Duck Dynasty And Tyler Perry's House Of Payne

Since 2005, Aaron McGruder has brought the previously unexposed taboos of Black American culture in its most raw and comedic form to the forefront of this country’s conscience through our TV screens. The tales of Huey, Riley, and Granddad Freeman’s migration from the Southside of Chicago to the lily white suburb of Woodcrest has endured its share of controversy. From public condemnation by Rev. Al Sharpton to threats of legal action by BET, The Boondocks, one of the most watched shows to be broadcast on Adult Swim, goes straight for the jugular of many of the most famous and infamous figures of our generation.

Author Bell Hooks once said “I will not live my life narrowed down; I will not bow down to someone else’s whim or to someone else’s ignorance”. This quote provides the utmost inspiration of my choosing to analyze a TV show entitled “Everybody Hates Chris” in the point of view of a social activist. The show is a comedy that depicts the life of an African- American family during the 1980s. Even though the show’s purpose is to entertain viewers, the messages that are portrayed throughout the illustration displays racial realities. This show proves just how ignorant humanity has become; directors can take ongoing crises such as racism and transform it into a comedy with positive feedbacks from its viewers. I decided to analyze this specific show because it depicts similar ideas that were stated in Bell Hooks’ “Teaching Resistance: The racial politics of mass media”.

Various television shows have pushed boundaries to create positive differences in social perception of minorities, but only few have had the power and influence to make a noteworthy impact on American culture. Television Comedy has been able to cleverly impact acceptance of American Culture boundaries for years on end. From the show “Good Times” all the way to “The Office”, comedy has been an effective way of creating positive perceptions and acceptance of all different kinds of views on our society. An easily countable number of academic texts give evidence to Black-watched, Black-targeted television narratives. (Marc, 1997). Racially directed comedy television shows have, in my opinion, have been one of the most prevalent types of television

Have you ever been in a family where just about everything was dysfunctional? Have you ever just tried to get your point across and no one would listen? There was always someone that didn’t agree with what you said or someone was always telling you how something should be done. Tyler Perry Madeas Big Dysfunctional Happy Family is my all-time favorite movie/play. It’s something I can relate too, being in a house that’s filled with people we sometimes don’t get along as well as we should. Sometimes we need outside help to bring us all back together again just like how this family needed the help of Madea to

Since its start, the television industry has been criticized for perpetuating myths and stereotypes about African-Americans through characterizations, story lines, and plots. The situation comedy has been the area that has seemed to draw the most criticism, analysis, and disapproval for stereotyping. From Sanford and Son and The Jefferson’s in the 1970s to The Cosby Show (1984) and The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air in the 1990s, sitcoms featuring black casts and characters have always been controversial. However, their significance upon our American culture cannot be disregarded. During the 1950s and 1960s, 97% of the families were Caucasian. In the first five years of the

impact on others and ourselves. Questions and interest ascending from a northerners’ perception of the South, often mocking a southerner accent, and depicting a southerner’s

In this book, the author Brian Cogan discusses the most controversial television shows in history, South Park. He discusses how South Park even though seems simple it is a very thoughtful program on television that discusses many social issues. The creators of South Park, Trey Parker and Matt Stone created a social and political commentary that has been the most successful in television history. Cogan discusses how South Park is a commentary on American culture that is focused around controversial issues. The sitcom allows for the creators to become involved in discussions regarding issues such as religion and sexuality. Cogan inserts that the creators of South Park use every episode to promote their freedom of speech on these

Ever since its emergence in the early twentieth century, television has been used to manifest cultural and societal values. I argue that in the United States, Hollywood’s ongoing depiction of racist aesthetics has become the prime method for cultures to falsely portray people of color to it’s counter cultured audience. Such aesthetics, interpreted by overly emphasized mannerisms, often emerging from stereotypes, establish false interpretations of people of color and their role within American society. In this way, racist aesthetics, made visible through characters like Maria in the 1961 movie West Side Story , build on the embracement of such portrayals as a means of adjusting to the social and psychological discomfort that arises among melting pot populations.

The most common, if not one of the most common methods the morals and perceptions of American society are shaped is through our own storytellers in Hollywood. Filmmakers, writers, and producers for both cinema and television make it their career to create works that tell a compelling story. On occasion, American Society will be reflected in these works, which raises the question: do the works influence society, or vice-versa? This can be problematic when the focus of these works solely to “sell” them. As history reveals, certain groups of people, especially African Americans, have been portrayed with certain biases and stereotypes, which has been seen by the masses, and has shaped not only our society, but have caused us to develop our own racist perceptions. Racist portrayals have changed from the time of the Civil Rights movement, but they have not disappeared, having taken on new forms and effects.

Unlike George Mantsios, Rennels and Edwards focused their work specifically on reality TV. Each author completed case studies of individual reality TV shows; yet they came to the same conclusion that reality TV presents the poor as individuals, or singular families, that can overcome poverty by working hard and adopting traditional “puritan-esque” values. Here Comes Honey Boo focuses on a southern working-class white family and intentionally emphasizes their lazy lifestyle as well as unconventional behaviors, which implies that their unorthodox lifestyle has lead to their state of poverty (Rennels). Outside of the United States, scholars such as Annabel Tremlett have studied the ways in which class has played into the representation of marginalized minorities, specifically the Gypsy community, in reality TV. Big Fat Gypsy Wedding, “glosses over social conditions and ignores potential for social and cultural change” (Tremlett 324). The immense poverty found within the Gypsy community is attributed to negative aspects of their culture rather than systemic oppression. Narratives in which the men are “drinking and fighting” while the women are “oppressed housewives” are common plotlines that contribute to enforcing Gypsies “otherness” as a reason for their poverty (Tremlett 327). On the other hand, shows such as Extreme Makeover: Home Edition “present families as private units that must be helped, not by public aid,

This piece analyzes the sitcom in comparison to stand-up comedy. In the chapter “What’s So Funny About America?” sitcoms are broken down into elements that contrast those of stand-up. Marc describes the two forms of comedy as very different. He states that sitcoms depend on “familiarity, identification, and redemption of popular beliefs” while stand-up normally relies on “the shocking violation of normative taboos.”

There is no television show that doesn’t challenge our concept of a “normal” life or family in some way or another. Reba is a prime example of challenging our concept of a “normal” family. Reba, the star and single mother of the show, goes through many difficulties but always works through them and does not let them get her down. The television show, Reba, challenges our concept of “normal” family as she deals with her ex-husband and his new wife, with her pregnant teenage daughter, and with her daughter and son-in-law living with her.

Family Guy, an animated sitcom produced by Seth MacFarlane, has humored millions of viewers since it first premiered in 1999. It captivates viewers through its satirical content, which not only tackles issues that are prominent and relevant to its audience, but also entertains them. Despite the initial cancellations of the show, Family Guy has successfully been revived and maintains steady viewership. Matter of fact, it has been nominated for numerous Emmys, the most notable being Outstanding Comedy Series. It also won a multitude of awards for Animated Show (FIX THIS). The show continues to successfully address topics in a humorous and insightful way and is currently airing its fourteenth season. One topic that Family Guy frequently satirizes is racism/white supremacy. Family Guy has an interesting take on satirizing this theme, which in turn differentiates the show from other similar animated sitcoms. It sheds light on a new perspective and highlights key points that are typically overlooked. In addition, the show does not hesitate to challenge stereotypes and start controversies. The show is committed to providing fresh and unique insights of an issue (to an issue??). In the episodes, “Baby Got Black” and “Cool Hand Peter,” for example, Family Guy challenges the established notions of racism and white supremacy. It does this by shifting the focus from what society has (developed us to believ? to what we should believe)….SOMETHING.

In the section Cherishing the Past, Lauder analyzes the article “Southern Ways of Christmas”, reinforcing the emphasis Southern Living Magazine put on traditions and traditional families. According to Lauder the article leads with, “The south cannot be separated from its traditions. And the sprit of Christmas is a tradition of the first magnitude.” This proclamation from the editors is a mirror image of how the readers, the southerners, felt about traditions. The south holds traditions to a sacred level, refusing to let go of them. The antiquated and romanticized vision of the “simpler days” has always been a part of southern American culture, and southern stereotypes. Think of any “old southern man” character. He will start off all of his stories with “Back in my day…”, in a long southern draw sitting on a front porch, sipping a sweet tea. Southern women stereotypical characters will typically reminisce of their younger days as a teenager and summer love, or reference a family heirloom. Manning keeps this parallel in his book through his use of traditional gender roles, slang, and of course traditional southern

As invention of technology made life much easier to travel, everyone seems to be moving away from home. People are moving from place to place, from the rural or countryside to the urban and the cities. However, life in city are often depressing, hard and chaotic. It seem to be a place where rest does not seem to exist but is a constant movement of people and object. The streets are occupied by the poor, the homeless, and the screaming voices of desperate people making surviving seem impossible. There, everyone suffered from the nostalgia of their life and childhood days in the countryside, yearning for a better, peaceful and quiet life. The country music singer Tim McGraw and his wife Hill Faith sang “Meanwhile Back at Mama’s” to remind their