...Whiteness is socially constructed in American society by several different factors. The idea of race itself is socially constructed as it has nothing to do with genetic makeup or ethnic background. Race is simply constructed by what people observe by the color of a person’s skin. In society whiteness is viewed as one side of a spectrum with black being on the other and all other races falling somewhere in the middle. This view sees whiteness as the opposite of people perceive as being a quality of people that are African American. People define what these qualities are by what they see in the media and interactions they have with the world. In the media African American males are consistently being presented in a negative light by what the...
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...In Toni Morrison’s the novel “The Bluest Eye”, it provided a comprehensive understanding of how whiteness is the preferred beauty standards, which misleads the lives of African American women and children. Morrison is a master at examining the relationships between the races and genders. She also talks about the struggle between civilization and nature, despite the fact that if it is myth. Morrison has a unique way in her writing that causes the reader to get visual through her narrating stories. Morrison’s novel, The Bluest Eye demonstrates her creative techniques to express the struggles of how African American girl’s deals with society’s concepts of beauty, self-hatred, self-worth, and family. As many individuals may know that beauty is...
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...Hollywood movies are one of the main reason that establish the racism and stereotypes of all colors. It spreads the fictions of whiteness around the world. Therefore, these movies: Tarzan, The Ape Man; Leave it to Beaver; Bringing Down the House and White chicks will bring a closer view about the difference between “white” and “un-white” character be described. Also, the introduction and chapter one of “Unthinking Eurocentrism: Multiculturalism and the Media” has provide a broad, critical overview of film primarily from and about the “Third World”. In chapter one “From Eurocentrism to Polycentrism”, they reviewed standard criticism of view in literary in cinematic work. This essay is aims defined the stereotypical images and roles of African Americans in films. First of all, the movie “Tarzan, The Ape Man” is the fairly easy target for people interested in the perpetuation of anti-black stereotypes. Tarzan is presented as a naked savage who doesn’t learn to wear clothes. It’s racist when in the movie, when Tarzan warning Jane and her father that Tarzan, the owner of the jungles has killed beasts and many black men. He pelts animals with thrown objects to torment them. He kills animals for pleasure. To Tarzan all blacks are lower. Besides, in the movie, the Africans of the Mbongan tribe are cannibalism, superstitious, contemptible and debased. Here it come the love of Tarzan, Jane a “white” woman is defined as beautiful, and apparently resourceful and intelligent. However, Esmeralda...
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...they also receive it subconsciously in their mind (Subliminal Messages in Movies and Media). There have been many controversial issues concerning the usage of this technique (Subliminal Messages in Movies and Media). There were rumors stating that Bush has used subliminal messages in some of his campaign speeches in order to deliver hidden messages to the world (Subliminal Messages in Movies and Media). One example of this would have been when; “A similar accusation was made against a promotional film of the Liberal party of Canada, where after dissecting their ad, one could clearly see a gun being fired at the viewer” (Subliminal Messages in Movies and Media). The Bush promo is rumored to be filled to the brim with subliminal images of a disturbing nature: fire, explosions, terrified children, mutilation, ghost-like figures and several acts of violence” (Subliminal Messages in Movies and Media). In the manipulation of many viewers, it was first to be just a tested experiment that could determine the facts of subliminal messages (Subliminal Messages in Movies and Media). A movie theatre in New Jersey did an experiment to see if they could increase the refreshment sales by displaying popcorn and Coke on the screen before the Franklin 3 movie (Subliminal Messages in Movies and Media).This was supposed to make the audience want refreshments more if viewed on the television(Subliminal Messages in Movies and Media). The experiment was later seen as unethical and it was outlawed...
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...people in the society in order to control them. However, in modern society, the media is turning out to be yet another apparatus for controlling the minds of people. To most people, the pieces of art such as movies, magazines, documentaries and music in the media seem unique. However, all these products are no different from each other. The content in the media reflects the life of people in such a way that people would comprehend. Such a reflection occurs through reproduction of stereotypes which impacts profoundly on life in society (Wells 514). This paper examines the stereotypes mass media in more detail by considering the works of Betye Saar, the use of the concept in advertising and images in popular culture such as Aunt Jemima among others. The Liberation of Aunt Jemima Betye Saar is one of the few women who challenged the male artists’ dominance in the museum and gallery spaces in the 1970s. Some organizations such as The Gorilla Girl and Women Artists in Revolution did not only fight against male dominance in the world of art, but also advocated for a solution to social injustices and political issues affecting them. For this reason, Betye Saar, through her piece, addressed issues of gender as well as race. At that time, even though the American government had passed laws regarding voting rights and...
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...Biracial Identities within the African American and White Communities Black enough, white enough, light or dark enough are just a few aspects to a biracial individual’s physical perception. For many with one ethic background, understanding who and what they are tends to be reflections of the expectations that are held by society. Those who carry a dual ethnic background have dealt with many expectations of identification not only by society but by standards upheld culturally as well as a parental influence in regards to exposure to both ethnicities. From early interactions of blacks and whites, a slave master and his slaves operated with a purpose to erase blacks from society and purify the American race. These actions transitioned the views of biracial individuals into a focus of passing through society as color was essential and being too dark was detrimental. Historically, self identification and association with specific ethnic backgrounds were dismissed to fit society’s standards causing one to identify as more white than black. Passing through the early 20th century became an important component to a person deriving from the African American and White communities. Jim Crow laws and other governmental provisions denied many African Americans opportunities in everyday life because of their darker skin causing a huge jump for those who were biracial; black and white to take advantage of their light skin to “pass” in order to get through society. Light bright skin just...
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...asthma inhaler contains cocaine. Like Ronaldo, many minorities are stopped more often at airports and other locations for possession of illegal drugs because of America’s war on drugs. Why specifically does American society target minorities for illegal drugs? Minorities are more likely to be accused of smuggling drugs because they tend to come from enemy countries, have on average a lower socio-economic status, and are very associated with crime in the media. Minorities are more likely to be framed for illegal drug smuggling because of their association with America’s political enemies. Edward Said defines the Orient as America’s “contrasting image, idea, personality, experience” (Said 87). Since the Orient is America’s “contrasting image”, America has always attempted to put an “umbrella of Western hegemony” over the Orient. This is because America, according to Edward Said, views the Far East as something is very strange and different, or “a place of romance, exotic beings, haunting memories and landscapes” (Said 87). Not only does America view the Far East as a place of “haunting memories and landscapes”, America according to Benedict, “confus [es] hereditary traits with traits which are socially acquired” (Benedict 113). Racial profiling for drugs happens because American police associates certain “hereditary traits” of minorities with behaviors of people in America’s...
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...This week’s post was to discuss the relationship between ideas raised in this week's unit and a social justice issue that are prevalent today, or a social justice issue raised in the previous units. Pretty much all of my peers had a main focus on the social justice issue of racism. This has a lot to do with it being so prevalent today through the use of oppression and that it has led to many problematic situations for innocent people. In one example from the ColorLines video, Smooth (2016) did an interview with Arielle, who explained that not everyone’s oppression is the same since it is determined by many different factors and that people must keep in mind that some people are oppressed more than other people are. The class used a few different...
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...beauty. However, this is not unique to People or even magazines like it, but instead represents a larger trend that is present in all forms of Western popular culture. In the various mediums of popular culture, ideologies about female beauty are exceedingly prevalent and constantly managed and reproduced. These ideologies carry with them the notion that in order to obtain ideal female beauty one must be very thin, young, have long hair, and wear expensive or revealing clothing (Stern, 2004). In addition to this there is also a raced definition of beauty, which predominates Western popular culture and dictates that White women with light hair and eye color can only attain true beauty. By looking closely at fashion magazines, television shows, movies and advertisements it is easy to see how Asian, Black and Latina women are underrepresented and misrepresented; and more importantly beauty is not typically associated with these and other nonwhite races. The power and importance of popular culture in today’s society has further supported beauty ideologies that are racialized. Feminist and cultural scholars have often...
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...White privilege is an advantage in society that is unmerited. Though it is practiced in every day life (whether it’s subtle or not), the majority views it as “absurd” and “non-existent”. Whiteness and white privilege are taboos that create feelings of guilt, hostility and anger whenever discussed by people of colour (hooks, 339), but it must be addressed and understood in order to be eradicated. Racism shapes the lives of white people, not only the lives of people of colour (Frankenberg, 1). When white privilege is ignored, white people are able to maintain power and dominance in our “post-racial” society. (Mcintosh, 33). In this essay, I will argue that widespread media representation and housing opportunities are the most important features of white privilege, using ideas from Peggy McIntosh’s White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack, bell hooks’ Representing Whiteness in the Black Imagination and Ruth Frankenberg’s Introduction: Points of Origin, Points of Departure. Widespread representation is the most important feature of white privilege because we live in an age where the media not only reflects our real worldviews and attitudes, but also controls them. The second most important feature of white privilege is adequate housing opportunities. It is necessary for white people to acknowledge their part in benefiting from a society that has thrived on racial hierarchy and white supremacy for centuries and these two aspects are key in reaching that. Firstly, white...
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...Fallen, Hollywood attempts again at an action-packed, thriller prolepsis of a terrorist attack on the White House (Olympus). Bullet torned and blasted by explosives and rockets, the remnants of the White House provides a provocative reaction that quickly turns into a war for glory to reestablished America’s power and the superiority of its military power. Patriotism becomes justified killing of the North Korean terrorists as represented by the stereotypical Asian villains created by the social construct of race through mediums such as the media to perpetuate ideas and use facets of militarism such as war to instill these ideas and further reinstitute power and superiority of whites. The marginalization of Asian roles in militaristic movies allows for a profitable scapegoating of minorities. As seen in the gender roles of Asian men, the male Korean terrorists were prevalent, vicious, and needed to be exterminated, similar to Hollywood’s Rambo who slaughters many Vietnamese enemies in an act of justice and valor to protect one’s country. On the other hand, female Asian roles reflected Suzy Wong influences of a sexualized and submissive underling of the antagonist. But, the prevalence of Asian men in the movie, serves to out shadow the power of female roles of Asian (Dragon Lady – powerful and manipulative) to lesser roles of passiveness and controllability: the character serves no further purpose than doing the antagonist’s biding and be used as a sacrifice to divert attention...
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...The 2011 The Help, an adaptation of a 2009 book of the same name, was one of the most acclaimed movies of the film season. It was nominated for many industry awards, including Academy, Golden Globe, and Screen Actors Guild awards. The Help is based off the relationship of a white female journalist and two black maids in Jackson, Mississippi during the 1960’s. Eugenia “Skeeter” Phelan is the main protagonist. As a “home help” columnist for the Jackson Journal, she interviews Aibileen Clark (the second protagonist) for some remedial advice. Ms. Clark worked for Ms. Leefolt, who had a daughter Mae Maubly whom she adored. These interviews eventually evolve into journals about Aibileen’s life as a maid for white households. Although Aibileen is reluctant to tell her story (due to the danger), the death of Medger Evers and a sermon by her church minister convinced her to “do the right thing”. Ms. Clark manages to convince her good friend Minny Jackson into telling her story. Ms. Jackson was a maid for Mrs. Walters, an elderly woman and her daughter, Hilly Holbrook. Ms. Holbrook, the town’s racist gossip, advocated for separate bathrooms for house help because of “different diseases”. This belief lead to Minny’s firing after refusing to walk through a tornado to an outhouse to use the bathroom. Phelan grew disenfranchised with Holbrook’s racist attitudes, in part to her affection for her house help—Constantine Bates. She then got into contact with Harper & Row Publishing, which agreed...
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...COMM 3673 Test #2 Study Guide, Fall 2015 Media/Society, Ch. 6: Social Inequality & Media Representation · Comparing Media Content and the “Real World”: four issues raised by this comparison (pp. 188-189) o First – literature in media and cultural studies reminds us that representation are not reality, even if media readers or audiences may sometimes be tempted to judge them as such. § Representations are the result of process of selection that invariably mean that certain aspects of reality are highlighted and others neglected. § All representations re-present the social world in ways that are both incomplete and narrow. o Second – the media usually do not try to reflect the “real” world. o Creators of media products use entertainment media to comment on the real social world. Readers and audiences develop at least some sense of the social world through their exposure to both entertainment media and news media. · Third – Concerns the troublesome term real. o The concept of a “real” world may seem like a quaint artifact from the past. o Social constructionist perspective. § No representation of reality can ever be totally “true” or “real” because it must inevitably frame an issue and choose to include and exclude certain components of a multifaceted reality. o Fourth- Seems to imply that the media should reflect society. o For many people, media are an escape from the realities of daily life. o Therefore, how “real” media...
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...Cultural Moves AMERICAN CROSSROADS Edited by Earl Lewis, George Lipsitz, Peggy Pascoe, George Sánchez, and Dana Takagi 1. Border Matters: Remapping American Cultural Studies, by José David Saldívar 2. The White Scourge: Mexicans, Blacks, and Poor Whites in Texas Cotton Culture, by Neil Foley 3. Indians in the Making: Ethnic Relations and Indian Identities around Puget Sound, by Alexandra Harmon 4. Aztlán and Viet Nam: Chicano and Chicana Experiences of the War, edited by George Mariscal 5. Immigration and the Political Economy of Home: West Indian Brooklyn and American Indian Minneapolis, by Rachel Buff 6. Epic Encounters: Culture, Media, and U.S. Interests in the Middle East,1945–2000, by Melani McAlister 7. Contagious Divides: Epidemics and Race in San Francisco’s Chinatown, by Nayan Shah 8. Japanese American Celebration and Conflict: A History of Ethnic Identity and Festival, 1934–1990, by Lon Kurashige 9. American Sensations: Class, Empire, and the Production of Popular Culture, by Shelley Streeby 10. Colored White: Transcending the Racial Past, by David R. Roediger 11. Reproducing Empire: Race, Sex, Science, and U.S. Imperialism in Puerto Rico, by Laura Briggs 12. meXicana Encounters: The Making of Social Identities on the Borderlands, by Rosa Linda Fregoso 13. Popular Culture in the Age of White Flight, by Eric Avila 14. Ties That Bind: The Story of an Afro-Cherokee Family in Slavery and Freedom, by Tiya Miles 15. Cultural Moves: African Americans and the Politics of...
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...“Behind the Fair Façade” Representations of Femininity in Three Walt Disney Animated Features Bachelor Thesis Bethany Schouten, 3278972 Media en Cultuurwetenschappen Genderstudies Supervisor: Domitilla Olivieri May 31st, 2011 “Behind the Fair Façade” Representations of Femininity in Three Walt Disney Animated Features Bachelor thesis by Bethany Schouten, 3278972 Index Introduction 3 Methodological and theoretical Framework 4 Corpus 9 The Research: SNOW WHITE AND THE SEVEN DWARFS 11 The Research: THE LITTLE MERMAID 18 The Research: THE PRINCESS AND THE FROG 24 Findings and Interpretation 31 Identity Formation 35 Conclusion 38 Literature 41 Media 43 Introduction The Walt Disney Company’s cultural products have been a great influence on popular culture since the 1930s and an inspiration for generations all over the world ever since. For many, including myself, the Princes, Princesses and fantastical creatures of Disney’s animated fairy tales have become symbols of their youth. Seeing the films gives rise to a feeling of nostalgia, they become a memento of one’s childhood world. But what kind of world is this? What kind of realities do Disney’s fantastical representations construct? In my thesis, I will analyze a specific element of Disney films: gender roles constructed through the representation of femininity in their animated...
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