, it was perfectly possible in the nineteenth century to condemn the importation of slaves from Africa while simultaneously defending slavery and the flourishing slave trade within the United States."[7]

The rise in Hollywood African-American Motion Pictures declared in the 80’s moved from negative representation of black people to the new era of comic comedians. With the burst of new African-American film directors like Thomas Cater who directed films like ‘Save the Last Dance’ (2001) and ‘Coach Carter’ (2005) with three Emmy Awards and one Oscar was beginning to change the representations of black characters within films. Denzel Washington has won many awards for his outstanding performances especially in the 2001 ‘Training Day’, which he reinforces the negative stereotypes against black people. His portrayal of Samuel L. Jackson in ‘Coach Carter’ connotes the way black people struggled to gain respect from his class and shows how young teenagers can be given hope with a bit of help. Unlike the dominant representations of black characters this film challenges the stereotypes and shows the protagonist (Jackson) as being strong, ambitious and an intelligent man which is an alternative representation but one that doesn’t misrepresent black people.

On the contrary the increase in black performers, changed the way they were portrayed as they moved from an obvious negative stereotype to a subtle misrepresentation, as the comedy era came along. As black actors began to emerge, this allowed many opportunities for more jobs available for young black males in the film industry. When looking at the genre of some films that African-American have been represented in, comedy genre is a very popular genre which allows black characters so highlight their talent as well as being noticed. "Success has also come for more recent generation of comic black performers such as Martin Lawrence, Christ Tucker and Chris Rock. To what extent might the success of these performers, in the format of comedian comedy, be explained by the degree to which their antics conform to racist stereotypes such as that of the 'coons'?"[8]. The wave of comedy era, changed the way black actors were portrayed, as this changed them from being represented as slaves, maid/servants, uncivilized to more a subtle negative representation as they were now used for mere amusements in films like ‘Scary Movie’ (2000) ‘Down to Earth’ (2001) and ‘White Chicks’ (2004). Something which these three films share is that the black characters in the film are the only amusement i.e. the white characters are taken more seriously and the black character is seen to bring delight and pleasure and nothing more. One of the reasons as to why this, may be because black people are seen to be less threatening when playing roles of comedians rather than gangster roles which will create stereotypes. “Black performers in Hollywood have historically been able to go beyond the confines of the stereotypically roles to which they have been limited. The 1930s, for example, was the ‘Age of the Negro Servant, in which the antics of a number of black performers were offered as source of comic absurdity and relief from the realities of the Depression. What was involved was an enactment of racist stereotypes, including the ‘coon’ and the ‘mammy’”[9]

Furthermore black actors were usually associated with partners in films like ‘Rush Hour’ (1998), ‘Lethal Weapon’ (1987) and 48 Hrs (1982), which made the black characters look inferior to the white as they were usually partnered ‘with’ rather than being partners which connoted them being less important as “Hegemony is the power or dominance that one social group holds over others"[10] thus indicating between the white and black characters. As white (actors) people were more noticed and known for playing independent roles and protagonist connoting their power for example in films like ‘Mission Impossible’ (1996) or ‘ James Bond’ (1962). Black actors were becoming distinctively noticeable in the comedy genre as they were usually depicting issues of race and found a business in becoming treasures of laughter. Whoopi Goldberg is one of relatively few women to have established a persona as a disruptive comedian-comic in Hollywood in recent decades, and it is no accident that she should also be a black, African-American performer. She is portrayed as loud, crazy, unruly (‘Ghost’, 1990) which goes against the dominant stereotypes of 'acceptable' female behaviour and is something of a rarity in film, even in the realm of comedy. "And there is also the 'clown and entertainer' figure who jokes about his/her ethnic peculiarities in such a way that (white) people laugh at him/her, not with him/her"[11]. This quote from the three characteristics black people are identified with in Stuart Hall’s theory states that black people have become the subject of entertainment and are being laughed at rather than with whilst they are entertaining.

On the contrary, black people have moved from a stage or era of comedy where in recent years they have had a stigma attached with their roles as comedians. However they are now at a peak of being recognised for their ‘hidden’ talents such as Denzel Washington as he plays characters with protagonist roles. The Drama genre is able to establish him as a notable black African-American actor as he has starred in Oscar winning films such as ‘Malcolm X’ (1992), where he depicts the biopic life of El-Hajj Malik Al-Shabazz (Malcolm X). As well starring as the protagonist within contemporary films such as ‘The Book of Eli’ (2010) in which he portrays a strong and powerful man fighting off evil. The role of which he portrays shows him to be more superior than a white man as he has been given a leading role. Alongside him are actors like Will Smith who began playing roles in sitcoms and started off as a comedian where he first rose to in his show ‘The Fresh Prince of Bel Air’ playing the role of an entertainer. On the other hand in more contemporary films his talent as an actor has allowed him to escalate into playing roles in films like ‘The Pursuit of Happyness’(2006) where he portrays a father who is struggling to raise his son at a time where black people were regarded as weak and jobless. His representation within the film is a biography of Chris Garden’s life and in turn allows the audience to identify with the character and use him as a tool of escapism to see after hardship comes ease. The representation of black characters was moving very fast and more positively in contrast to the dominant representations of them in past eras.

In other contemporary films like Snakes on a Plane (2005) the portrayal of the black character within that film (Samuel L. Jackson) shows him to be an independent FBI agent who saves the day as he land a falling plane and save hundreds of people. This representation of black characters were very rare and quite alternative, however in the rise and fame of notable actors this representation was becoming more dominant. The ideologies behind this notion of a black man saving the day may create a new wave of audience just like Blaxpolation films did. Institutions like New Line Cinema attract a mainstream audience and mostly black communities to challenge the typical stereotypes held against black people. "Social class differences in today's world are not determined solely or directly by economic factors"[12] .This quote connotes that black people should not be classed by their economical status but by their talent and achievements overtime.

Throughout history it has been defined that change comes with many outcomes which some may be of positive and others negative, this works in the same way as black people have been represented both negative and positive to have their rights changed and viewed as individuals. An example of a theorist is Stuart Hall, who is a cultural theorist and sociologist and discussed many representations of black people. Hall's work covers issues of hegemony and cultural studies. Hall argues that the representation of the black subject has been through two phases. The first was a challenge of the racist stereotype and asserting a positive black identity. This was typically through recovery of a lost African history in which an essential core is found. In the second phase, the black subject is considered to be produced inside 'regimes of representation'. "What it may possible to assert is that the media process of reducing human to stereotypes at the very least acts as a means of establishing boundaries between 'insiders' and 'outsiders’. The audience is encouraged to identify with 'positive' rather than 'negative' characters. Put simply, viewers are asked to see themselves as 'us' and not 'them'."[13] He also stated that black people are represented as three things within society and film as one that has been mentioned if an ‘entertainer’, where they solely perform for others. The second being ‘criminals’ or threat and this has been seen in the rise of teenage crime where black teenagers have been pointed to very often in the news and well as the representations of black characters in films like Notorious (2009). And finally he stated black people are the ‘victims’ and this can been seen through the historical era of slavery and the most current change in Americans political stance of a black president Barack Obama changing the face of American as to what it was then. Black people have been portrayed as victims for many years and in current issues like the earthquake that hit Haiti, thus connoting and showing black people as victims and how society has adapted to this changed.

After looking at the history of black films, from the 18th century to the contemporary Oscar winning films I am able to conclude that the change of representation of black actors have changed significantly, and as black actors changed and became more powerful and well known, society was able to adapt and accept this change. As Yale Jewkes states "I should like first to focus on what seems to me to be dominant and often misleading assumptions about the nature of stereotypes, and which often prevent us from making statements which theoretically show how stereotypes are able to ideologically function"[14] If stereotypes are mainly focused on the negative representations of people, then people wouldn’t be able to change and rise above these assumptions, therefore are stereotypes pejorative concepts?

Words: 2270

Bibliography
Work Cited
Books

Bennett, Peter, Slater, Jerry (2003): A2 Media Studies The Essential Introduction, Canada, Routledge

Casey, Bernadette, Casey, Neil (2002): Television Studies The Key Concept, London, Routledge

Clark, Vivienne. Baker, James. Lewis, Eileen (2003) Key Concepts & Skills for Media Studies:
London. Hodder Headline

Dines, Gail, 2003, Gender, Race and Class in Media, UK, Saga Publications

Humez, Jean M (1994): Gender, Race and Class in Media, London, Sage

Hall, Stuart (eds) (1980): Culture, Media, Language;Working Papers in Culture Studies , 1972-79, London, Hutchinson

Hebdige, Dick( 1979): Subculture The Meaning Of Style, London, Methuen

Jewkes, Yvonne, 2004, Media Studies Readers, London,

King, Geoff, (2002): Film Comedy, London, Wallflower

Laughey, Dan (2009): Media Studies Theories and Approaches, Harpenden, Kamera Books

Nelson, R (1997): TV Drama in Transition Forms, Values and Cultural Changes, Basingstoke, Macmillan

O'Sullivan, Tim (2008): The Media Studies Reader, London, Edward Arnold

Stevenson, N (1995): Understanding Media Cultures, Social Theory and Mass Communication, London, Sage

Williams, Kevin (2003) Understanding Media Theory: New York. Arnold Publishers

Internet

The Amistad Case in Fact and Film
http://historymatters.gmu.edu/d/74/
(Historical information on black people)

Stuart Hall
http://changingminds.org/disciplines/sociology/theorists/stuart_hall.htm
(Information on Stuart Hall’s theory)

The representation of black people in film
http://www.helium.com/items/398554-the-representation-of-black-people-in-film
(Representation of black people in films)

The White Corporate Tradition: Hollywood Representation of Black People
http://www.africaresource.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=297:thewhite-corporate-tradition-hollywood-representation-of-black-people&catid=136:race&Itemid=351
(Hollywood’s representation of black actors)


Black British Film
http://www.screenonline.org.uk/film/id/1144245/index.html
(Information on films in past decades)

Black Hollywood
http://ivythesis.typepad.com/term_paper_topics/2009/06/representation-of-race-and-ethnicity-in-hollywood-films.html
(Representation of Hollywood)

African-American Motion Pictures
http://www.liu.edu/cwis/cwp/Library/african/movies.htm#race
(information on African-American Motion Pictures)

2010 Haiti earthquake
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2010_Haiti_earthquake
(information on Haiti earthquake)

Amistad
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0118607/quotes
(information on Amistad film)

Magazines/Newspapers

http://www.guardian.co.uk/news/2005/feb/08/guardianobituaries.film1
(Racial Stereotyping)
http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2000/jun/25/2
(Information on black people in films)
http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2009/dec/06/film-precious-lee-daniels-sidibe
(Information on Hollywood Films)
http://www.independent.co.uk/stage/2009/nov/23/james-earl-jones-cat-roof
(Information on actor James Earl Jones)
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/media/britains-black-actors-now-enjoy-bigger-better-parts-still-they-go-unrecognised-is-media-racism-to-blame-588948.html
(Information on is the media to blame for racism)
http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2009/jan/10/will-smith-seven-pounds
(Information on Will Smith)
http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2006/dec/18/willsmith

(Information on Will Smith)

Moving Image

Rush Hour, Brett Ratner, (1998), New Line Cinema
The Pursuit of Happyness, Gabriele Muccino, (2006), Columbia Pictures Corporation
Snakes of Plane, David Elis, (2006), New Line Cinema
48 Hrs, Walter Hill, (1982), Paramount Pictures
White Chicks, Keenen Ivory Wayans, (2004), Revolution Studios
Gone with the Wind (USA, 1939, dir.: Victor Fleming)
Amistad, Steven Spielberg, (1997), DreamWorks
Save the Last Dance, Thomas Carter, (2001), Cort/Madden Productions
Coach Carter, Thomas Carter, (2005), MTV Films
Scary Movie, Keenen Ivory Wayans, (2000), Dimension Film
Down to Earth, Chris Weitz, (2001), 3 Art Entertainment
Lethal Weapon, Richard Donner, (1987), Sliver Pictures
Malcolm X, Spike Lee, (1992), 40 Acres & A Mule Filmworks
Ghost, Gerry Zucker, (1990), Paramount Pictures
The Book of Eli, Albert Hughes, (2010), Alcon Entertainment
Mission Impossible, Brain De Palma, (1996), Paramount Pictures
James Bond, Terence Young, (1962), Eon Productions
Other sources

http://www.questia.com/googleScholar.qst;jsessionid=Lhjf5VbWQMF22X1k7bGb4nk1kvkys4vgJV1KMHpsycVxJZhpNL27!-1196327867!1517079229?docId=5001386632

(Journal on representing racial groups)

Work Consulted

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blaxploitation

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/black-actors-in-protest-over-bafta-awards-1305763.html

http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2003/oct/01/raceintheuk.comment


[1] Hayward.S. (2002).p.45.
[2] Milton.K. (1993).p.93.
[3] Hall.S. (2003).p.256.
[4] Laughey, D. (2009).p.149
[5] http://www.mnsu.edu/emuseum/information/biography/klmno/levi-strauss_claude.html
[6] Laughey, D.(2009).p 149.
[7] Foner, E.(1998) .p.199.
[8] King, G. (2002).p.67
[9] Bogle.D.(1994).p.78
[10] Dines, G. (2003).p.114
[11] Humez, J. (1994).p.56.
[12] Dines, G. (2003).p.114
[13] Casey, B.(2002).p.64
[14] Jewkes, Y, (2004).p. 75