Introduction
A protagonist is the main character in a narrative, play, movie or any piece of literature, in which the plot carries events and episodes, which develop his or her character. In other words, the protagonist is molded by different events in the piece of literature under consideration. When describing a protagonist, it is important to consider how the character changes throughout, with regard to varying circumstances. This essay discusses the protagonists in the movie, Bamboozled, which was produced in 2000 by Spike Lee. In essence, the essay will identify the protagonist, give reasons why the identified character is a protagonist, and detail evidence from the movie, which support the character of the actor. Importantly, the paper will also focus on the representation of African-American identity in the movie, by exploring issues of race, gender and class as depicted by Spike Lee.
Bamboozled
The movie revolves around the issue of racism in the media industry, with special reference to the American television, and its overall impact today. The writer introduces Pierre Delacroix, an Africana-American scholar, who has a degree from Harvard, specializing in writing (Black 19). As a professional media practitioner, Delacroix works for a television network, which asks him to think of a new show, targeting African-Americans as its main audience. Being the only black writer in the company, he faces a wide-range of challenges, as he interacts with Dunwitty, who oversees the programming of shows.
Additionally, Delacroix is afraid of making mistakes as long as he works with Dunwitty. After realizing that his time at the company is over, he works on a show, which does not fit to be aired, dubbed “The Mantan Minstrel Show.” To his greatest surprise, the head of programming accepts to air the show, which moves masses. Nevertheless, his hardest challenge is to explain the show to the black Americans, who are bitter about the idea, having in mind that it has been developed by one of their own.
Protagonist
In the movie, Bamboozled, Lee Spike paints Delacroix as the protagonist by considering the state of African-Americans and how they are represented in the media. He also looks at the manner in which black people are viewed by the society. In order to find out this representation, Lee goes ahead to explore why African-Americans are represented as silly and funny in the media industry, especially those serving as producers, directors, actors and even the audience (Black 20). This implies that the serious aspect of African-Africans is never depicted in the media industry, a trend that has been propagated by the American mindset.
Delacroix the protagonist
The image of African-Americans in the media industry is well-represented by Delacroix, who is the main character in the movie. Dela is aware of the black representation and the stereotypes, through which the society tends to view them discriminatively, based on their racial identity. As a result, Dela shapes his personality and appearance in order to confront related challenges, which are likely to come his way (Sparks 15). As the protagonist, Dela represents the blacks who go through various situations, trying to fit in a society, which has a fixed mindset towards racial identity.
For example, he picks an unclear accent, which makes it hard to recognize his background. In other words, he is not proud to be identified as a black-American because of the treatment they are accorded. By so doing, Dela allows the society to interact with a different form of a black person, who lacks distinctive features of blacks like afro and slang-filled vernacular. This implies that the representation of the blacks has reduced their self-esteem, making them hide their identity while in public.
Representation of African-Americans is also depicted at Dela’s workplace, where he is the only black person, employed as a writer. Nevertheless, Dela’s boss only turns to him out of desperation, to save the station from collapsing. This means that blacks are less considered regardless of the knowledge and level of education. Even though Dela has a degree from Harvard University, his employer acknowledges him as the last option to salvage his TV station (Sparks 15). In fact, Dela is threatened to create a hot show, failure to which he is to be sacked. In other words, blacks have no rights at workplace, and their services can be terminated without a substantial reason.
From the manner in which the society perceives black people, majority have lost their self-worth. For example, Dela is convinced that what he can produce as a professional writer is not valuable but silly material, which won’t sell. As a result, he is doubtless that he will be fired once he delivers the script because he considers it to be offensive and outrageous. In his show, Mantan, the New Millennium Minstrel Show, all the characters are covered with blackfaces. Dela is however surprised by the success of the show, after it turns out to be successful with high ratings (Bolt 42).
Both blacks and whites are comfortable with it and refer to themselves as “niggas” while they are covered with blackfaces. According to Tondeur’s review, “black racial stereotypes are put at the center of the most casual form of fun and entertainment” (9). Lee also implicates the audience when people are heard laughing during “Mantan” show. At this point, it can be concluded that the viewers of the show are either insensitive or racists, based on how blackness is portrayed.
It is worth noting that Dunwitty has a black wife and a child, with several photographs of successful black athletes on his wall. He, therefore, feels that he has the right to use the word “nigger” that is commonly used by African-Americans. This also makes him feel that he is Dela’s “soul brother” (Tondeur 9). The whites who feature in the hot show closely identify with blackness by using the blackface and referring to themselves as “niggas” since they regard it as a good thing. Importantly, the film criticizes Americans’ role in promoting interracial identity between the society and successful blacks like comedians and athletes. It also questions the use of offensive words like “nigger” and how they can gain acceptance in the society for daily use (Gubar 29).
Another way of viewing the position of African-Americans is by considering their relationships with the police and other law enforcement agencies. In his movie, Lee demonstrates how police officers handle black people aggressively, with a lot of force as compared to how their white counterparts are treated. Moreover, Dela has no choice but to defend the show, against any objection from African-Americans, who are against the representation of blackness in the show (Bolt 42). This objection is weak and has poor representation of black people. Tondeur says, “Dela must defend the show against a small number of voices” (9). In essence, there is minimal resistance than expected, based on the negative representation of black people. It can therefore be argued that African-Americans feel intimidated and do not have the courage to fight for their rights.
Extrajudicial killings are also common among African-Americans. For instance, Mantan is killed in cold blood after being kidnapped by a hip-hop gang. As a way of threatening black people, the gang decides to execute Mantan publicly via the internet. Moreover, the attackers mock Mantan and ask him to dance before shooting him. Besides this incident, all the Mau Mau activists are also killed except the only white member (Tondeur 9). This demonstrates how the blacks are less valued. In other words, the law is unfair; it favors the whites and exploits black people. Consequently, police officers spare the only white member of Mau Mau, after protesting against black representation in the show.
Conclusion
It is clear that the movie director portrays Dela as the protagonist, through which different themes are advanced, especially stereotyping of African-Americans and their negative representation in the media industry. In the movie, Lee confronts a regime that thrives in misrepresenting African-Americans, which denotes racial differences in America (Tondeur 9). It is worth noting that the movie depicts racism and stereotyping, which have remained rooted in the American history. The only difference is that the two aspects of human identity are represented in different forms today. As a result, what people might consider as a normal way of life could be a negative representation of blacks in our society. As the protagonist of the movie, Dela helps to develop the theme of racism and stereotyping through different episodes.
Works Cited
Black, Ray. “Satire’s Cruelest Cut: Exorcising Blackness In Spike Lee’s Bamboozled.” Black Scholar 33.1 (2003): 19-24. Print.
Bolt, Julie. “Bamboozled.” The Radical Teacher 75 (2006): 42-43. Print.
Gubar, Susan. “Racial Camp in the Producers and Bamboozled.” Film Quarterly 60.2 (2006): 26-37. Print.
Parks, Nancy. “Bamboozled: A Visual Culture Text for Looking at Cultural Practices of Racism.” Art Education 57. 2 (2004): 14-18. Print.
Tondeur, Cristy. “Bamboozled by Blackness: Movie Review: Bamboozled.” Black Camera 16.1 (2001): 10-11. Print.