Degree Name

Master of Arts (MA)

Semester of Degree Completion

2002

Thesis Director

Tim Engles

Abstract

The desire for heroism never wavers in the imaginations of the movie-going public. When we go to the movies, we long to see a strong character, poised to save the world (tights and cape optional, of course). However, we rarely question what the hero looks like. Hollywood perpetuates an archaic form of heroism because that is what the audience has formed long ago in their collective imagination. Much of American culture is generated by the desire to see self-starters making it in the direst of conditions.

With such a narrow construction of heroism, Hollywood has become void of equal representation of the movie-going public. A pre-packaged product is shipped to us in every canister of film. In the case of heroism, some man (it's almost always a man) fits a list of impossible and arbitrary criteria that includes being white, heterosexual, strong, Christian, and alone. This representation is both racist and sexist, both in the constant forefronting of it instead of other heroic possibilities, and in its continual reliance on subordinated Otherness to define itself. As this thesis will explain in detail, two flaws emerge with this outdated representation of heroism: 1) The relationships that help establish the hero go unexamined, and 2) There are few heroes that challenge the current system.

Using three offerings from popular film (The Matrix, Unbreakable, and O), I analyze interracial hero relationships, specifically the pairing of African American males with white males. The Matrix (1999) and Unbreakable (2000), make explicit use of the outdated system of interracial pairings, pitting a white hero with a nonwhite as a catalyst (as in The Matrix), or against one as a nemesis (as in Unbreakable). As this thesis will also explain, Hollywood has made a few attempts to debunk the standard white vs. black dichotomy by allowing antiheroes to be played by nonwhites, as in O (2001), though this film ultimately also falls back on the archaic system. However, there is hope to be found in the independent market. Suture (1993) presents two brothers whom the audience is supposed to believe are similar in appearance. The challenging twist for the audience is that although the characters are presented as brothers, one is played by a markedly white actor, and the other by a man who is undoubtedly black. The film forces the audience out of its comfort zone because they must actively think about the associations between race and class and how that combination effects a person's position within the hierarchy.

As a result of Hollywood's typically racist and limiting portrayal of nonwhites, stock characters are underdeveloped, even though they play an integral part in the formation of the hero. Additionally, these stock characters remain locked into a role that neither shows a full range and depth of humanity nor focuses on their potential for attaining hero status, whereas their white counterparts are developed in such ways. However, a few elements have arisen to aid in breaking open the myth that only lone white males aided by supposedly inferior black males can attain hero status, such as nonwhite Hollywood actors who demand heroic roles, the tremendous growth in the independent film market, and continued interdisciplinary research into this area.

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