White privilege was and still is an issue in past and present societies. This paper aims to determine how white privilege and power resulting from it are granted to a black protagonist in a fictional historical setting. In order to shed light on this matter, John French and Bertram Raven's (1959) theory of five (six) `Bases of Social Power' as well as the findings from the analysis of the history of whiteness were applied to Quentin Tarantino's (2012) movie "Django Unchained". Several scenes showing power relationships between the main character Django and others were analysed.
Some forms of power, including legitimate, expert, informational and coercive power regarding the theory, could be detected in various relations with Django throughout the movie. Furthermore, it was found out that forms of power do not appear on their own and that, despite the fact that both parties hold at least one form of power, one side trumps the other. Although Django is granted power through white privilege, he is still not considered equal and owes his status to his expertise or knowledge by superior white men.
Abstract
White privilege was and still is an issue in past and present societies. This term paper aims to determine how white privilege and power resulting from it are granted to a black protagonist in a fictional historical setting. In order to shed light on this matter, John French and Bertram Raven's (1959) theory of five (six) 'Bases of Social Power' as well as the findings from the analysis of the history of whiteness were applied to Quentin Tarantino's (2012) movie Django Unchained. Several scenes showing power relationships between the main character Django and others were analysed. Some forms of power, including legitimate, expert, informational and coercive power regarding the theory, could be detected in various relations with Django throughout the movie. Furthermore, it was found out that forms of power do not appear on their own and that, despite the fact that both parties hold at least one form of power, one side trumps the other. Although Django is granted power through white privilege, he is still not considered equal and owes his status to his expertise or knowledge by superior white men.
Keywords : power, slavery, white privilege, Django, African American
The whiteness of black protagonists in Quentin Tarantino's movie Django Unchained Whether Brazil's president Bolsonaro deforesting our planet's air condition or a CEO deciding to dismiss half of his employees, power seems to be a fundamental part of our global society. In the southern United States during the 19th century, power was exclusively granted to the wealthy white population. This paper aims to answer the questions: 'How can a black protagonist obtain power in the form of white privilege?', 'What forms of white privilege exist for black protagonists?' To shed light on this topic, French and Raven's 'The bases of social power (1959) and the history of whiteness are analysed. Furthermore, this term paper seeks to more about the reasons for the main character Django in Quentin Tarantino's movie Django Unchained being granted white privilege.
Theoretical Background
Definition of Whiteness
The term 'whiteness' holds considerable ambiguity. Some refer to it as the skin colour of the white or Caucasian race (Lindner, 2018, p. 44); others also connect it with the amount of freedom that comes with white or lighter skin, commonly referred to as white privilege (Leek, 2014, in Lindner, 2018, p. 44). Interestingly, this definition suggests that there exists one race that is superior to all other races. However, according to Painter (2010, in Lindner, 2018), the term race is scientifically inaccurate as all humans descend from the same small number of people and that the term has been socially constructed as an "ideology based upon superficial value judgements" (2018, p. 44) in order to gain control over others (McInthosh, 2007, in Lindner, 2018). Concerning these findings, the question arises, how did the white 'race' succeed in manifesting their superiority? The following chapter analyses the history of whiteness.
History of whiteness
In most heads, the term 'slave' produces an image of a black/African American male or female doing chores on a farm owned by white men. However, the original word 'slav' comes from the Eastern European white 'Slavic' population, which frequently was enslaved by more powerful Western European whites, turning the word from 'slav' into 'slave' (Painter, 2010, in Lindner, 2018, p. 45).
It was first the ironically named Charles White and Johann Friedrich Blumenbach in the 18th century, who connected race with physical appearance, especially skin colour (Painter, 2010, in Lindner, 2018, p. 46). At the same time, the number of African Americans brought to the United States as slaves rose significantly. An interesting separation process developed: Some white people separated themselves from other whites through their wealth. The wealthy ones employed the poorer ones to protect their property from slave rebellions (Allem, 1975 & 1994, in Lindner, 2018, p. 46). In other words, the rich made sure the poor whites would not bond with the African American slaves through preferential treatment, which resulted in a "privileging of race above class" (Lindner, 2018, p. 46).
Similarly to the slavery of Slavic people in Europe, European-American groups faced stigmatization by superior whites in the US. For example, the Irish were considered inferior; therefore, they faced oppression and racial judgment and were even put on the same step as the African American population (Painter, 2010, in Lindner, 2018, p. 47). Although the Irish could have stood together with the African Americans as they both were excluded and discriminated against, they ultimately decided to join the side of their white tormentors (Roedinger, 1991, in Lindner, 2018, p. 47). As a North American sense of identity slowly surfaced among the white population, the Irish, due to their white skin colour, could easily blend in and end racial
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