Art or Propaganda - a comparison between Alain Locke...

1. Introduction. W.E.B. Dubois and Alain Locke were important contributors to the epoch called Harlem Renaissance. With their writings atrists wanted to do something against racism, they wanted to show that the African - Americans dont have to feel inferior. Writing in the April, 1915, issue of Crisis, DuBois said: In art and literature we should try to loose the tremendous emotional wealth of the Negro and the dramatic strength of his problems through writing ... and other forms of art. We should resurrect forgotten ancient Negro art and history, and we should set the black man before the world as both a creative artist and a strong subject for artistic treatment. DuBois stated what were to be recurrent themes of the decade of the†¦show more content†¦Pioneer in the struggle for Afro-American liberation and for African liberation, prolific black scholar, W.E.B. DuBois (1868 - 1963) was one of the giants of the twentieth century. (Foner, flap text) DuBois mature vision was a reconcilation of the sense of double consciousness - the two warring ideals of being both black and American. He came to accept struggle and conflict as essential elements of life, but he continued to believe in the inevitable progress of the human race - that out of individual struggles against a divided self and political struggles of the oppressors, a broader and fuller human life would emerge that would benefit all of mankind (Kerry W.). Dr. Dubois was awarded the first Spingarn Medal in 1920. This was awarded to that Negro who achieved the highest in any human endeavor. He was an activist for global affairs, editor of the NAACP Crisis publication, and set up the meeting for the first Pan-African Congress. He was an individual of principle and conviction. The seeds he planted still nourish us today. (http://www.websn.com/Pride/Pride/w.htm) To reach racial equality he founded the Niagara Movement - a group of African-American leaders committed to an active struggle for racial equality. The Niagara Movement was founded in 1905, by a group of African-Americans, led by W. E. B. Du Bois, John Hope, and William Monroe Trotter, who called for full civil liberties, an end to racial discrimination, and recognition of human

Do the Right Thing, directed by Spike Lee Essay examples

Spike Lee’s Do the Right Thing (1989) portrayed an important social problem of the time period – interracial rivalry. The movie was one of many ghetto action films made during the era. In the article â€Å"Producing Ghetto Pictures† by Craig Watkins, he says that the movies of the ghetto film cycle committed much of their storyline to that of the relationship between young, poor black males and the ghetto (170). The film depicts the lives of those who live on a city block in the Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York where Sal’s Famous Pizzeria is located. Racial and ethnic hatred is shown through the characters who frequent the Italian restaurant. Sal’s son, Pino, wants to move the Pizzeria into their own neighborhood away†¦show more content†¦This, and Radio Raheem’s ghetto blaster, lead to the brawl that occurs soon after in the movie. The police are called, which ends in the death of Radio Raheem and, in turn, lead s to the restaurant being set ablaze by Mookie, who has watched everything occur since the very beginning. Reid explains that â€Å"the scene †¦ lacks any constructive critique of the socioeconomic processes that promote misunderstanding between ethnic and racial working-class groups† (102). The film brought on several conclusions from the audience. Bell hooks believed that white viewers would be assured that they are not ‘racist’ because they do not exude the same racism as Sal and his sons and even though it may â€Å"legitimate racist folks†, it also permits nonracist modes of interpretation (103). This can be seen in the incident of the two pizzeria owners, who, when commenting on the ending, focused on the destruction of the pizzeria, and not the death of Radio Raheem. When informed of this, they both have different reactions – one with that of forgetting about the death because of all the violence occurring, the other embarrassed and real izing that they did not have to kill him, they just did it out of their own anger and racism. The terrifying thing is that Do the Right Thing resulted in two incidents between Italians and African-Americans. In both instances, an African American died due toShow MoreRelatedDo The Right Thing Directed By Spike Lee1572 Words   |  7 Pages In the film, Do The Right Thing, directed by Spike Lee, is a story of African-Americans and Italian-Americans that live in local residents. This film takes place on the hottest and longest day in Brooklyn, New York. Lee represents himself, Mookie, an African-American delivery boy at a pizzeria. Throughout the film, Lee establishes two main characters that illustrate â€Å"the right thing†, starting Salvatore is known as Sal, an Italian who owns a pizzeria. Radio Raheem is an African-American enjoys hisRead MoreDo The Right Thing Is A Beautifully Intense Film Directed By The Talented Spike Lee1029 Words   |  5 PagesDo the Right Thing is a beautifully intense film directed by the talented Spike Lee, which revolves around the very diverse community of the Bedford-Stuyvesant district of Brooklyn on a hot summer Sunday. Throughout the entire film, characters are faced with obstacles and injustices that bring up the grand question of what the â€Å"right thing† even is. One scene in particular sums up the whole premise of the film into a concise and poetic speech spoken by the one and only Radio Raheem. This scene isRead MoreThe Sixth Seal By Ingmar Bergman And Do The Right Thing Directed By Spike Lee Essay2531 Words   |  11 Pagestypes of film classifications do not impede a director from incorporating both elements into the overarching structure of the film. However, some films such as the widely acclaimed formalistic film, The Seventh Seal, stick extremely well within their film medium. A few films that exemplify tendencies of both formalism and realism are The Seventh Seal directed by Ingmar Bergman, North directed by Northwest by Alfred Hitchcock, and Do the Right Thing directed by Spike Lee. These films all have a similarRead MoreSpike Lee - Auteur Essay1069 Words   |  5 PagesWoody Allen. The director I have chosen as an auteur is Spike Lee. Lee’s Life: Spike Lee is an American film director who has directed, produced, written and acted in Spike Lee films such as Malcolm X, Jungle Fever, Inside Man and Love Basketball. Spike Lee was born in Atlanta, Georgia where he attended Morehouse College and made his first student film Last Hustle in Brooklyn, he then graduated from New York University in 1982. 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Lee has co-produced many of his films and has acted in some small roles within them. According to IMDb (2016), Lee s work consists of: 26 films, 30 television programs, 45 commercials, 15 short films, starred in several films, and was a producer and writer of many other works. AlthoughRead MoreEnglish 102 Violence, good or bad? Intolerance and violence are interconnected, as they are both1100 Words   |  5 PagesPleasantville, directed by Gary Ross, and Do The Right Thing, directed by Spike Lee, are two admirable films that explore the world of intolerance and violence. In Pleasantville, the colorless town has their world turned upside down as people and things begin to gain color through unknown knowledge that has recently been introduced. As a result, a powerful window-breaking scene is shot where the â€Å"noncoloreds† destroy what can be considered the safe house of the â€Å"coloreds†. Similarly in Do The Right Thing, theRead MoreDo The Right Thing?1523 Words   |  7 PagesDo The Right Thing (1989) is a classic film written, produced, and directed by Spike Lee. The focus on the movie is set on racial issues, and the entire movie takes place on the hottest day of the year in the Bed-Stuy section of Brooklyn. Lee does an incredible job demonstrating the tautness between the races on the block specifically among the African American race and American Italian race. Lee’s use of symbolism among the characters, mise-en-scene, and shot composition in his film Do The RightRead More Do The Right Thing Essay537 Words   |  3 Pages Director and actor Spike Lee presents his quot;truthquot; about race relations in his movie Do the Right Thing. The film exhibits the spectacle of black discrimination and racial altercations. Through serious, angry, and loud sounds, Lee stays true to the ethnicity of his characters, all of which reflect their own individualism. Lee uses insulting diction and intense scenes to show how severe racism can lead to violence. The disturbing scene where different nationalities badger their opinionsRead MoreDo the Right Thing Analysis1576 Words   |  7 PagesHussein Abdallah First Paper 26838 Flm101 Technical Critique of do the Right Thing Do The Right Thing, a movie directed by Spike Lee, filmed on a sunny summer day in a black neighbourhood in Brooklyn is what many consider a great movie. The movie portrays stories of many actors consisting from different palettes, where each has their own conflicts and struggles. It is a very entertaining movie yet it will leave you emotionally connected to the events that took place. It would not have reached

Masculinity and World War Ii Free Essays

string(202) " The common notion was that since men are physically more capable than women are and that only the toughest got into the military, then masculinity ultimately surpassed shallow emotional vulnerability\." Masculinity and World War II The image of Man has changed throughout time. Dominant constructions of masculinity, which are basically attempts to stabilize gender identity, are developed within the dynamics of shifting cultures and societies. The male stereotype, which is still prevails nowadays, started rising at the end of eighteenth – beginning nineteenth century in Europe with a great concentration on the male’s body. We will write a custom essay sample on Masculinity and World War Ii or any similar topic only for you Order Now The stereotype made the world look at man more like a type rather than an individual. Masculinity was strengthened due to the positive stereotyping, however for those that did not conform to this label or fit in with the ideal, were negatively stereotyped. Being an outsider who was born in a different country made it especially interesting to penetrate the American culture and research about American masculinity. Truly, much of the progress of any country has been defined around the lives and accomplishments of great men. One cannot begin understanding the history of America without understanding manhood and the influence of the male. In every generation in America, manhood has been in the center of life and progress. It constantly strives to uphold its own traditions while trying to redefine itself. I have done a lot of research about American masculinity and how it has been changed throughout the history. While going through different literature about the nature of masculinity, I came to the conclusion that for many men, the idea of masculinity is deeply tied to military prowess and adventure. One cannot but agree that war, the most violent and decisive of human acts, is the paradigmatic masculine enterprise. Military service is one of the rites of manhood; it makes men men. Moreover, war makes nations masculine, too. This paper examines the nature of masculinity and the role of masculinity in America. My main focus is on the changes in definitions of masculinity during the WWII Era and goes on to discuss the psychological and emotional effects of the war and the subsequent readjustment efforts in the same era. In this work I will try to explore different author’s conclusions about masculinity, its changes and/or problems during the WWII and in its post-period. War, more than any other action, offers the ultimate test and demonstration of manhood. Indeed, it has been suggested that the sole cause of war is masculinity. War requires masculine energy and communal effort. It engages man in the age-old conflict between courage cowardice, right and wrong, aggression and compassion. In his book Manhood in America: A Cultural History, Michael Kimmel concentrates his attention on a large set of questions about the importance of masculinity: â€Å"I do believe that a comprehensive historical account of the American experience can no longer ignore the importance of masculinity – and especially of men’s efforts to prove their manhood – in the making of America† (5). For the soldier who fought during the WWII, the country conveyed upon him the gift of manhood. It was a war which redefined American masculinity. Although it led men to brutality on a very personal level, it served the hero archetype well. To embody courage under the most gruesome circumstances, the soldier has to repress his fear. To embody strength, he had to repress his feelings of vulnerability. In fact, what war required is manliness: â€Å"The men who were the best soldiers were, in effect, the best men† (Gagen 23). Elizabeth A. Gagen in her article â€Å"Homespun Manhood and the War Against Masculinity: Community Leisure on the US home front, 1917-19,† discussing the war and its influence on masculinity, states that â€Å"military masculinity became more entrenched in myths of heroism as sacrifice as citizenship was masculinised and masculinity was militarized† (27). Even though the author’s concentration is mostly on the WW I, Ganger discusses a lot about masculinity and the effect of wars on American cultures. Gagen locates the early-century crisis of masculinity in the loss of control men were experiencing: the authority of white, middle-class men was being threatened by the increasing presence of women in the public sphere. While on the one hand it was great opportunity for economic success, it also destabilized traditional gender and class hierarchy. All this placed a lot of pressure on the soul of American manhood. As it started happening, across America men returned to an increasingly protected wilderness in the hope that rehearsing primitive blood sports might revive in them their primal instincts. As Ganger goes on, she brings a very interesting point of view, where she connects the image of fighter with the image of hero and explains the men’s necessity to participate in the war: While blood sports and boxing could go some way towards providing a satisfactory venue for cultivating masculinity, there was something peculiar to war that was uniquely desirable. When all around them masculinity seemed to be failing, war appeared as the last frontier of manliness: a crucible in which masculinity could be reborn. (27) A military service man was not just an aggressive heroic individual, he was a unique blend of masculinity. Therefore, for American man the war became a great opportunity to show their aggression, strength, courage and endurance. All these are the qualities of manhood. Similar to Gagen, Christina Jarvis, a psychologist and a professor at the State University of New York, in her discourse â€Å"If He Comes Home Nervous: U. S. World War II Neuropsychiatric Casualties and Post War Masculinities,† illustrates the traditional masculinity ideology. She uses the analogy of medieval knightly chivalric code. The chivalric code was the guiding principle that highlighted the designated features of medieval warrior class as unyielding, heroic, and tough. The chivalric code, as Jarvis notes, would in turn have a significant influence in developing the ideals of traditional masculinity in the earlier 20th Century World War years. During the same period, the perceived notion of masculinity gender superiority was prevalent in then overly patriarchal society that existed at that time. The society depicted military masculinity as invincible. The common notion was that since men are physically more capable than women are and that only the toughest got into the military, then masculinity ultimately surpassed shallow emotional vulnerability. You read "Masculinity and World War Ii" in category "Essay examples" The United States came out of the conflict viewing itself as a masculine nation. The postwar generation of American men grew up revering a hero image, but, as it turned out, there was one major problem. The heroes too often didn’t see everything the same way as the other people did. What they brought back from the war were oppressive memories that wouldn’t go away. What they brought back from the war was emotional trauma and enormous challenges in reintegrating with domestic life. While they were recruiting in anticipation of war, American soldiers trained vigorously pledging their undying dedication to protect and defend their country. Jarvis asserts that it was a sacred duty for all soldiers to uphold bravery, resilience and courage, which were among the core military ideals. As it turned out, the perceived masculinity resilience ideal was actually overrated. Besides sustaining bodily and physical harm in the course of the war, American servicemen apprehended severe psychiatric and emotional injury as well. These soldiers witnessed atrocities and inhumane acts of war and saw the physical torture of many as well as demise of others in the battlefield. This in turn caused some of them to apprehend psychiatric harm in form of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. Similarly, the servicemen who sustained severe bodily harm that left them physically handicapped suffered from acute mental and emotional disorders. As such, physical and mental injuries are inseparable. As Christian Hoge in his work â€Å"Combat Duty in Iraq and Afghanistan, Mental Health Problems, and Barriers to Care† explains, the course of World War II altered the preconceived notion that masculinity was beyond emotional vulnerability. In his discourse on mental harm during the World Wars and the Iraqi war on terror, Hoge asserts that the war shattered the spirit of American soldiers given that they had to watch their helpless colleagues die of intensive injuries, disease and starvation. Some lost close friends and relatives in the event of war. This, as a result, undermined the traditional masculinity ideals while people began to appreciate that despite their bravery, soldiers were human beings with emotions and feelings and not as invincible as everybody initially thought. Numerous soldiers came under immense stress while in the battlefield. Some of them began to re-evaluate their dedication to defend the integrity of their country amid a situation where it seemed that everyone had forsaken them. At this point, fighting for personal survival went beyond defending the national integrity. The war exposed the emotional dimension of men as they began worrying about their families back at home and the hitherto ardent masculinity ideology began to wither. As soon as the mainstream news periodicals reported on the psychological harm imposed on soldiers by the war, literary advice in form of medical opinions on remasculinisation of war veterans began to emerge in late 1944. In his discourse on the early years post-war scenario When Johnny Comes Marching Home, David Wecter wrote that â€Å"the rebuilding of a war neurotic, sent home for treatment, must begin by convincing him that he is not a coward or a failure, but a battle casualty just as truly as the man who lost a leg† (547). His sentiments reflected the mainstream thoughts of the American people at the time. There was a widespread public outcry concerning the psychological welfare of the soldiers who had dedicated their unrelenting efforts to preserve the integrity of America. Jarvis in her work depicts the same problem soldiers faced during and after war. But, she states that early in the war, soldiers and sailors who â€Å"broke down† under the pressure of combat or military life were generally discharged instead of treated. According to military psychiatrists Malcolm Farrel and John Appel, as Jarvis goes on , â€Å"these early discharges stemmed from the idea that initially the military thought it was possible to contemplate an Army made up of the cream of American manhood† (100). Given the military’s initial assumptions that only servicemen with weak egos broke down, early psychiatric casualties were stigmatized – especially when soldiers were labeled as â€Å"psychoneurotic. This term associated with both the â€Å"feminine† and â€Å"insane. † As a result the armed forces began a program of prompt treatment. The term â€Å"combat exhaustion† has been invented by psychiatrists: Despite the fact that labels such as â€Å"battle fatigue,† â€Å"combat exhaustion,† and à ¢â‚¬Å"old sergeant syndrome† actually represented approximately one quarter of the war’s total neuropsychiatric admissions, military personnel and the public readily embraced the terms because they destigmatized psychiatric wounds by conveying a sense of masculine toughness rather than weakness. 101) Seeing as the traditional masculinity ideology had significantly shrivelled in the course of WWII, America dedicated its efforts towards a physical and psychological readjustment cause. Apart from the provision of intensive care for the psychiatric casualties, America’s special medical consultants sought to de-stigmatize psychiatric conditions. Psychiatrist George Pratt in his book Soldier to Civilian: Problems of Readjustment reassures the casualties that the term psychiatry does not necessarily connote insanity. He says that on the contrary, the terms psychiatry and neurology as used in this post-war context implied â€Å"a departure from average personality traits or temperament †¦ that render a soldier unsuitable for military service† (14). In bid to clarify the paradigm shift and divergence of the post war psychological discourses, Pratt explains that these psychiatric discharges resulted from what he terms ‘situational stressors’ and not due to flawed personality or ego. Pratt’s efforts in de-stigmatizing psychiatric war injuries oversaw a rapid psychological recovery of the casualties. He notes as well that the condition was in all likelihood temporary save for a few cases of acute neuropsychiatric disturbances. Through his profound medical expertise, Pratt recommends the post war psychiatric casualties to share their war experiences with their families as well as medical experts. He reckoned that this would help in the gradual healing process and the ultimate restoration of the traditional masculinity ideals. What we know about manhood and masculinity now gives us an extraordinary opportunity to become relevant in our own time. The old models of manhood provide a too-limiting definition for the complex sense of manliness. As we can see through examples from history, men are more than just unemotional beasts, who are ready to die for their nation and their country any time they are needed. Man can be a soldier, man can be a warrior. No matter in what situation the society puts our men, we shouldn’t forget that they are just human beings and nothing human is alien to them. It might sound very sad but the war in some way helped a soldier to figure out what true manliness is. One of the friends of Jess, who is the main character of the book Stone Butch Blues by Leslie Feinberg, once said that everyone gets scared once there is a danger, but to be courageous means to go ahead in spite of being scared. Men should realize that for all of us they are already heroes because they didn’t hesitate to go and fight for their country and their people. Manhood and masculinity in America are expressions of many different ideas and sentiments. This review touched the idea that there is no single definition of man. And war, as one of the most important factors, showed us how far away from the reality the society’s prospective about masculinity might be. How to cite Masculinity and World War Ii, Essay examples

The Double Helix Essay Research Paper After free essay sample

The Double Helix Essay, Research Paper After reading The Double Helix by James B. Watson, I have learned that the dual spiral construction of DNA is the beginning of the familial codification that determines the traits passed along from one populating coevals to the following. In make up ones minding which of the critical elements in the procedure of detecting the construction of DNA was most surprising would be how X-rays might be diffracted by a coiling molecule. Although Watson was really unfastened about his ignorance of X-ray crystallographic techniques, X-ray diffraction was one of the cardinal elements that was repeatedly discussed and accordingly aided the find of the Deoxyribonucleic acid construction. The seminar on Deoxyribonucleic acid by Franklin is an of import portion of the book because it illustrates how critical her thought was in developing the dual spiral theoretical account. Furthermore, Watson references something about the H2O content ( p. We will write a custom essay sample on The Double Helix Essay Research Paper After or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page 52 ) of the Deoxyribonucleic acid samples. He thought that this was an of import component in acquiring good diffraction images of DNA. Remember that life cells are largely H2O, and hence DNA interacts with H2O all the clip. Franklin suspected ; right as it turned out, that Deoxyribonucleic acid samples would hold to hold a high H2O content in order to hold the same construction that they did in life cells. If excessively much H2O is taken out in an attempt to do the samples crystalline, DNA interacts with itself and the construction alterations. Note that in chapter 11, Watson and Crick wonder about how many strands might be in the spiral. We have already learned that the diameter of the Deoxyribonucleic acid was wider than one would anticipate for a individual polynucleotide strand. The figure of strands could merely be determined by cognizing the angles at which the spiral appeared zig-zag. For case, if there are 4 strands, so the single strands should be about parallel to the long axis of the fibre. If there are merely 2, the angle should be much sharper. This is why acquiring a good X ray form that showed the angle clearly would be of great importance. Although Franklin argues how the anti-helical characteristics of the DNA X-ray form applied to merely a construction known as an A-form of Deoxyribonucleic acid that had really small H2O. Watson references on page 107 that the B-form is clearly coiling, and as a consequence, the dual spiral theoretical account was derived from the B-form information. Franklin s parts to the theoretical account are supplying critical X-ray informations and take a firm standing that the bases be placed at the Centre of the construction. Her immediate credence of the dual spiral theoretical account ( p. 134 ) contrasts aggressively with Watson s averment that she had been anti-helical up to that point.