Angelica Hilliard
Soc 4800
November 9, 2016
Film Analysis: Favela Rising
In the documentary Favela Rising, the viewer is immersed in Brazil's “shanty town”; also known as Favelas. The opening scene shows a child flying a kite, families bathing in the street and men with their face covered cleaning weapons while helicopters whirled overhead. The audience also receives startling statistics of young people being murdered. From 1987-2001, 3,937 minors were murdered in a single city of Brazil (2:06). The narrator of this documentary is Anderson Sa. Sa grew up in the favela looking up to drug lords and wanting to emulate their lifestyle. He was a former drug-trafficker in Rio de Janeiro’s most feared slum. Sa later realized his criminal activity
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Unfortunately, even with a highly visible police presence throughout Rio, the favelas are a different story. Average citizens often find themselves unprotected and frequently caught in the crossfire of police or criminal activity. Over the years the Brazilian government has taken a number of different approaches in dealing with favelas; from programs to eradicate the favelas to efforts to provide or improve infrastructure and permanent housing. The children of the favela spend many days in front of worn-down cultural center buildings, beating on old water bottles and cans, and singing in harmony. In August 1993 the city and the residents of Vigario Geral would never be the same (13:00). The police had lost four of their own and were on a bloody rampage, killing innocent men, women and …show more content…
Sa befriended Junior and looked to him for guidance and was subsequently introduced to Afro-Brazilian dance. Between Sa and Junior, they rallied within their community to counteract the violent oppression. They chose to sing about the truth, and shared experiences, geared towards bolstering the self-esteem of the people and to give validation to Afro-Brazilian culture. The citizens in the favela lacked the encouragement and needed guidance to bring self-esteem and pride into their lives. For the people in the favelas they needed something to redirect their lives, this meant great changes ahead. There were music workshops with African drumming, hip-hop, dance, martial arts along with politics and spiritualism. Junior stated “Nothing could be left up to outside authorities”; It was the beginning of a new consciousness. A seemingly defeated people infected were now rejuvenated with a new sense of idealism. In the Hindu religion, Shiva is the Goddess of destruction and transformation. We are a Shiva effect”. The changes started by introducing children and young people to music, dance, and art instead of crime. Percussion and afro-dance workshops were introduced the people with the aim to engage young people with meaningful and creative activities. Afro Reggae was born as a way to promote the group’s actions and ideology. Unfortunately
In Samba, Alma Guillermoprieto describes the Carnival celebrated every year in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil and explores the black cultural roots from which it takes its traditions as well as its social, economic, and political context in the 1980s. From her firsthand experience and investigation into favela life and the role of samba schools, specifically of Manguiera, Guillermoprieto illustrates a complex image of race relations in Brazil. The hegemonic character of samba culture in Brazil stands as a prevalent theme in numerous facets of favela life, samba schools, and racial interactions like the increasing involvement of white Brazilians in Carnival preparation and the popularity of mulatas with white Brazilians and tourists. Rio de Janeiro’s early development as a city was largely segregated after the practice of slavery ended. The centralization of Afro-Brazilians in favelas in the hills of the city strengthened their ties to black
Living in poverty brings high tensions and people tend to lose it. The use of alcohol is a contributor of the excess violence in the favelas. Many men and women begin to fight about the littlest thing, but it expands to a large issue as a result of the alcohol. Carolina recounts whenever a fight breaks out, “I was giving lunch when Vera came to tell me there was a fight in the favela” (de Jesus 63). These incredibly common vicious fights are entertainments to people living in the favelas. It is so familiar that whenever a fight breaks out people just enjoy it as if it were a show. As Carolina being the great hero she is, she regularly breaks up the
Philadelphia is the heights rat of crim in the USA over 30-40 homicides crimes per month and drug related crimes. This links in with the other text that we are looking at, the novel “Damage done” and how is shows that sometimes facts get in the way of a good story. This all promotes the current view Australia has one drugs, the way that there is supposably an ice epidemic happing. This document follows Theroux around Philadelphia’s drug action streets while he does interviews with the criminals and follows the police around finding out what is really happing out on the streets of Philadelphia. Some events that where selected to promote this view to the audiences was the interview with the street boys, showing just how carpeted Philadelphia is how they talk of “code of silence – never snitch!”. There was all so the confronting images of the dead body left in the abandoned house, from a suspected over does on ice. The drug issue in Philadelphia is represented in way that it controls the streets nothing ever happens unless its drug related. These parts have been purposely highlighted throughout the documentary to get the most dramatic message across to the views, as dose the novel. Tis representation achieves the goal of getting the message across of how street gangs and drugs are becoming to rules the streets. This message impacts and effects the way the audients sees this type of action and making them believe that it is taking place all around them. This documentary is to inform and promote the understanding of these types of actions, this is all so done with some help of filming
Marcus Garvey once said, “The Black skin is not a badge of shame, but rather a glorious symbol of national greatness,” exemplifying not only that the African blood that flows through our veins is indeed wonderful, but is more a national treasure than a national tragedy. Countries across the world, in some form have been altered by the touch of the African influence whether that is socially and/or culturally. The same fate lies with the islands of the Caribbean, especially the island of Puerto Rico located in the Greater Antilles. Of all the African influential branches, Puerto Rican music would be one social phenomenon to be ultimately shaped and modified by African influence directly. Beginning with the African slaves, this paper covers the musically genres created over time containing West African elements, as well as covering the ways in which the Puerto Rican society influenced the music as well as how the music effected the society. This paper will also include the ways in which African descendants in Puerto Rico [musicians] would rise to fame despite existing in an era of open racism. Ultimately, explaining how the music and the people go hand in hand.
In the favela of São Paulo, Brazil, 1958, Carolina Maria de Jesus rewrote the words of a famous poet, “In this era it is necessary to say: ‘Cry, child. Life is bitter,’” (de Jesus 27). Her sentiments reflected the cruel truth of the favelas, the location where the city’s impoverished inhabited small shacks. Because of housing developments, poor families were pushed to the outskirts of the city into shanty towns. Within the favelas, the infant mortality rate was high, there was no indoor plumbing or electricity, drug lords were governing forces, drug addiction was rampant, and people were starving to death. Child of the Dark, a diary written by Carolina Maria de Jesus from 1955 to 1960, provides a unique view from inside Brazil’s favelas, discussing the perceptions of good
Although there is a variety of music that could be examined to trace its evolution through time, there is one genre in particular that is quite interesting to examine. Though it differs from other types of music, it will be looked at in conjunction with Reggae music as they have similar ties. Reggae music is quite prominent today in the United States, parts of Africa, and of course Jamaica. Reggae is notoriously known for its most influential artist Bob Marley, and it is not unusual for one to have heard a few, if not many of his songs. Reggae’s popularity is steadily increasing and is doing so through both expansions of the music as well as increasing knowledge on the genre.
Since its founding in the 1930s, the Rastafarian movement has grown to the point where it has become a major cultural and political force in Jamaica. During its existence, the movement has challenged Jamaica's neo-colonialist society's attempts to keep whites at the top and blacks at the bottom of the socio-economic structure.
Reggae The Story Of Jamaican Music BBC Documentary. vols., 2012. Online. Internet. 22 Mar. 2014. . Available: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wv1Iy26qlLk&feature=youtube_gdata_player.
To watch City of God is to be forced to enter, from a safe distance, the ruthless and merciless hoods of Rio de Janeiro. The captivating and poignant film guides viewers through the realistic aspects of slum life experienced by young, underprivileged youth in the favelas of Rio de Janeiro, some aspects that not even most middle class Brazilians get to see. In a city where police are fraudulent, opportunities are scarce and crime is widespread, many youths believe there is no alternative to gang activity. In City of God, director Fernando Meirelles puts to the forefront of Brazilian cinema the real issues that favelas in Brazil face like poverty, extreme violence and stereotypical gender roles in a male dominated society. City of God encapsulates the hope of Rio’s impoverished blacks for social and economic ascension.
Brazil is a film which rolls up all of the problems which society was experiencing at the time that it was made into one darkly humorous movie. Commercialism, terrorism, technology, bureaucracy and government control, cosmetic surgery and the lack of freedom and individual expression. This movie was not mainstream because of the way that it delivered its message, and also perhaps simply because the government suppressed it somewhat. However, this film provided great insight into these problems, and continues to do so today, as many of these problems continue to exist. Brazil aims to highlight these problems and make the viewer think about what they have seen. This movie was not intended to change the world, but simply to try to prevent it from spiralling down into a dystopian Brazil-like chaos.
...tem. These traits are typical of what has happened throughout history when normal people become subordinate to new and oppressive bureaucracies. It seems that all a treacherous government needs in order to normalize the most disgusting violations of basic human rights is a convincing façade of efficiency. It could be said that the American Dream plays that role in current American society, that it is purely a façade to blind our eyes to the larger system. If the system succeeds in preventing people from gaining awareness of the larger picture, and indeed further compartmentalizes every aspect of life, the line between just and false laws become blurred. Gilliam uses “Brazil” to bring these often overlooked problems with government to the forefront of his viewer’s mind, making apparent that no element of human life is safe from this type of unconscious degeneration.
Music is an art form and source of power. Many forms of music reflect culture and society, as well as, containing political content and social message. Music as social change has been highlighted throughout the 20th century. In the 1960s the United States saw political and socially oriented folk music discussing the Vietnam War and other social issues. In Jamaica during the 1970s and 1980s reggae developed out of the Ghetto’s of Trench town and expressed the social unrest of the poor and the need to over-through the oppressors. The 1980’s brought the newest development in social and political music, the emergence of hip-hop and rap. This urban musical art form that was developed in New York City has now taken over the mainstream, but originated as an empowering art form for urban youth and emerging working class.
Music is a form of communication, letting others knows what is going on in the country, political, social or economic and any other problems the people of the Caribbean faced. With so many different ethnic backgrounds in the Caribbean, they are people with Asians, Indians, and Africans descents. This created a language and culture barrier but each ethnic background shared a common link music. Music bridged the gap between the different ethnicities Music is part of everyone’s culture especially here in the Caribbean. Our culture is recognized worldwide for its music. The Caribbean has different genres of music such as calypso, reggae, dance hall, zouk and many others. Our music has roots in both African and European cultures. The drum rhythm comes from the African in...
It was a symbol for both identity and pride among the people, which then led to the music being influenced by the Rastafari. It was apparent in the lives, lyrics, and performances of the musicians. The music became more than just entertainment. It became one the main mediums for political and social remarks. Reggae music became a threat to the Jamaican government. This period awakened the Jamaican people to a new age of consciousness in which many people would experience a fundamental transformation of identity. This period allowed for African Jamaicans to have black pride and to speak out against the injustice in their country. Along with the new identity came a new voice for the masses, new forms of self-presentation, and a new relationship between the African and Jamaican
Music has played a role in society since the dawn of man. Said to be the beginning of communication in early civilization, music and dance have influenced how we think, act and treat members of our own society. Song and dance is used in rites of passage ceremonies such as births, weddings and funerals throughout the world. Jamaican and Yoruba cultures have made many contributions to our society. The uses of this music as a vehicle for political issues, values, and beliefs have been used by many musicians from different cultures. I intend to discuss the Contribution of these two contemporary cultures music and their effect on society.