The Pillars of American Niceness and Lynch Law Anatalia Sicsic Project Mentor(s): Sarah Sillin, PhD
Lynching of African Americans in the United States weaponized racial myths of both white purity and black predatory behavior to justify the brutal murder and torture of individuals in the 19th and 20th centuries. Lynching as an American post-Civil War tradition used fear mongering and miscegenation laws to police black bodies and lives to uphold white sovereignty and supremacy, using “science” to validate these decisions. “American Niceness”, as a concept holds a mirror to distinctly American behavior to present innocent and only acting in self-defense in domestic and international affairs while also suppressing a violent reputation of oppression and abuse of its own people. This project aims to point out the ironic differences between the prosecution of white and black crimes, the role of white supremacy in the justification of murder, the increase of perceived white purity and false claims of rape, and the political erasure of black history from the public conscience. This will be examined through the work of Ida B. Wells, a very prominent anti-lynching activist who published several works and essays that speak against the lynching of black Americans, as well as more contemporary scholars like Jacqueline Goldsby, who has examined the impact of lynching on the black community and its ramifications in modern times. Bramen’s viewpoint in conjunction with activist and academic examination helps us interpret the contemporary implications of black violence and intentional When Corruption Becomes Comedy: Dark Comedy and Capitalist Excess in The Wolf of Wall Street Lydia Smaciarz * Project Mentor(s): Sarah Sillin, PhD Comedy is a genre of media intended to evoke laughter from the audience by using humorous, absurd, and satirical situations and dialogue. There are many popular sub-genres of comedy films including situational comedy, romantic comedy, and dark/black comedy. Unlike situational and romantic comedy, the dark/black comedy genre juxtaposes serious topics with comedic acts to shock the audience. By using satire and absurdity, dark comedies offer an alternative approach to situations that can provide the audience with a new perspective. Martin Scorcese’s movie adaptation of a true story, The Wolf of Wall Street, can serve as an example of the dark comedy genre because serious subject matters like greed, excess, drug abuse, capitalism, and morality are turned into entertainment using humor, satire, and absurdity. However, the goal of the film is not simply to evoke laughter from the audience, but to bring attention to some of the core issues of capitalist excess. This study treats The Wolf of Wall Street as a case study for the genre which examines how Martin Scorsese uses dark comedy to create a laissez-faire capitalist culture where excess and corruption are normalized, encouraged, and glamorized to expose the structural limitation of social democracy. expunging of violent American crimes from the historical track record. Presentation Type: Oral Presentation (May 20, 9:30am–5:00pm) Keywords: Lynch Law, American Niceness, Racial violence, Erasure SOURCE Form ID: 261
Presentation Type: Oral Presentation (May 20, 9:30am–5:00pm) Keywords: Film, Genre Analysis, Dark Comedy, Capitalist Excess SOURCE Form ID: 235
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