In a record shop in Truro last summer I heard someone ask for a recording of the Pirates of Penzance. `Would they be a local group?' drawled the girl behind the counter. G & S had obviously lost their hold on late twentieth century Cornwall, but in late nineteenth century America the Mikado was a wow. Rival Mikado companies sprouted like alfalfa seed and sued each other with litigious fury over who had the proper performing rights. On one evening in 1886, a year after the first performance in England, there took place across the United States 170 separate performances of the opera, one of them probably in the newly christened town of Mikado, Michigan.
The Americans, on the whole quite a prudish lot, had trouble conceiving how Gilbert could decently call his town Titipu, or think there might be a bird called a tit-willow - after all they carry delicacy to the point of talking about chickadees - but they did not jib at the obvious racism of the opera. These days people are more easily offended. In our common room at Winchester we are not allowed to take the Sun, the most obvious voice of the people in the land, because the ladies are upset at the idea of all us lads lubriciously peeping at the boobs on page three, and performances of the Mikado inevitably must face up to the nigger problem - the offensive word occurs twice in the text: you will find commentators who argue that Gilbert must have meant someone who was blacked up. `The nigger serenader and others of his race' were on Ko-Ko's not so little list: I suppose `race' might just have been Gilbertian slang for `kind', with an ironic joke about temporally assumed nationality. Let's hope so.
Gilbert was only mirroring the indifference of the period to such matt...
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...nd elliptical billiard balls. The second trombone joke is lost on most of the audience: I imagine the point was that Sullivan always wanted a larger orchestra than could be easily squeezed into the Savoy pit. He was sorry to find himself limited to only one trombone. The second trombone is therefore a non-person, a true incognito for Nanki-Poo to adopt.
The big point about the Mikado is that it found Sullivan at the top of his form. The opera abounds in wonderful numbers and he never did anything more exquisite than Yum-Yum's aria to the sun and the moon at the beginning of the second act. Of course she isn't vain. She just sits and wonders, in her artless Japanese way, why it is that she is so much more attractive than anybody else in the whole world? Nature is lovely and rejoices in her loveliness. She is a child of Nature, and takes after her mother.
The Adventures of Huck Finn is a very controversial book which brings much debate on whether it should be taught to children in America. The main reason for this debate is because the offensive word ‘nigger’ is used commonly throughout. The book is a classic and is seen to some people as such a great book that we should overlook the offensive word to understand the real lessons Mark Twain wanted to get across. One solution to this ongoing debate is something called the New South Edition, which substitutes ‘nigger’ for a ‘slave’ a word that is less personal and describes the history of America. Dr. Alan Gribben writes about the controversy and how the change effects the new edition. He uses personal anecdote, emotional appeal, historical references.
This fictional, satirical follow-up to to Mark Twain’s 1876 novel is just as popular, although for most it’s for different reasons. The amount of times that the “n-word” is used is between 160 and 213 [2]. Since the 1950s, black parents and some white sympathizers have called this book out as being racist. As for my opinion on this, I never got why this was bad. Sure, it may seem racist to us, but in the context of it’s time, there’s really nothing wrong. That was the controversy of it, as for the story itself, it’s a classic in it’s own right.
How would you feel if an author published a book that contained a word that was once used frequently but has now developed into one of the most derogatory and unfriendly things a person can say? Since 1884, when the book was first published, there has been much controversy regarding the use of the word “nigger” in the novel The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, by Mark Twain. Many people all over the world, predominantly the African-American population, feel that the word demoralizes the Blacks, and feel that the novel should be strongly censored from society. Some say that the constant use of the “n-word” forces the reader to conceive one of the main characters, Jim (Huck’s slave friend), as a buffoon, and it therefore embarrasses the African-American community through the use of stereotype. Although it may be hard for many people to read it without having a negative reaction, the censorship of this American classic would be preposterous. As one reads this novel, one can begin to notice that the main character, Huckleberry Finn, reached a turning point with his troublesome behavior and slowly but surely began to mature and settle down into adulthood. Mark Twain actually used the relationship of Jim and Huck to portray the moral values these characters come to learn and, therefore, his book should not in any way be censored or be kept away from the classrooms. This message is more powerful than the usage of the n-word in the novel.
...n's Racism Goes Beyond the N-Word: African-Americans have Every Right to be Offended at being 'Invisibled Out' by Mark Twain [Eire Region]." The Times: 18. ProQuest Newsstand. 2011. Web. 5 Apr. 2011 .
A lot of people want to know about the writing of Mark Twain. Mark Twain’s writings are widely known around the world. ” English teachers are always saying that Mark Twain is the greatest author in American literature.” Stated Dr. Engel in his lecture called “The Genius of Mark Twain.” Mark Twain has been criticized a lot by people about his writings. Especially his novel called The Adventures of huckleberry Finn. The only reason he received as much criticism as he did for that novel was because one specific word. That word is powerful too. This word can be used by one person in the wrong way and shut down a community, a family, and maybe even a life. That word is the word “nigger.” We are not even going to get into that subject right now because that is not what we are here to talk about. People always
Christmas and Opera did not merely seem to correlate, but understanding where the two events derived from can help one to understand the similarities and differences between them. The development of Christmas was different from the creation of opera because the working class was controlling the other social classes for profit. Whereas for opera, the different social classes unified to keep opera as entertainment and not a social event. Another difference came within the writing and context throughout the article and the presentation of information conveyed by the author. Yet the events share the similarity of both being refined and reinvented.
The Bard of Avon’s tragic play Othello expresses racism; there is no doubt about this among most critics. However, to what degree – to a vulgar extent? Or to an excusable level?
Ostlere, Hilary. “Taming The Musical.” Dance Magazine 73.12 (1999): 84. Expanded Academic ASAP. Westfield State College Library, MA. 15 April 2005.
Make no mistake that slave owners came up with the word Nigger and it was only supposed to mean an individual, who is lazy, unwise, and good for nothing, but somewhere along the history lines of slavery the N word began to be used more as racial insult against the non-white Americans of that era. It would also be irrational for one to assume or to contemplate that slaves did not poke fun at their masters after a hard working day at the cotton plantations. That is why for that reason it should come to no surprise that the black African Americans invented comedy back during the slavery era. It is believed that “slaves were treated with favour for putting smiles on their master’s face by the way they performed and slave masters would take turns to send their slave performers off to a neighbouring plantation to amuse another family, as well as showing off the talented darkie the senders posed”(Littleton, 2006.p.7).
There are many racists’ people in the novel. The story has people that definitely had racism in their younger years, such as the butcher, but by the end of the book they are not directly being racist. They still make jokes and comments, but have ‘matured’.
Kenrick, John. Musical Theatre A History. New York: The Continuum International Publishing Group, 2008. Print.
The word nigger is an offensive term used by a white slave owner during the 1800’s. It is used in the beginning of a slaves name to indicate that this person is a slave. It comes from the Spanish word negro and the French word nègre. It is one of the most offensive and controversial words in the English language. With this word comes many years of immoral and unethical treatment of the black man by the white race. This word is used in the book Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain. One of the 60 minutes videos is on the controversy on the N-word in the book Huck Finn. Stating that many different school districts have banned this book because of the word “nigger,” a word so offensive it’s usually called the “N- word.”
Theatre has heavily evolved over the past 100 years, particularly Musical Theatre- a subgenre of theatre in which the storyline is conveyed relying on songs and lyrics rather than dialogue. From its origination in Athens, musical theatre has spread across the world and is a popular form of entertainment today. This essay will discuss the evolution and change of musical theatre from 1980-2016, primarily focusing on Broadway (New York) and the West End (London). It will consider in depth, the time periods of: The 1980s: “Brit Hits”- the influence of European mega musicals, the 1990s: “The downfall of musicals”- what failed and what redeemed, and the 2000s/2010s: “The Resurgence of musicals”- including the rise of pop and movie musicals. Concluding
Danson, Lawrence. The Harmonies of The Merchant of Venice. Great Britain: Yale University Press, 1978. Print.
The first point of the novel from which most controversy stems is the inclusion of the word “nigger”. The inclusion of the word in The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is unnecessary and offensive. Initially, critics of the novel disliked Twain’s use of vernacular because it was “vulgar and unpleasant”, disturbing genteel white Americans, not because the word “nigger” was found to be offensive (Kaye 3). Fostering an uncomfortable atmosphere for black students, critics believe that primarily white educators allow the novel because they prefer Twain’s depiction of subservient blacks (Kaye 4). Due to the prolific use of the “n-word” throughout the novel, the NAACP believes the story causes damage to black students’ self-esteem (Powell 3). Critics argue Twain’s use of a...