“An American Folk Opera.” George Gershwin’s most successful piece of expansive musical drama was subtitled with this term that no musician or critic had applied to a work of musical drama before the 1935 premiere of Porgy and Bess. Much has been written about the work’s subtitle; its literal meaning, its evolution, and its implications for a changing cultural landscape. Porgy and Bess was the last in a triptych of literature and theater surrounding the character of Porgy, a crippled beggar living
portraying history. Whether in the form of cave drawings or sculptures, this art was a tangible representation of the culture, history, and perspectives of the artist and his resulting personal interpretations. As language and writing developed, art never weakened, and illustrations continued to serve as unique perspectives throughout history. In many cases, these illustrations serve as valid representations of history. These paintings can prove documentary-like in that they accurately delineate a specific
Washington Crossing the Delaware is an oil-on-canvas painting by German American artist Emanuel Gottlieb completed in 1851. This painting is used as a reference of the day when General George Washington crosses the Delaware River with his continental army on the night of December 25, 1776, during the American Revolutionary War. This event is considered to be the first move in a sudden attack done against the German Hessian allied mercenary forces at Trenton, New Jersey in the Battle of Trenton which
Representation of race and gender is effortlessly shown throughout the American medical drama series, Grey’s Anatomy. It was released on ABC television in 2005 and continued to air until 2016. It narrates five medical students in Seattle, Washington’s hospital in which they all progress through the seasons to become a doctor. They also goas well through drama and difficult situations, while trying to keep their personal love lives maintained. “One of the best things in Grey’s Anatomy is that none
In recent times American society has fought for equality for all American citizens. American society has made positive strides to reach equality, one can witness this on certain levels and power has been achieved by minorities over the last few decades. Nevertheless, racism continues to prevail in several shapes and forms in today’s society. Every ethnicity has their own stereotypes and beliefs that is held regarding that group of people on how they act, behave and communicate. Stereotypes are a
is the lack of representation among the African American society. Fear harnessed the 1960’s with the Cuban Missile Crisis, Vietnam War, and the assassinations of both John F Kennedy and Martin Luther King. In a way for the people to cope with the fear and anger of what was going on, people smoked. Tobacco companies profited from this largely. A large portion of their revenue came from the African American population. Despite the controversy and discrimination, the African American portion of the
Through the African films, Camp de Thiaroye and Le Grand Blanc de Lambarene there are new views and topics that arise, which are not emphasized in the usual representations of African colonial experiences. Usually there is a Western, impersonal side of the history, which is not examined further and widely accepted. Through the films of African filmmakers, people are able to encounter the unmentioned perspectives and perceptions of historical events that affected the Africans substantially. The film
According to the statistics gathered by Nielson’s 20ll “State of the Trends in TV Viewing,” over 99% of Americans own at least one television and average a total of 34 hours 39 minutes of TV viewing per week (Citation). Outlets such as television shows and movies have the power to influence viewers both directly and indirectly in positive manners; being able to see someone like yourself has the ability to shape how you view yourself and the world. However, the problem lies in the fact that the majority
Representation Matters: Diversity in the Hollywood Television Industry A recent study done by the UCLA Bunche Center for African American Studies showed the lack of diversity within Hollywood by examining all the films released, television programs on broadcast, cable, or digital networks, as well as the actors, writers, directors, and producers within the industry. Ethnic minorities make up about 40% of the American population but still remain underrepresented in all forms of entertainment. The
is believed that stereotypes about African Americans began in the United States around the 18th century. Anti-Black stereotypes arguably the most developed racist stereotypes in racial framing and have been used as foundations for the capture, enslavement, and later, the subjugation of African American people. Stating that stereotypes are just a joke is an understatement of the consequential after – math racial images and stereotypes have on the African American population. Even stereotypes that are