The tenth episode of The Buddocks, the Itis, reflects on the contemporary American themes, such as race, class, ethnicity, and gender, in an artistic manner presented throughout the TV series. In terms of the race challenge facing America in a modern day setting, the producer shows a picture of a divided society.
Despite impressive steps by various classes of the American society to curb racism, the show demonstrates a high-level hypocrisy that cripples such efforts. Ordinary American lifestyle captured as the punch line in the film illustrates the authenticity of the American dream of equality of races, as practiced by a majority of Americans.
The rap culture is predominantly African American, and the depiction of a gangster lifestyle equally shows the prominent perception that one race embraces barbaric culture. The scenes which contain violence, such as terrorism and use of disrespectful racial terminologies, affect the American population in the entire film (Bell, Kim and McGryder, 2006)
Class dominion is the main theme of the show with frequent infusions of white imperialism casting an apparent class divide. The main character’s interaction with the class issue illustrates the lifestyle divide evident between various strata of the American society. Huey and Riley belong to a lower class, and their lifestyles clearly and accurately demonstrate class discord in the society.
In the entire show, the illustration of the lifestyle in ghetto setting illuminates the actual standards of the lowest class as well as the challenges faced by those people. However, the film presents a section of a low class population grappling with the property-ownership related evictions. Corporate structure in the country demonstrates a powerful class of individuals that would stop at nothing until they achieved their profit intentions.
Ethnicity, as a dominant theme in the show, highlights the prejudice and discrimination elements, which ethnic relations present to the contemporary Americans. Internal wrangles between ethnic divides in the film illustrate the possibility of an elevated tension that emerges on various platforms. Unique cultural traits arise from various ethnic categories presented in the episode, including soul food obsession that Huey blames for the demise of his grandmother.
The role of Granddad as a community man with friends and family around him depicts the conditions that precipitate ethnicised tendencies. Granddad’s recipes used in the soul food tradition highlight the possible ethnic trademark, which other people like Huey easily use to mock in order to show emerging tension.
Gender theme portrayal in the film captures a negative image of women in the society. Depiction of women in the ordinary American setting does not bring out the discord that the film highlights.
In painting a negative image of gender biases in the American society, the film illustrates the females as opportunistic party animals. Ordinary American women would assign blame to a gender insensitive society for having presented them as partying species. Granddad’s business flocks with beautiful women shown as flirts who take the opportunity to reap from party-loving men.
Negative eating habits emerge among the women in the film as the woman that attacks Granddad appears to be suffering from a nutrition condition. The woman fights against Granddad on grounds of causing her to put on weight; such a scene illustrates the challenges that feeding habits present to women. However, the women fighting for being equal reveal a gender struggle that still goes on in different ways in America today.
Reference
Barnes, R., McGryder, A. (Writers) & Horne, J. (Director). (2006). The Itis. In Ash, B. & Kim, S. E. The Boondocks. New York: Sony Pictures