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Social impacts of the reconstruction era
Political changes of the reconstruction era
Political changes of the reconstruction era
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The film “The Birth of a Nation” presents the perspective of the civil war, slavery, and reconstruction from the two different viewpoints of the Stoneman and the Cameron families. The Northern Stoneman family consists of two sons, Ted and Phil Stoneman, alongside their sister Elsie Stoneman, and their abolitionist father Austin Stoneman. The Camerons which are a southern slave holding family is made up of two sisters, Flora and Margaret Cameron, two sons, Wade Cameron and Colonel Ben Cameron, and their mother and father, Mrs. Cameron and Dr. Cameron (IMDb). As tensions between the north and south turns into full on war the Cameron and Stoneman boys prepare for the gruesome war to come ultimately leading to all of their deaths with the exception …show more content…
The location alternated between Piedmont, South Carolina, Washington D.C, and Pennsylvania (IMDb). The film presents the south as a serene and peaceful place where all live in harmony with the racial power set the way God intended it to be with whites on top. However, according to author Eric Foner the treatment of blacks in the white south was very inhuman and psychologically destructive. Throughout the film the blacks are seen as subordinate to whites in every aspect even cultivation. The prosecution of innocent blacks was rampant and uncontrolled throughout the entire south even for many years after reconstruction. The large majority of African American prosecutions were unjustified and without probable reason except for the sole purpose of different skin tone. Many southerners predominantly white males in this time period believed that God had set an order in which blacks belonged under whites and had no other purpose besides loyal servitude to their white masters. Ideologies such as these removed any possible human aspect of blacks and victimized them under a corrupt system. However, D.W Griffiths film “The Birth of a Nation”, manages to twist the truth and victimize whites by presenting blacks as the prosecutors of whites, savage, dumb, cruel, and incompetent. Following this, the film then presents the KKK as the saviors of the …show more content…
The protagonist and hero of our film Colonel Ben Cameron is portrayed as the honest and star struck lover who wants nothing but the love of his life by his side. Yet, this proves impossible with the newly corrupt and hate filled south created by the freed blacks, so Colonel Cameron devises the idea of the KKK on the stereotypical belief that all blacks are superstitious. Dressing as ghosts was an attempt to simply scare the blacks out of the south. Beliefs such as that of all blacks being highly superstitious and use of black face are some of the many racist aspects in “The Birth of a Nation”. The film even breaks down African Americans into a few categories The tom as the loyal slave who is always harassed and beat, the coon a black man who is viewed as lousy and good for nothing, pickanninies are the presentation of black children who were easily moved and had overly expressed features, the tragic mulatto from the one drop rule was a mixed black who was always angry because she had “corrupt” black blood, the mammy was the sexless, overweight female who cared for the kids, and the brutal black back who was centered around nothing but the desire for white women (Bogle 4-10). Each of these roles played a significant role in discriminately dividing the African American community into categories and expressing false differences between African Americans and
3) Stereotypes of Race “Who, Negroes? Negroes don’t control this school or much of anything else – haven’t you learned even that? No, sir, they support it, but I control it. I’s big and black and I say ‘Yes, suh’ as loudly as any burrhead when it’s convenient, but I am still the king down here” (Ellison
In class, we watched a film called Ethnic Notions. In this film, it brought to light how devastating and powerful images can be. Due to exaggerated images and caricatures created pre-civil war era of black men and women, stereotypes were created and have negatively affected the black race in society. Caricatures, such as the Sambo, Zip Coon, Mammy, and Brute, have unfortunately been engrained in the minds of generations. So much so their stereotypes still persist today.
Detrimental stereotypes of minorities affect everyone today as they did during the antebellum period. Walker’s subject matter reminds people of this, as does her symbolic use of stark black and white. Her work shocks. It disgusts. The important part is: her work elicits a reaction from the viewer; it reminds them of a dark time in history and represents that time in the most fantastically nightmarish way possible. In her own words, Walker has said, “I didn’t want a completely passive viewer, I wanted to make work where the viewer wouldn’t walk away; he would either giggle nervously, get pulled into history, into fiction, into something totally demeaning and possibly very beautiful”. Certainly, her usage of controversial cultural signifiers serve not only to remind the viewer of the way blacks were viewed, but that they were cast in that image by people like the viewer. Thus, the viewer is implicated in the injustices within her work. In a way, the scenes she creates are a subversive display of the slim power of slave over owner, of woman over man, of viewed over
“Two Towns of Jasper” may seem like a normal, modern day town but on the inside the citizens still hold ideas of segregation and racism. These ideas are then examined as the documentary investigates the trials of Bill King, Lawrence Brewer, and Shawn Berry. The three murderers tried for Byrd’s death were all Caucasian and in some way showed hatred toward African-Americans. Bill King and Lawrence Brewer had tattoos that represented the Aryan Nation, a public and political white pride organization, and Shawn Berry was also thought to have ties to the organization. When they beat and murdered Byrd the issue of race arouse and citizens began to question each other’s motives. African-Americans brought up issues of segregation and Caucasians tried to justify the segregation as a traditional way of life. Societal change was examined and made possible because cit...
Tatum examines what “Blackness,” means in a predominately white society and explores reasons why black adolescents begin to believe that they are inferior or in other words “not normal” in society, especially in academics where some black adolescents claim that “doing well in school is often identified as being White” (para. 30) which leads them to not give their education their maximum effort in the fear of being labeled as “too white” or simply just “not black”. She uses her son’s personal experiences as well as typical stories of how blacks are misunderstood in order to educate the reader as to how black people eventually develop a self-identity based on the implications of society and the situations that surround them. This can be seen when she says, “The stereotypes, omissions, and distortions that reinforce notions of White superiority are breathed in by Black children as well as white” (para. 10). In this quote Tatum further examines what “Whiteness” means in the same context and explains that since American society associates White people to be the normality, they are not able to create a well-balanced self-identity without it being based off of racial
In D. W. Griffith’s The Birth of a Nation the interactions between black and white characters represent Griffith’s view of an appropriate racial construct in America. His ideological construction is white dominance and black subordination. Characters, such as the southern Cameron’s and their house maid, who interact within these boundaries, are portrayed as decent people. Whereas characters who cross the line of racial oppression; such as Austin Stoneman, Gus and Silas Lynch, are portrayed as bad. Both Lynch and Lydia Brown, the mulatto characters, are cast in a very negative light because they confuse the ideological construct the most. The mixing of races puts blacks and whites on a common ground, which, in Griffith’s view, is a big step in the wrong direction. Griffith portrays how the relationship between blacks and whites can be good only if the color line and positions of dominance and subordination are maintained. Through the mulatto characters he illustrates the danger that blurring the color line poses to American society.
It is important that the culture is thoroughly researched so that it can be portrayed accurately. The historical context in which the culture is being described can affect the way the audience relates to the topic (Hall 272-273). The narrator tells the audience how his feelings towards his grandparents changed after he realized the truth about the world he lived in. The mistreatment of Africans and African Americans because of their skin color is shown throughout the novel. Even though some of the acts against them in the novel were horrendous, they were wronged far worse in the past. “I am not ashamed of my grandparents for having been slaves. I am only ashamed at myself for having at one time been ashamed. About eighty-five years ago they were told that they were free, united with others of our country in everything pertaining to the common good, and, in everything social, separate from the fingers of the hand. And they believed it. They exulted it. They stayed in their place, worked hard, and brought up my father to do the same” (Ellison 15). This novel takes places in the 1930’s and so the time period that narrator could be speaking about is the end of the civil war. The civil war ended slavery and made all African Americans free. Eighty-five years ago they were led to believe that they were just as free and would be treated as the whites had. They were told that they were equal with the whites when it came “the common good” and “everything social.” The dominant culture lied to them because it knew that if it made the African Americans feel welcome and feel part of the group, that it could manipulate them into acting how it wanted them to. African Americans wanted to show that they were equal to their white counter parts so they did exactly as they were told and made sure that they never fell out of line. It was
For many years, African Americans have faced the challenge of being accurately and positively portrayed within mainstream media, such as American made films. They are often represented as people who are inferior to those of the Caucasian race, and are frequently presented with problems that are related to racial discrimination. The portrayal of African Americans in media such as movies has often been considered a large contributing factor to the racial tensions that still exist in our world today (Lemons, 1977). The movie, To Kill a Mockingbird, sheds light on the portrayal of African Americans in movies, and how stereotypes can greatly impact the lives of those who are not of the Caucasian race.
The greatly acclaimed movie, Free State of Jones, has won great reputation for exposing the terror, invulnerability, and hardship that Blacks endured in the South into a two- hour long film. Like no other movie ever before produced, it brought about the realization of brutality that blacks underwent throughout their lives, even after being emancipated, to homes. The movie presented authentic facts that actually happened in the life of Newton Knight, the main protagonist who opposed to obey the protocol of the typical white Southerner, Democrat or racist. Free State of Jones is highly historically accurate in portraying characterization, events, and particular elements of the 19th century Civil War.
It especially had an effect on the families that lived in areas that were considered battlegrounds throughout the war. One family that we see is the Anderson family. Living in Shenandoah Valley in Virginia, patriarch widow Charlie Anderson is against slavery, but does not wish to betray his state and side with the Union. Due to his values, he chooses to keep his family out of the conflict unless provoked into it. After experiencing encounters with the Confederacy attempting to recruit his sons into the army and purchase his horse, his youngest son, Boy Anderson, is taken prisoner by the Union Army when he is wrongly accused of being a Rebel. This event is what ultimately sends Charlie over the edge and he decides to get involved in the war in order to get his son back. As they search for the boy, they come upon a train of captured Confederate soldiers which they eventually empty. Instead of finding the boy, they find his daughter’s newlywed husband, Sam, an event that happened solely because of chance. Meanwhile, James stays at the farm to care for his wife, Ann, and his newborn daughter, Martha. While working, James is approached by scavengers who murder him, go on to kill Ann, and ransack the Anderson home. After Charlie’s oldest son, Jacob, is shot by a surprised Confederate soldier the age of the boy, Charlie’s mental state begins to lose its bearings. He was aware of the consequences of war, unlike Joe, before he got involved. He knew the war could only bring pain and his predictions were brought to life with the death of two of his sons and a daughter-in-law. Just like when he lost his wife, Martha, Charlie became depressed and despised the war for taking more loved ones away from him. Unlike Joe, Charlie is able to use his remaining family to cope with the struggles of war. He is able to keep in touch with loved ones as well as the outside world, while
In The Marrow of Tradition, author Charles W. Chesnutt illustrates examples that signify the thoughts that whites had of and used against blacks, which are still very much prevalent in public opinion and contemporary media. Chesnutt writes, “Confine the negro to that inferior condition for which nature had evidently designed for him (Chesnutt, 533).” Although significant strides have been made toward equality, the media, in many instances, continues to project blacks as inferior to whites through examples observed in television shows, music videos, films and newscasts.
The Birth of a Nation is a story about the consequences of the Civil War
takes place in the south, where at the time, slaves were newly emancipated and things are
Before we get into the movie specifically, we should first talk about representation and how race is represented in the media in general. Representation is defined as the assigning of meaning through language and in culture. (CITE) Representation isn't reality, but rather a mere construction of reality and the meaning behind it. (CITE) Through representation we are able to shape how people are seen by others. Race is an aspect of people which is often represented in the media in different ways. Race itself is not a category of nature, but rather...
D. W. Griffith’s Birth of a Nation was one of the most controversial films of the 20th century. Praised by some and resented by others, it was one of the most popular films around the world for its time because of its chaotic effect on the general public. Set in the Civil War era, Birth of a Nation glorifies the Ku Klux Klan while portraying African Americans as reprobates whom sexually coerce white women. Many historians argue that the racist epic is responsible for the second Ku Klux Klan revival as well as a considerable amount of anti-black sentiment. While D. W. Griffith’s Birth of a Nation glorified the Ku Klux Klan and demonized African Americans, it actually helped African Americans gain support for equality.