Difference between revisions of "Discourse & Identity III (Discussion)"

From Screenpedia
Jump to navigationJump to search
(added Television questions)
(added Fresh off the Boat and black-ish)
Line 1: Line 1:
 
==''Television'' on the study of race and ethnicity==
 
==''Television'' on the study of race and ethnicity==
−
*'''Group 2:''' Sociologists Michael Omi and Howard Winant reject the idea of racial '''essentialism''' and propose an approach based instead on a '''racial formation'''. Explain these concepts and compare them to the "gender identity" approach we discussed last week. Is there anything in the ''Girlfriends'' episode we watched that helps explain these concepts?
+
*'''Group 2:''' Sociologists Michael Omi and Howard Winant reject the idea of racial '''essentialism''' and propose an approach based instead on a '''racial formation'''. Explain these concepts and compare them to the "gender identity" approach we discussed last week. Is there anything in the ''[[Wikipedia:Girlfriends|Girlfriends]]'', ''[[Wikipedia:Fresh Off the Boat|Fresh Off the Boat]]'', or ''[[Wikipedia:Black-ish|black-ish]]'' episodes we watched that helps explain these concepts?
 
*Herman Gray identifies three African-American discourses in TV.  
 
*Herman Gray identifies three African-American discourses in TV.  
−
*#'''Group 3:''' Explain what he means by the '''assimilationist''' category and why he puts ''Designing Women'' into it. Can you think of another TV show (one he does not list) that exemplifies this discourse?
+
*#'''Group 3:''' Explain what he means by the '''assimilationist''' category and why he puts ''Designing Women'' into it. Should the ''Fresh Off the Boat'' and ''black-ish'' episodes we watched be put in this category? Why or why not?
−
*#'''Group 4:'''  Explain what he means by the '''pluralist''' category and why he puts ''Girlfriends'' into it. Can you think of another TV show (one he does not list) that exemplifies this discourse?  
+
*#'''Group 4:'''  Explain what he means by the '''pluralist''' category and why he puts ''Girlfriends'' into it. Should the ''Fresh Off the Boat'' and ''black-ish'' episodes we watched be put in this category? Why or why not?
−
*#'''Group 1:'''  Explain what he means by the '''multiculturalist'''. If you've seen ''The Wire'', explain how it exemplifies this category. Can you think of another TV show (one he does not list) that exemplifies this discourse?
+
*#'''Group 1:'''  Explain what he means by the '''multiculturalist'''. Should the ''Fresh Off the Boat'' and ''black-ish'' episodes we watched be put in this category? Why or why not?
  
 
==Beretta Smith-Shomade==
 
==Beretta Smith-Shomade==
−
Beretta Smith-Shomade (pronounced "show-ma-day") examines "four intertwined elements in television comedy that define and give meaning to Black women's representation there: work roles, characterization, class, and identity" (48). Each group should discuss the key aspects of these elements and apply Smith-Shomade's analysis of 1990s sitcoms to ''[[Wikipedia:Girlfriends|Girlfriends]]'' (2000-2008):
+
Beretta Smith-Shomade (pronounced "show-ma-day") examines "four intertwined elements in [1990s] television comedy that define and give meaning to Black women's representation there: work roles, characterization, class, and identity" (48). Each group should consider one key aspect of these elements and discuss how well they apply to the 21st-century sitcoms we viewed: ''Girlfriends'' (2000-2008), ''Fresh Off the Boat'' (2015-), and ''black-ish'' (2014-).
  
 
*'''Group 2:''' work and class
 
*'''Group 2:''' work and class
Line 13: Line 13:
 
*'''Group 4:''' identity: skin shade
 
*'''Group 4:''' identity: skin shade
 
*'''Group 1:''' identity: hair
 
*'''Group 1:''' identity: hair
−
*'''All groups:''' characterization (i.e., conventional roles and stereotypes). Does ''Girlfriends'' rely on African-American stereotypes? E.g., "mammy," "sapphire," "tragic mulatto," etc.
+
*'''All groups:''' characterization (i.e., conventional roles and stereotypes). Do ''Girlfriends'' and ''black-ish" rely on African-American stereotypes? E.g., "mammy," "sapphire," "tragic mulatto," etc. Does ''Fresh Off the Boat'' rely on Asian (specifically, Chinese) stereotypes?
  
−
==Cast==
+
==Casts==
 +
===''Girlfriends''===
 
*William Dent ([[Wikipedia:Reggie Hayes|Reggie Hayes]])
 
*William Dent ([[Wikipedia:Reggie Hayes|Reggie Hayes]])
 
*Toni Childs ([[Wikipedia:Jill Marie Jones|Jill Marie Jones]])
 
*Toni Childs ([[Wikipedia:Jill Marie Jones|Jill Marie Jones]])
Line 21: Line 22:
 
*Joan Clayton ([[Wikipedia:Tracee Ellis Ross|Tracee Ellis Ross]])
 
*Joan Clayton ([[Wikipedia:Tracee Ellis Ross|Tracee Ellis Ross]])
 
*Lynn Searcy ([[Wikipedia:Persia White|Persia White]])
 
*Lynn Searcy ([[Wikipedia:Persia White|Persia White]])
 +
 +
===''Fresh Off the Boat''===
 +
*Eddie Huang (Hudson Yang)
 +
*Louis Huang (Randall Park)
 +
*Jessica Huang (Constance Wu)
 +
*Emery Huang (Forrest Wheeler)
 +
*Evan Huang (Ian Chen)
 +
*Grandma Jenny Huang (Lucille Soong)
 +
 +
===''black-ish''===
 +
*Andre "Dre" Johnson Sr. (Anthony Anderson)
 +
*Dr. Rainbow "Bow" Johnson (Tracee Ellis Ross)
 +
*Zoey Johnson (Yara Shahidi)
 +
*Andre ("Junior") Johnson Jr. (Marcus Scribner)
 +
*Jack Johnson (Miles Brown)
 +
*Diane Johnson (Marsai Martin)
 +
*Ruby Johnson (Jenifer Lewis)
 +
*Earl "Pops" Johnson (Laurence Fishburne)
 +
*Josh Oppenhol (Jeff Meacham)
 +
*Leslie Stevens (Peter Mackenzie)
  
 
==All groups==
 
==All groups==

Revision as of 14:44, 1 December 2016

Television on the study of race and ethnicity

  • Group 2: Sociologists Michael Omi and Howard Winant reject the idea of racial essentialism and propose an approach based instead on a racial formation. Explain these concepts and compare them to the "gender identity" approach we discussed last week. Is there anything in the Girlfriends, Fresh Off the Boat, or black-ish episodes we watched that helps explain these concepts?
  • Herman Gray identifies three African-American discourses in TV.
    1. Group 3: Explain what he means by the assimilationist category and why he puts Designing Women into it. Should the Fresh Off the Boat and black-ish episodes we watched be put in this category? Why or why not?
    2. Group 4: Explain what he means by the pluralist category and why he puts Girlfriends into it. Should the Fresh Off the Boat and black-ish episodes we watched be put in this category? Why or why not?
    3. Group 1: Explain what he means by the multiculturalist. Should the Fresh Off the Boat and black-ish episodes we watched be put in this category? Why or why not?

Beretta Smith-Shomade

Beretta Smith-Shomade (pronounced "show-ma-day") examines "four intertwined elements in [1990s] television comedy that define and give meaning to Black women's representation there: work roles, characterization, class, and identity" (48). Each group should consider one key aspect of these elements and discuss how well they apply to the 21st-century sitcoms we viewed: Girlfriends (2000-2008), Fresh Off the Boat (2015-), and black-ish (2014-).

  • Group 2: work and class
  • Group 3: identity: language
  • Group 4: identity: skin shade
  • Group 1: identity: hair
  • All groups: characterization (i.e., conventional roles and stereotypes). Do Girlfriends and black-ish" rely on African-American stereotypes? E.g., "mammy," "sapphire," "tragic mulatto," etc. Does Fresh Off the Boat rely on Asian (specifically, Chinese) stereotypes?

Casts

Girlfriends

Fresh Off the Boat

  • Eddie Huang (Hudson Yang)
  • Louis Huang (Randall Park)
  • Jessica Huang (Constance Wu)
  • Emery Huang (Forrest Wheeler)
  • Evan Huang (Ian Chen)
  • Grandma Jenny Huang (Lucille Soong)

black-ish

  • Andre "Dre" Johnson Sr. (Anthony Anderson)
  • Dr. Rainbow "Bow" Johnson (Tracee Ellis Ross)
  • Zoey Johnson (Yara Shahidi)
  • Andre ("Junior") Johnson Jr. (Marcus Scribner)
  • Jack Johnson (Miles Brown)
  • Diane Johnson (Marsai Martin)
  • Ruby Johnson (Jenifer Lewis)
  • Earl "Pops" Johnson (Laurence Fishburne)
  • Josh Oppenhol (Jeff Meacham)
  • Leslie Stevens (Peter Mackenzie)

All groups

  1. List two strength(s) of analyzing (gender, race, ethnic) identity in terms of discourse. List two weaknesses of this approach.

Bibliography

  1. Jeremy G. Butler, Television: Critical Methods and Applications (NY: Routledge, 2012).
  2. Beretta E. Smith-Shomade, “Laughing Out Loud: Negras Negotiating Situation Comedy,” Shaded Lives: African-American Women and Television (New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press, 2002), 24-68.

External links

Retrieved from "https://screenpedia.org/index.php?title=Discourse_%26_Identity_III_(Discussion)&oldid=425"