I agree with Bell Hook's assertions of how the media has its way of furthering various forms of oppression such as racism, sexism and misogyny. When Bell Hooks questioned the movie director about why he chose a young black male to play the thief, the director had no legitimate justification besides the fact that it would make the movie more compelling. This example furthers the idea of white supremacy in our society because it supports the stereotype of young black males being inferior by how quickly they can be categorized as criminals. Additionally, it was interesting how Bell Hooks noted that the difference between students at Yale and students in Harlem, wasn't so much on an intellectual level, but a level of entitlement. The students at Yale were well aware of their entitlement to various opportunities in their future, where as the students in Harlem didn't have the same imagination or sense of entitlement nor did their professors try to enhance their education with critical thinking.
The way celebrities represent themselves also influences oppression in our society. In her early days as a star, Madonna was perceived as a feminist aiming to challenge the sexism of the music industry. However, in the process of reinventing herself, she basically went against her previous feminist principles by portraying herself provocatively in magazines to make more money. It's unfortunate that greed could drive a feminist role model for young woman to easily succumb to patriarchy. Madonna is just one example of how icons will represent themselves in whatever way has the highest profit potential regardless of whether it coincides with their beliefs or not. As Bell Hooks mentioned in her video, popular culture portrays the idea that the only color that matters in this society is green.
Hey cai58!
ReplyDeleteI also found it interesting that the director had nothing to say about why he cast that black actor as the thief when the original story didn't even mention that at all. It does seem most likely that he made that decision based on stereotypes of black people being criminals and white people being victims.
Regarding Madonna - I don't know if I actually find it so shocking that she used patriarchy in order to reinvent herself because when she was a "feminist" she used sex in order to become famous. It sort of seems like she is willing to do anything in order to get money.
I love that you chose the movie director's choice of a black thief because I had almost forgotten about this part of Hook's discussion. Seeing as the director was Asian also interested me because one would think he would have a wider expansion of culture and bias. This can also be explained while you post about the equal knowledge capacity of the Yale and Harlem students.
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