Research Problem Disney Channel’s The Proud Family (or TPF for the duration of this paper), is an animated show about a middle class African American family that focuses mainly on fourteen-year old Penny Proud. Her family includes her father Oscar, mother Trudy, grandmother Suga Mama and baby siblings BeBe and CeCe. These characters all live under the same roof. Other main characters include Penny’s friends Dijonay, LaCienega, Zoey and Sticky. The show circulates heavily around Penny navigating life as a teenager and dealing with problems with family and friends. The show is a sitcom, therefore the storyline of every episode is focused on the presentation and resolution of the typical problems that arise for Penny. Social cognitive theory, …show more content…
In his analysis of Disney’s movie The Princess and the Frog (which coincidentally Bruce Smith also contributed to the animation of) Richard M. Breaux claims that Disney used this movie to cash in on it’s racist past (p 1). He claims that Disney uses this movie to address complaints about their lack of representation in the past, and that even this representation makes the African American past in the US seem nostalgic, as opposed to the vast inequality of the time the movie is placed in (Breaux). TPF came before The Princess and the Frog, so it can be assumed that Disney’s smaller screen is a little more successful with their racial …show more content…
The episode is then placed in the past, 1955 to be exact, after Penny falls and hits her head. When she goes to school, everything has changed, the white man who used to be the janitor is now the teacher, and her black teacher is now the janitor. Her teacher tells her that there is no such thing as black history month, and that there really isn’t any reason for one. Penny retorts that “black people have made many contributions to this country, as well as the world” (S1 E15). She then goes on to list multiple achievements of various black people. Penny also sees one of her best friends, Zoey, who now says she is not friends with any colored people. At the end of the episode, Penny gives a speech, which is actually an excerpt from Martin Luther King Jr’s famous “I Had A Dream” speech. After Penny wakes up and realizes that it was a dream, she tells her teacher that he was right, the key to having a better future is to understand the past. Not only does this episode bring attention to many influential African Americans, it provides a lens for a younger audience to see and understand the racism in the past. Using Martin Luther King Jr’s actual words was very
The things that happen in the story don’t really change them as people but them together. In the start of the story, Penny feels very alone and out-of-place. Her mom isn't the ideal parent and she has a boyfriend who is perfect to the world around them but to her he's just a jerk and annoying. “ Not that Penny ever publicly referred to Mark as her “boyfriend’’.(page 8).
Polly also had an emotional journey by being prejudiced against black people. She learns that black people aren't different
To make his audience believe he was on their side could have manipulated the audience into thinking what was about to unravel was more constructive criticism than anything, but in reality, a constant way to remind the white moderate of their apathy and laziness brought on by their privilege. Martin Luther King assured his audiences recognized their privilege by expressing the injustices all children of color must go through when growing up in a world based on racism: constant self-deprecation, fatal hate-crimes, various humiliating racial signs everywhere they go (Letter From Birmingham City Jail) and ultimately living in a world where the color of their skin, something completely uncontrollable, determines whether or not they must undergo the myriad of discriminatory actions throughout the rest of their life. Adding on, King made sure this was brought up to their attention because they had constantly been told to wait their turn yet emphasized the fact that delayed justice will never change anything. For King, every child of color is taught the melanin they have been given is what causes other individuals to act the way they do before them, creating an environment of inferiority and self-consciousness (Letter From Birmingham City Jail) all caused by the white moderate because they have not done anything to change it. Blaming the white moderate for the reason various colored people fear for their life, it is sure to stir up various sentiments of denial and
King wants the audience to remember that segregation is not okay and that in order for things to be different something “ can and will be changed.” King uses repetition to make his audience comprehend and listen to what he has to say. King instructs the audience to “go back” to the states and “go back” to the slums and ghettos of our northern cities, as an example to spark their memory of our history and encourage them to take action. King also uses phrases such as “we can never be satisfied” and “we refuse to believe '' to show how America has wronged its people and must keep its promises in order for trust to be established. King repeated the phrase “now is the time” to show what he thinks America should be built on.
Sometimes ideas of a bright individual, such as M. L. King may run ahead of time. Society might not be able to perceive and react adequately to progressive ideas at that time. But times change, and eventually people realize what the right thing to do is. I should admit that Martin Luther King’s words that “the day of men as men”, whether black or white, should come, caught my attention. His speeches that I heard in this movie impressed me by their sincerity and dedication to his own race, but at the same time respect for the white.
Evolution of Family Sitcoms “Blood is thicker than water.” A saying commonly heralded by family members in order to reaffirm the importance of family unity. These words spoke loud to the entertainment industry as they were trying to create new content for television. Situational comedies were quite popular, but there was a lack of relatability to families. The most logical step was to combine the two.
After I poured his coffee and handed it to him he replied,"Keep doing what you are doing and make your mama proud. " I was so offended I did not know what to do, and his ways have caused me to be bitter towards him and, to be honest, I want nothing to do with him when he comes in the store. A class divided showed how blacks and other races feel when they are treated unfairly. When Mrs. Elliott asked her students to remove their collars that was a sign of them being equal again. What was also interesting was how the students scores dropped when they were on the bottom but raised when they were on top.
Martin Luther King Jr. inexplicably opened the eyes of Americans across the nation with his role in the movement and his use of resonating imagery, excellent emotional appeal, powerful voice, and evocation of logic in his “I Have a Dream” speech. With such an enthralling rhetoric he gained a vast amount of support and exponentially increased the pride in standing up for what’s righteous and just. Exemplifying the throes of being a colored person, King evoked sympathy whilst simultaneously applying the valid logic that no human should be subjected to lesser standards. His rhetoric wholly changed American history that day and thus conveyed his ability to maintain equanimity throughout all of the
The disturbing truth emerges that our history is so filled with racism, that it has caused Disney to have a lack of emphasis on racial issues in films such as
The speech identifies the struggles African Americans faced due to discrimination, hence allowing readers insight into African American lives. The speech is inspirational and powerful due to the speaker exhibiting to the audience his anger regarding
This speech was delivered solely to benefit their future in America. Because he was an African American as well and his past mirrored what they were going through, people connected to him. He wasn’t living lavish and speaking on topics he knew nothing about. He has lived life and he was living the life of an African American. That title came with its own trials and tribulations that each of them related to.
As one of the most influential entertainment producers, Disney dominates the global market for ages attracting the countless audience around the world. However, Disney’s most famous “‘princess’ fairy tale stories” (Barker, 2010, p. 492) are criticized for racism and sexism. In 2007, Disney confirmed production of the film, The Princess and the Frog, featuring the first African-American Disney princess, Tiana. For Disney this film was the response to the accusation of racism and sexism represented in its animation. Also, it was filled with African American parents’ anticipation and excitement who longed for a non-stereotypical black woman on the screen (Breaux, 2010, p. 399).
Disney’s portrayal of culture and race in their fairy-tale love stories had often led to backlash and criticism due to racist elements. It’s not a new concept the Disney films have poorly represented the experiences of people of color. As far as Disney Princesses are concerned, the women of color tend to be far less prominent than their Caucasian counterparts. The movie Aladdin (1992) showcases an Arabian princess Jasmine, the first women of color among the Disney princesses. They marketed the movie to people “of all races” devising “Brown” as a monolith to represent all Middle Eastern, South Asian, Black and Latin experiences, which obviously came with some heavy backlash as it shows negative stereotypical imagery and lyrics.
They still were victims of police and civilian brutality; there were separate bathroom, facilities, and schools for colored people around the nation. Majority of African American citizen during that era can relate to this, they all have been through these situations for decades. King said this to appeal to the audience in order to unite them and establish what he’s saying is
Modern Family is a popular primetime television show that airs Wednesday nights on ABC. This hit comedy presents the daily lifestyles of three separate but related families who reside in the suburbs of Los Angeles, California. The Dunphys are shown as the traditional white American family while the Pritchett-Tucker family are a homosexual couple with an adopted daughter named Lily. The Pritchetts are the last family who are an interracial couple with a large age gap. On the surface, this show seems to be one of the most diverse on television.