Essay on Remember The Titans

In Remember the Titans we witness Coach Boone fighting for civil rights, signifying the image of an outsider integrating into a foreign white team as their coach. Director Boaz Yakin, uses techniques to strengthen Coach Boone’s character where the initial hate and disrespect towards him succours the development of a meaningful arc. The disrespect and aggression is employed when a brick is thrown through his house window, threatening him with the derogatory coloured comments calling him “Coach Coon”. The pressure of quitting was not felt and heroically he encompasses the journey with Yakin emphasising Boones evocative discipline and determination forcing integration amongst the segregated football team. This technique is employed when we witness Coach Boone stepping up, pushing equality for the players in a determined strike to stop racial abuse for good. His actions initiate the forced building of friendship and acceptance when he forces both races to get to know and accept each other at the camp. Yakin heightens the themes of overcoming racism when Boone rallies the troops together to support their team mate during a sad time. Instinctively, the implicit segregation is evoked further bringing unity to the team, Coach Boone emerges as a ‘hero’ to both the coloured and white community.

In order to live up to the reputation of the town and peers, the Permian Panthers and the coaches set goals so that they will have a winning season. The goal that is set is to win the state championship and nothing, including injury will change that goal. This occurs when Boobie Miles, the star running back, chooses to play in spite of a torn ALC, rather than yielding to the unimaginable pain that he is in. The team imposed a structure, which establishes the goals and values of the team, therefore reinforcing the team’s solidarity to winning the championship not only for them but for the town.

They recruit guys from soccer, basketball, a farm and even other football teams to come and play for them. Lengyel has a new vision for Marshall, and calls them the “Young Thundering Herd.” Jack is the person to do things that most coaches wouldn’t do because that just in his personality. As a result he seeks out help from Bobby Bowden, the coach of the University of West Virginia. Jack asks him “if He and Dawson can see the coaches’ videos, plays, and handbooks and even if he had any tips for them.” Bowden laughs at first and asks “if Jack was serious…” He then see that the men are serious and allows them to view the tapes, rules, handbooks and anything else they wanted. He does this because Bowden understands that a team is in grief and confusion. When this happens Dawson’s disbelief that he had about the team and Jack trying to help changes and he becomes a little bit more optimistic about the future of Marshall and the town.

In 1971 Coach Herman Boone replaced a popular, successful white coach at T.C. Williams High School in Alexandria, Virginia, in that community's effort to finally integrate its schools. The school and community were angrily divided by the federal integration order, and the volatility of the situation was heightened by the abrupt demotion of Coach Yoast and Boone's promotion to Head Coach. In this movie Coach Boone is on a mission to try to get the white and black players to unite and play together as a team. He wanted the two races to become a team. Around that time, there was a lot of racism and a lot of schools were segregated, so the players obviously didn't get along with each other at first. A lot changed when Boone replaced Yoast

In the beginning of the movie, Coach Boone had to build ethos for himself because of racial differences. Coach Boone, being of African American descent, was hired over their current caucasian coach and this caused the white football players to boycott the team until Coach Yoast became their assistant coach. Coach Boone lead his team by example and his dedication to his craft. He showed the players that he did not care about what color you wore on your skin, but of the sport that brought them together. During his speech he states “I don’t care if you like each other or not. But you will respect each other. And maybe, I don’t know, maybe we’ll learn to play this game like men” (Boone). He uses the built trust aspect of ethos very well to close this speech.

Remember The Titans was a movie that was set in a very hostile time in our country. We were in the middle of what I like to call a civil war. Although there were no battles or gunfights our country was torn in half. There was an issue dealing with race in the United States. The movie, Remember the Titans is based on actual events that occurred in the year 1971. Mainly on the integration of a school called TC Williams High School. When the school was integrated the old football coach, Coach Yoast, was let go and a black coach Herman Boone was hired on. The main plot of this movie is regarding the coaching change in the school and the 1971 football season the TC Williams Titans have.

One of the factors that successfully reduced the majority of prejudice within the team was superordinate goals. The goals set by Boone were made purposely unachievable by a single member. The only way for these goals to be achieved is the cooperation of the entire team. As he told the team, their game must be “a team effort in order to achieve perfection”

Psychology is the study of or science of how individuals and groups behave and their mental processes. Characteristics of these behaviors and mental processes are portrayed in many different ways within the movies that we create. Within the movie, Remember the Titans, many social psychology concepts are present. Remember the Titans is a movie set in Virginia 1971, its about a high school football team and how they come together in order to try and win the state championship. Unfortunately it is not that simple, this is a high school that has just been forced to integrate in a time of racial segregation, in a town where football is everything and is most of the boys’ ticket out of

The film wasn’t about that 13-0 record and winning a state championship, but the struggle that came with it and all the hardships they had to deal and get past. Racism, prejudice, compassion and love were all key aspects of this film as shown. The racism, prejudice of the team when they first met was severe and had been changed. The love and compassion came as the team grew to become one unit and love each other and be able to become something more powerful than they could be by themselves.

In the begging of the film, Herman Boone which is Denzel Washington was brought in as an assistant coach to join the all-white coaching team. Couple days later, because of high school rule Coach Boone had to be a head coach. But at first he was unwilling to take the offer the head coaching job at first because same things had happened to him when a white coach was selected as head coach over him in South Carolina. In this scene you can tell Coach Boone respects everybody and not hating people. But soon He finally accepts the head coach when he sees that the black people lived in the town saw him as a symbol of pride and hope because he could be the one could overcome the racism in the town. When he talks with coach Yoast, coach Yoast was worried because his white kids won’t start the football team but Boone told him “I aint going to cut them and eat them. Best player will play color won’t matter”. In this sentence he doesn’t care black or white or not, he wants to best player to win the games

This offer was very tempting, and I think that this was the moment when Coach Yoast experienced the biggest moral dilemma, whether he should help Boone or not. In the beginning of the movie Yoast was not enthusiastic about the fact that he needs to step down, and give his position to a new black Coach. Despite the skin color, Coach Yoast realized that together with Boone they share one common goal. This goal is to win. Coach Yoast ethical dilemma was decision during the game, whether to be a good leader, help the team and Boone, or to stay quiet and see what happens. Regardless of the white and black difference, Yoast was the Coach , a man of his word, not just a random football fan. He faced referees during the game, and that was a crucial moment where two colors started to vanish.

This pursuit of an undefeated season itself is symbolic of a message that success can be achieved through racial integration. Once again the driving factors behind the success of the team is the relationship we see between Julius and Gary. By constantly having this foundation to fall back on in times of difficulty the overall team comradery stays well completely in tact. The audience is able to see how Julius and Gary conduct themselves when they call team meetings where they are the sole ones talking about overcoming their difficulties. This is yet another straight forward attempt by the film to create these two individuals as signs of the racial integration and progressive

Boone and his family face horrible experiences when moving to Alexandria. When moving to the neighborhood, many neighbors were so upset but many were also happy that he didn’t back down. He was offered the head coach position but turned it down because he felt it would be incredibly disrespectful to Coach Yoast. Boone & Yoast agreed to make the relationship work. The African American students meet with Coach Boone in the gym, the meeting turns into a disaster when Coach Yoast and the white students arrive and disturb the meeting. Gerry Bertier was one of the students among the crowd of white students to interrupt. “I’m Gerry Bertier. I’m the only All-America you got on this team. If you want us to play for you, you reserve over half the positions …we don’t need any of your people on defense we’re already set.” said by Gary Bertier to Coach Boone. Boone makes it clear that all players will be on the team regardless of the color of their skin.

Sports are a significant part of society and spectators enjoy particular events regardless of the type. However, there are many players who develop special working and social relationships with whom they are participating regardless of the type of sport. The relationship and how people interact with one another can be the determination of how successful a team can be. The particular film based on a true story that I chose is titled When the Game Stands Tall. This film consists of a high performing football team of De La Salle High School in the state of California. Jim Caviezel portrays the head coach (Bob Ladouceur) as a man with such vision and passion that goes beyond the fundamental principles of coaching the game of football. The football team had won 151 games without being defeated which is the highest winning record a team has had in the game of football. The film shows the internal struggles of the players in their lives as people, and how they perform on the field. It also shows the external tragic difficulties that they face while they attend and play for De Le Salle High School. In the movie, the head coach helps the students/players by not only coaching them but also showing them how to live a flourishing life by committing to endure difficult life situations and the way to overcome them. He helps teach the principles of brotherhood and companionship with the team that they build. In the movie, the head coach and the staff had taught the players

As the movie progressed and Coach Boone’s vision came together, Coach Yoast slowly but surely began to show more support. Coach Boone’s consistent preaching, that he did not view the team as black and white players, but instead, simply as football players who must form cohesion and take actions not for self, but for team, eventually rubbed off on Coach Yoast. This is where the culture in the coaching staff began to form. Trust also began to build and the three coaches, now more cohesive themselves were able to accomplish much more in order to coach their players much more constructively. By the time the Titans had made it to the championship, all three coaches had put their differences aside, bought in to the vision and culture, and were able to coach their players to victory.