Charlie Chaplin Stereotypes

Stereotypes have shaped the way people think about the World and everyone around them. They are undeniably over-exaggerated, but are based on a sliver of truth. For example, stereotypical Americans are seen as rude, stupid, greedy, and very patriotic. In the case of Americans, Donald J. Trump is the embodiment of the American stereotype. During his presidential campaign, Trump made many vulgar remarks, and his goal was to “make America great again.” These American stereotypes are also apparent in Ernest Hemingway’s short stories, most notably in “Cat in the Rain,” “The Short Happy Life of Francis Macomber,” and the interchapters of In Our Time. Hemingway’s short stories portray Americans as being insensitive to the World around them. Americans are insensitive through their insatiable greed, emotional unawareness, and cultural disregard.

All throughout The Castle, a variety of stereotypes are showcased but challenged over the course of the film. One example

In Roman comedy, the use of stock characters helped to represent common archetypes in society. Stock characters were also used to allow for audiences to easily understand a production, as the characters were so commonly seen. In modern movies and specifically American comedy, stereotypical characters are often used that demonstrate society’s beliefs about certain types of people. These characters are often used satirically to mock the stereotypes that lead people to judge others. Regardless of when stock characters are utilized, they point to the ideas that a society has about certain types of people during a specific time period.

Charlie Chaplin, or the “Little Tramp”, led a life many referred to as a Cinderella story. Chaplin was the son of a poor London family, who were entertainers. As a child, at an early age, he also performed, and made his stage debut in 1894. He began his career when he played a paperboy in the film Sherlock Holmes. He also worked as a mime in Vaudeville theatres in London, until he left for America. When Chaplin arrived in the States, he joined the Karno Pantomime Troupe, and toured with them for six years. This experience led him to branch out on his own, making his own films. One of these films was City Lights. Many say that this film and others, lead him to be one the most successful film stars of his time. “Chaplin dedicated himself to perfecting every scene during both the writing process and on set, sacrificing his personal life during production” (Eggert, 2006).

Before becoming one of the most iconic figures in silent film, D.W. Griffith failed as an actor and writer. If it wasn’t for a friend, Griffith wouldn’t have even worked at Biograph. In fact, Griffith had no training in film prior to Biograph. That is what makes his legacy so fascinating. Griffith was ambitious to act and write, but found his true identity in directing. Without any prior knowledge of directing, Griffith rose to fame, creating over 450 films, revolutionized film with his use of parallel editing, and was responsible for defining the Classical Hollywood Style of film.

During the White Hollywood Cinema era, the Black African-American actors played the role of black stereotypes, and they also performed small parts in those films. D.W Griffith produced a racist film that had black stereotypes in it; the name of the film is Birth of a Nation. However, Oscar Micheaux made a film that responded back to D.W Griffith’s movie, which was Within Our Gates. He paved the way for other black African-Americans, which empowered them to speak out through their own films and movies. Spike Lee was influenced by Oscar Micheaux. He wanted to give the black community a voice just like Oscar Micheaux. Spike Lee turned himself into a revolutionary by the way he produced and directs his films. He is so fearless and always pushing

The first character that is stereotyped is Torey Adams he is a small-town boy with a perfect life. He has two loving parents, money, freedom, a girlfriend, a band,and plays sports. But when Chris Creed disappears, Torey can't help but feel that he and everyone else that bullied Chris is responsible for his disappearance. But after this event occurred Torey undergoes a major shift in perspective. as he seems to be the only one who cares about creeds disappearance. this stereotype is how this guy with a perfect life if going through all this stress about someone he used to pick on, and that

Moreover, Cosby was a beloved comedian. As aforementioned, African-Americans loved him because he surmounted racial confinements and became, “the first African-American to star in prime-time, with the 1960s hit I Spy, and then as ‘America’s Dad,’ Dr. Cliff Huxtable, on the top-rated Cosby Show,” (Seal 3). Furthermore, America adored him because he was an extraordinary comedian filled with charisma. Not only was Cosby charming on screen, but he was also captivating in person. Cosby used his immaculate reputation and charm to seduce women, or more accurately: befriend them before drugging and raping them. For example, Victoria Valentino, one of his innumerable victims, wrote, “I was sickened by what was happening to me and shocked that this man

Fair dinkum, gotta love the great outdoors” is a phrase that that we like to think sums up, all of Australian males. But does it really? Contrary to the international belief and even sometimes to Australia’s own citizens, this stereotype is almost completely wrong. The statement that portrays all Australians as “tough Aussies who can tame a bronco, no worries mate” may have been true at one point in the Australian culture but does not apply now.

It is vital to bring up that Anderson, who is from the zone and has felt this sort of displeasure towards others, has altered his opinion. He now trusts that scorn and bias aren't right. The motion picture endeavors to appear, with this illustration, that even the individuals who have been raised with disdain and bias in their souls can alter their way of life. He was the person who was against Agent Ward acquiring many specialists and the media to the territory. This activity only heightened the dedication of the Klan. The lesson here is that individuals are characteristically impervious to change. The change must be continuous in nature. He likewise demonstrated that, with a specific end goal to change the convictions of these individuals, one should first start to comprehend them, and after that he or she should invalidate their convictions through discourse and data

People found Chaplin to be an amazing performer, while most of his characters were hilarious comic personas he included elements of sentiment with his performances. I found Chaplin to be a master comedian, because he used everything about himself in his characters, from his looks, made up to be over ridiculous, to how he moved, they proved his performances were amazing. He was a brilliant actor with how he interacted with all of his fellow characters, man or woman. His slapstick humor must've been what made him as an actor so famous. The use of gags and falls made Chaplin’s characters funny but his restrained and clever style of humor made him a genius.

He demonstrated that a capacity to grasp the essence of America's attitude about work, family, social life success in historical circumstances. He was the most influential during the Great Depression to World War 2 and Cold War and other aspects of American history (Rosa Sanmartin). The reason he was so impactful during this time was everyone was going through difficult times and he was able to make people feel better through his films.

Charlie Chaplin did not use sound to communicate to the audience in his movies. Despite the fact that there was no spoken language, his movies were sensational and the audiences loved them. Chaplin was thought of as cinema’s first genius and has been called the single most-influential artist in the history of motion pictures. I am researching Charlie Chaplin to learn how he became a sensational comedian and one of the best actors of all time.

Charlie Chaplin overall was extremely creative when it came to his craft. He wasn’t just a filmmaker, but he was also an actor, composer, screenwriter, and editor. He controlled every aspect of his films, which made his motion pictures unique in their own way. He also built this persona named “ The Tramp” that would be known all over the world and that would lead him to a career that would last him more than 75 years. City Lights was one of many iconic Charlie Chaplin films to date.

The film remains Chaplin's one of the greatest achievements and it remains one of his popular film. (Back story source- Wikipedia)