Cultural Creations: Confronting Stereotypes
The documentary “Ethnic Notions” by Marlon Riggs is an important analysis of the perception of Black people during the Antebellum south and after the Civil War. Historically the movie presents five main caricatures that were used to define and suppress Black people, they were known as the mammy, pickaninny, sambone, coon, and uncle. The mammy was a character that was constantly used in entertainment to show how slavery kept Black women docile, and more than that offered justification as to why slavery was a good system. The mammy was portrayed to love the work she did and took “pride” in it. She worked and lived for her master, but within her own family was presented as the controller. The idea that Black men are weak, which means their wives have to run the household, unlike White families where the man is strong and in control was a continually perpetuated stereotype. This also pushes the idea that Black women weren’t what White people considered feminine or attractive, which makes them seem non-threatening to the household. All of these factors contributed to White people’s beliefs that black people and their families are uncivilized, which makes slavery not only a good institution, but something they need to become civilized. .
Before the Civil War Black people were seen as joyous and docile in their servitude as slaves and after the Civil War the narrative turns them into a new caricature known as the brute. The brute was portrayed as aggressive and uncontrollable. The brute justified the perception of Black people as less than and pushed the idea that without slavery they would continue to revert to the savages they once were. Even though these caricatures aren’t as blatant as they once were there are still tropes that Black people often fall into. A few are the Black Rambo and the comic relief character. In the documentary, Fredrickson describes The Black Rambo as a sidekick to the White character and is portrayed to act more violently. This character also reaffirms the presumption that Black people are more formidable than they are, meaning the utmost violence should be used against them. This can be seen in hospitals where the concerns of Black women are taken less seriously or how Black men are mass incarcerated and treated with brutality by police. The Black rambo can be interpreted as the modern day brute in this sense.
The comic relief character is also another modernized trope of the Sambo. It continues this narrative that Black people are always satirical and entertaining. It characterizes Black people as having the incapability to feel deeper emotions or any softness in their behavior other than anger and laughter. These tropes continue to affect black people today and aren’t as far removed from the fabric of our society as many seem to think. Like Bert Williams, modern Black actors still find their path to be on stage very narrow due to cast typing and stereotypes. There has been change on the horizon for Black roles with Halle Bailey playing Ariel and Rachel Zegler as Snow White in live action adaptations. Still these women have to fit a very tight standard to be consumable for modern audiences who still hold white values as the ideal.
Work Cited
“Ethnic Notions.” Films On Demand, Films Media Group, 1987, https://fod.infobase.com/PortalPlaylists.aspx?wID=103806&xtid=49775.