In Six Degrees of Separation, a 1990 Pulitzer Prize winning play, John Guare explores elite society’s perspectives on class, race, gender, sexuality and other pertinent social beliefs. With regard to racial tensions between white and blacks after the Civil Rights Movement, Guare deeply covers the oppression and brutality that black people face when surrounded by white society in the 1990s. Through the portrayal of the con-man protagonist as a black male, Guare is able to convey the challenged racial relationships within society. Benjamin Spock, a psychoanalyst of the late 20th-century, said that “Most whites have no idea what it feels like to be subjected to police who are routinely suspicious, rude, belligerent, and brutal.” This historical motif of police brutality easily conveys the perpetual moral backwardness of American society, …show more content…
The play, focused on Paul Poitier, a confident young man who cons a wealthy New York family to gain their sympathies and support, culminates in his brutal arrest and revelation of the naivety of rich, white people. While conversing with Ouisa about personally bringing him down to the police station, he notes, “Paul: I’ll be treated with care if you take me to the police. If they don’t know you’re special, they kill you. Ouisa: I don’t think they kill you. Paul: Mrs. Louisa Kittredge, I am black.” This exchange between Paul and Ouisa reveals the underlying tensions between the police and the black community due to the prior brutality inflicted upon blacks to control them. Paul explores the corruption that exists within the American police system by suggesting that the elite can escape brutality, especially for those associated with them. In order to escape death,
Both memoirs—John Griffin’s Black Like Me and Dick Gregory’s Nigger—examine race marginalization as it existed in mid-twentieth century America. Griffin’s Black Like Me intimately explores the discrimination against the black community by whites to expose the “truth” of racial relations and to “bridge the gap” of communication and understanding between the two races through a “social experiment”—an assumption of alterity (Griffin 1). In Nigger, Gregory also recounts personal racial discrimination as a black man trying to survive and succeed in a discriminatory society. But unlike Griffin’s experience, Gregory’s memoir progresses from a position of repressed “Other” to a more realized, dominant identity. However, the existence of a dual persona
Ranikine’s addresses the light upon the failed judicial systems, micro aggressions, pain and agony faced by the black people, white privilege, and all the racial and institutional discrimination as well as the police brutality and injustice against the blacks; The book exposes that, even after the abolition of slavery, how the racism still existed and felt by the colored community in the form of recently emerged ‘Micro aggressions in this modern world’. Claudia Rankine’s Citizen explores the daily life situations between blacks and whites and reveals how little offensive denigrating conversations in the form of micro-aggressions were intentionally conveyed to the black people by the whites and how these racial comments fuel the frustrations and anger among the blacks. She gathered the various incidents, where the black people suffered this pain. This shows the white’s extraordinary powers to oppress the black community and the failure of the legal system Rankine also shares the horrible tragedy of Hurricane Katrina experienced by the black community, where they struggled for their survival before and post the hurricane catastrophes.
The novel The Garies and their Friends is a realistic examination of the complex psychology of blacks who try to assimilate through miscegenation and crossing the color barrier by “passing as white.” Frank J. Webb critiques why blacks cannot pass as being white through the characters Mr. Winston and Clarence Jr.
From beginning to end the reader is bombarded with all kinds of racism and discrimination described in horrific detail by the author. His move from Virginia to Indiana opened a door to endless threats of violence and ridicule directed towards him because of his racial background. For example, Williams encountered a form of racism known as modern racism as a student at Garfield Elementary School. He was up to win an academic achievement prize, yet had no way of actually winning the award because ?The prize did not go to Negroes. Just like in Louisville, there were things and places for whites only? (Williams, 126). This form of prejudice is known as modern racism because the prejudice surfaces in a subtle, safe and socially acceptable way that is easy to rationalize.
In this particular play we are more focused on black identity in a sense as they are trying to find themselves, whether it be as an African American, woman or man. More in a sense they don’t feel complete because of the past and current circumstances that they are in. And just like the Dutchman, this play does deal with some racial discrimination. Herald Loomis is taken from his family to work for the fictitious “Joe Turner” chain gang.
Then, in the play, Wilson looks at the unpleasant expense and widespread meanings of the violent urban environment in which numerous African Americans existed th...
Jeff Hobbs’ book The Short and Tragic Life of Robert Peace follows the life of a young, black man named Robert Peace who moves from an impoverished childhood on the outskirts of Newark, to the mainly white dominated Yale University, and finally, to his untimely and unsolved murder (Hobbs, 2015). Jeff Hobbs depicts the unfortunate turn of events for the main character Robert Peace that eventually led to his death, and recounts many experiences that Rob had during his short life. Jeff, having been a roommate with Robert at Yale, thought that Robert’s life had been rocked with unfortunate situations from his childhood and when things seemed bright, tragedy struck time after time.
Brent Staples focuses on his own experiences, which center around his perspective of racism and inequality. This perspective uniquely encapsulates the life of a black man with an outer image that directly affects how others perceive him as a person. Many readers, including myself, have never experienced the fear that Staples encounters so frequently. The severity of his experiences was highlighted for me when he wrote, “It also made it clear that I was indistinguishable from the muggers who occasionally seeped into the area from the surrounding ghetto.” (135) Having to accept that fact as a reality is something that many people will never understand. It is monumentally important that Staples was able to share this perspective of the world so others could begin to comprehend society from a viewpoint different from their
In “Black Men in Public Spaces” the author talks about multiply situation where he was treated different for being an African American. Staples said,” I entered a jewelry store on the city’s affluent near North side. The proprietor excused herself and returned with an enormous red Doberman pinscher straining at the end of a leash” (161.) Then there is “Right Place, Wrong Face, which is focused on and African American man that is wrongly accused of a crime because of his race. White said, “I was searched, stripped of my backpack, put on my knees, handcuffed, and told to be quieted when I tried to ask questions” (229.) The two articles have many similarities. Both articles have two educated African America men who get treated different because of their race. Staples and White both have situations where they are being stereotyped by society because there black
The first social issue portrayed through the film is racial inequality. The audience witnesses the inequality in the film when justice is not properly served to the police officer who executed Oscar Grant. As shown through the film, the ind...
Through the film “In the Heat of the Night” racial tensions are high, but one character, the Chief of Police, Gillespie overcomes racial discrimination to solve a murder. The attitudes that he portrays in the film help us understand the challenges in changing attitudes of Southern white town towards the African Americans living there.
Some say that this play is racial in that the family is black, and what the family is going through could only happen to people of that race. One prominent racial is...
life in the mid to late twentieth century and the strains of society on African Americans. Set in a small neighborhood of a big city, this play holds much conflict between a father, Troy Maxson, and his two sons, Lyons and Cory. By analyzing the sources of this conflict, one can better appreciate and understand the way the conflict contributes to the meaning of the work.
His position in life can be regarded as symbolic of every black male struggling to provide for his family by any means necessary. Although Walter has a job, it seems inadequate for his survival. As a result, he has become frustrated and lacks good judgement. Throughout this play, Walter searches for the key ingredient that will make his life blissful. His frustrations stem from him not being able to act as a man and provide for his family and grasp hold of his ideals to watch them manifest into a positive situation.
I think this play is a lot about what does race mean, and to what extent do we perform race either onstage or in life: