The omnipotent whiteness: the treatment of Civil Rights in the American Hollywood cinema. Three paradigmatic examples of commercial success

The presence of the African-American community in North American cinema dates back of the beginning of the seventh art. However, the relationship between the representation of whites and blacks on the screen was always uneven. With the passing of time Hollywood has seen an evolution in the forms of...

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Main Author: Cossalter, Javier
Format: Online
Language:spa
Published: Centro de Investigaciones y Estudios sobre Cultura y Sociedad 2018
Subjects:
Online Access:https://revistas.unc.edu.ar/index.php/eticaycine/article/view/22771
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author Cossalter, Javier
author_facet Cossalter, Javier
author_sort Cossalter, Javier
collection Portal de Revistas
description The presence of the African-American community in North American cinema dates back of the beginning of the seventh art. However, the relationship between the representation of whites and blacks on the screen was always uneven. With the passing of time Hollywood has seen an evolution in the forms of approach to the rights of blacks in their films. However, this alleged inclusive policy manifests, in an underlying way, a solid segregationist root. The purpose of this article is to analyze three films from different eras concerning the issue of Civil Rights, made in Hollywood by white filmmakers, to examine how, through different strategies, the white man positions himself in a place of power. Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner (Stanley Kramer, 1967), Mississippi Burning (Alan Parker, 1988) and The Help (Tate Taylor, 2011) are commercially successful films that address the problems of blacks from a supposedly revalorizing approach but that deep down they hold a strong racist spirit.
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spelling oai:ojs.revistas.unc.edu.ar:article-227712019-07-31T16:08:49Z The omnipotent whiteness: the treatment of Civil Rights in the American Hollywood cinema. Three paradigmatic examples of commercial success La omnipotente blancura: el tratamiento de los Derechos Civiles en el cine norteamericano de Hollywood. Tres ejemplos paradigmáticos de éxito comercial Cossalter, Javier Hollywood Blancos y negros Derechos Civiles Racismo Hollywood Whites and blacks Civil rights Racism The presence of the African-American community in North American cinema dates back of the beginning of the seventh art. However, the relationship between the representation of whites and blacks on the screen was always uneven. With the passing of time Hollywood has seen an evolution in the forms of approach to the rights of blacks in their films. However, this alleged inclusive policy manifests, in an underlying way, a solid segregationist root. The purpose of this article is to analyze three films from different eras concerning the issue of Civil Rights, made in Hollywood by white filmmakers, to examine how, through different strategies, the white man positions himself in a place of power. Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner (Stanley Kramer, 1967), Mississippi Burning (Alan Parker, 1988) and The Help (Tate Taylor, 2011) are commercially successful films that address the problems of blacks from a supposedly revalorizing approach but that deep down they hold a strong racist spirit. La presencia de la comunidad afroamericana en el cine norteamericano data desde los inicios del cinematógrafo. No obstante, la relación entre la representación del blanco y del negro en la pantalla fue siempre desigual. Con el correr del tiempo Hollywood ha vislumbrado una evolución en las formas de aproximación a los derechos de los negros dentro de sus films. Sin embargo, esta pretendida política inclusiva manifiesta, de modo subyacente, una sólida raíz segregacionista. El propósito de este artículo consiste en analizar tres films de diferentes épocas en torno a la temática de los Derechos Civiles, realizados en Hollywood por cineastas blancos, para examinar cómo a través de diversas estrategias el hombre blanco se posiciona en un lugar de poder. Tanto Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner (Stanley Kramer, 1967) como Mississippi Burning (Alan Parker, 1988) y The Help (Tate Taylor, 2011) son películas de gran éxito comercial que abordan las problemáticas de los negros desde un supuesto enfoque revalorizador pero que en el fondo sostienen un fuerte espíritu racista. Centro de Investigaciones y Estudios sobre Cultura y Sociedad 2018-11-01 info:eu-repo/semantics/article info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion application/pdf https://revistas.unc.edu.ar/index.php/eticaycine/article/view/22771 10.31056/2250.5415.v8.n3.22771 Ética y Cine Journal; Vol. 8 Núm. 3 (2018): Fanatismos; 23-32 2250-5415 2250-5660 10.31056/2250.5415.v8.n3 spa https://revistas.unc.edu.ar/index.php/eticaycine/article/view/22771/23040 Derechos de autor 2018 Ética&Cine Journal
spellingShingle Hollywood
Blancos y negros
Derechos Civiles
Racismo
Hollywood
Whites and blacks
Civil rights
Racism
Cossalter, Javier
The omnipotent whiteness: the treatment of Civil Rights in the American Hollywood cinema. Three paradigmatic examples of commercial success
title The omnipotent whiteness: the treatment of Civil Rights in the American Hollywood cinema. Three paradigmatic examples of commercial success
title_alt La omnipotente blancura: el tratamiento de los Derechos Civiles en el cine norteamericano de Hollywood. Tres ejemplos paradigmáticos de éxito comercial
title_full The omnipotent whiteness: the treatment of Civil Rights in the American Hollywood cinema. Three paradigmatic examples of commercial success
title_fullStr The omnipotent whiteness: the treatment of Civil Rights in the American Hollywood cinema. Three paradigmatic examples of commercial success
title_full_unstemmed The omnipotent whiteness: the treatment of Civil Rights in the American Hollywood cinema. Three paradigmatic examples of commercial success
title_short The omnipotent whiteness: the treatment of Civil Rights in the American Hollywood cinema. Three paradigmatic examples of commercial success
title_sort omnipotent whiteness the treatment of civil rights in the american hollywood cinema three paradigmatic examples of commercial success
topic Hollywood
Blancos y negros
Derechos Civiles
Racismo
Hollywood
Whites and blacks
Civil rights
Racism
topic_facet Hollywood
Blancos y negros
Derechos Civiles
Racismo
Hollywood
Whites and blacks
Civil rights
Racism
url https://revistas.unc.edu.ar/index.php/eticaycine/article/view/22771
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