Details Title: ENG 381 Description: Film, Media and Culture Total Flash Cards: 110 Created: 02/09/2009 20:15:40		New Users: To study from this flashcard set, or to create your own your own study flash cards, REGISTER HERE. Existing Users: CLICK HERE. Additional Film, Theatre & Television Flashcards
Cards in this set: Term Representation Definition process of presenting an image of something in order to communicate ideas or tell a story. Term White Patriarchal Capitalism Definition dominant ideology of the western world; suggests that heterosexual Caucasian males and gaining wealth are the most important things in the world. Term Stereotype Definition oversimplified images of a person or group. Term Antebellum Definition literally, "pre-war", usually refers to the era before the civil war. Term Minstrel Show Definition popular nineteenth-century theatrical format in which white entertainers donned blackface makeup and performed as stereotypical African Americans. Term Blackface Definition popular theatrical tradition of the 1800s that featured white performers darkening their faces with makeup in order to perform comedic stereotypes of African Americans. Term Classical Hollywood Film Definition overall form and structure of most hollywood films in the 1930s and 1940s. Term Coon Definition stereotype of an african american male as a lazy, shuffling and ignorant fool. Term Uncle Tom Definition stereotype of an African American male as a devoted servant to his white master. Term Mammy Definition stereotype of an African American woman as an overweight caretaker of white people. Term Tragic Mullatto Definition stereotype of an African American women of mixed race heritage who usually finds only death or disgrace. Term Black Buck Definition stereotype of a hypersexual and hypermasculine African American man. Term Miscegenation Definition outmoded term used to describe sexual or romantic relations between people of different races. Term Jim Crowe Laws Definition racist laws that until the mid-twentieth century segregated white people from black people in housing, jobs, and public accommodations. Term NAACP Definition powerful twentieth century civil rights group devoted to African American issues. Term Race Movies Definition independently made films that featured all black casts and were exhibited exclusively in black neighborhood theaters. Term Harlem Renaissance Definition flowering of African American art, literature, theater, and culture centered in Northern American cities, 1920s to 1930s. Term Oscar Micheaux Definition the most prolific African American director of race movies. Term Passing Definition process wherein light-skinned people of color deny their racial or ethnic backgrounds in order to be accepted white. Gay and Lesbian people also may pass for straight. Term Spencer Williams Definition African American filmmaker who wrote and directed race movies and later starred on television in Amos n Andy. Term Genres Definition type of fictional film produced within an industrial context. Common Hollywood genres include the war film, the musical, gangster film, etc. Term Ideology Definition systematic body of concepts that express values and beliefs, especially about human lives and cultures. Ideology is conveyed through speech, sound, image, and all cultural texts. Term Production Code Definition self-censoring set of rules and regulations that Hollywood adopted in 1930 and imposed upon itself from 1934 until it was replaced by the Ratings System in the late 1960s. Term Civil Rights Movement Definition broad social and political movement of the 1950s and 1960s that promoted equal rights for people of color, women, and other minorities. Term Social Problem Films Definition Hollywood film genre that explores topical issues such as racism or homophobia(but usually form a white patriarchal capitalistic perspective.) Term Red Scare Definition paranoia about communism common in 1950s America. Term Brown v. Board of Education Definition landmark 1954 Supreme Court decision that declared separate but equal Jim Crow Laws unconstitutional. Term Sidney Poitier Definition the first African American leading male star in Hollywood films, roughly 1950s and 1960s. Term Blaxploitation Films Definition cheaply made films of the 1970s that featured strong, aggressive African American leads, sometimes battling racist white characters and institutions. Term Exploitation Films Definition cheaply made and sensational films that promise to show moviegoers more sex and violence than can be found in usual Hollywood fare. Term Black-and-White Buddy Film Definition a Hollywood comedy or action-adventure film formula that pairs an African American star with a white star in order to attract both white and black audiences. (ex. Lethal Weapon.) Term Neo-blaxploitation Definition frequently violent genre film of the 1990s that centered on African American characters. Term Woman's Film Definition genre that focuses on alleged “women’s issues” such as romance, courtship, and parenthood. Term Film Forum Definition structure or shape of the cinematic medium; encompasses aspects of literary design, visual design, cinematography, editing, and sound. Term Content Definition what a work of art or cultural artifact is about. That content is then expressed through form and style. Term Form Definition how the content of a work is expressed, the shape that it takes. Term 5 formal elements- Literary Design Definition encompasses all aspects of a production that have been scripted including character, setting, dialogue, theme, and title. Term 5 formal elements- Visual Design Definition encompassing aspects of sets and props, costume, makeup, lighting, blocking and color. Term 5 formal elements- Cinematography Definition encompassing all aspects of film stock, lens choice, camera speed, framing, and camera movement. Term 5 formal elements- Editing Definition the cutting and pasting together of individual shots in order to create a feeling or idea or tell a story. Term 5 formal elements- Sound Design Definition encompassing all auditory stimuli that accompany the visual part of film. Term Dominant Ideology Definition pervasive and often unremarked-upon set of assumptions and beliefs that structure any given group or culture. The dominant ideology of Western culture is white patriarchal heterosexual capitalism. Term Hegemony Definition fluctuating state of dominant ideology; also, the ongoing struggle to gain the consent of the people to a system that would govern them. Term Ideological State Apparatus Definition (ISAs) social institutions(such as the family, the government, religion, school, and media.) that support an ideology through education and example rather than through overt coercion. Term Repressive State Apparatus Definition (RSAs) social forces such as armies, wars, police forces, and terrorism that exert social control through violence and/or the threat of violence. Term Institutionalized Discrimination Definition when bias is embedded in social structures such as schools, government, business , or the media. Term Cultural Studies Definition broad area of research and theory that attempts to explain how cultures work in relation to history, economics, diversity, etc. Term Cultural Artifacts Definition any text produced and then decoded by a reader(spectator). Movies, books, songs, ads, speeches, fashion, and food are all cultural artifacts. Term Representational Systems Definition mediated systems we use to communicate with one another, such as language, art, literature, movies, TV, and the Internet. Term Encoding Definition process by which the producers of a cultural artifact place both conscious meanings into a text. Term Encoding Definition process by which the producers of a cultural artifact place both conscious and unconcious meanings into a text. Term Decoding Definition process by which a reader or spectator makes sense of a text; dependent upon the reader’s own social and historical positioning as well as on how the text has been encoded by its producers. Term Dominant Readings Definition decoding a text as it was intended(by its producers) to be decoded. Term Oppositional Readings Definition decoding a text in ways not intended by those who encoded it. Term Negotiated Readings Definition decoding a text partly according to the ways that it was intended and partly in ways that is was not. Term Caucasoid Definition White race Term Negroid Definition Black race Term Mongloid Definition Native American/ Asian/Yellow race Term Manifest Destiny Definition ideology program of nineteenth and twentieth century America used to justify US expansion into foreign lands and territories. Term Aztlan Definition Chicano name for the southwestern United States that used to that used to be part of Mexico. Term Others Definition Person or cultural group against which one defines one’s own self or culture. Term Stereotypes Definition Oversimplifies images of a person or a group. Term Imperialist Definition Practice of gaining control over other nations and territories through repressive, violent means. Term Hispanic Definition People whose ancestry can be traced back to Spain, Portugal, and/or Latin America. Term Latino/a Definition Gendered terms used to refer to people or cultures that originate from Latin America. Latino is masculine and Latina is feminine. Term Gendered Definition Social role assigned to male or female in any given historical culture. Term Race Definition Category of human beings based upon external features such as skin color and hair texture. Term Nationality Definition Social grouping based upon geographical and/or political boundaries. Term Ethnicity Definition Social grouping based upon shared culture and custom. Term Racist Definition One who believes that human beings can be designated as superior or inferior on the basis of their racial characteristics. Term Greaser Definition Derogatory stereotype of Latinos, and especially Mexican Americans, as slovenly, violent bandits. Term Latin Lover Definition Handsome and exotic, sexually alluring leading man of Italian or Hispanic heritage; a prominent character type in Hollywood. Term Xenophobia Definition Irrational fear and/or hatred of foreigners. Term Good Neighbor Policy Definition Federal propaganda programs, enacted during World War II, designed to promote good will between North, Central, and South America. Term Zoot Suit Riots Definition Series of attacks on Mexican Americans in and around Los Angeles during 1943, perpetrated by white servicemen on leave. Term Blacklist Definition List of suspected communists who were not to be employed by Hollywood studios during the Red Scare. Term Genocide Definition Destruction of an entire race, ethnicity, or other cultural group. Term Chicano/Chicana Definition Gendered terms used to refer to Mexican Americans. Term Nosotros Definition Media watchdog group formed by actor Ricardo Montalban in the 1970s to promote better images of Latinos. Term Counterculture Definition Loose coalition of 1960s groups who all opposed the dominant culture; hippies, civil rights workers, women, people of color, young people, etc. Term Nostalgic Hollywood blockbuster Definition Big budget Hollywood film that refashions storylines and genre formulas from previous eras for contemporary audience. Term Dolores Del Rio Definition a Latina actress that played a major role during the Latin Invasion and the golden age of Hollywood. Her first musical was Ramona. Term Ethnicity Definition Social grouping based upon shared culture and custom. Term WASP Definition Common abbreviation for “White Anglo Saxon Protestant,” historically the dominant population group in the United States Term Tokenism Definition Only making a minimal effort to be truly multicultural; in film, the creation of a minority role to deflate a potential charge of racism, sexism, homophobia, etc. Term Token Definition Single character (or person) used to deflate charges of bias within a film or institution; for example, the hiring of one black actor in an otherwise all-white film or institution. Term Social Construct Definition An idea or identity defined and determined by history and culture; its meaning may fluctuate in relation to the time and place of its use. Term Othering Definition Process by which one culture defines itself against another, often by ascribing undesirable traits (shared by all humans) to a specific cultural group. Term Displacement Definition Psychological defense mechanism in which a person or group projects their own negative traits onto another person or group. Term Lynching Definition Mob torture and murder of an individual, often by hanging; historically used by white people to terrorize non-white communities. Term American Melting Pot Definition Metaphor that expresses how various immigrant cultures and traditions are supposed to be forged together into an overall sense of American identity. Term Assimilation Definition Blending into the ideals and assumptions of white patriarchal capitalist culture. Term Nativism Definition Nineteenth-century ideology that stressed that “America should be for Americans” and not for foreigners. Term Mick Definition Derogatory term for and stereotype of a loud, violent, drunken Irish American. Term Colleen Definition Common stereotype of Irish American women during the 1920s. The Colleen sought to assimilate by being bright-eyed and good-natured. Term James Cagney Definition Irish American classical Hollywood film star best known for playing gangsters as well as patriotic characters. Term John Ford Definition Prolific Irish American director of Hollywood Westerns and war films. Term Legion of Decency Definition Catholic group founded in the 1930s to protest against sex and violence in Hollywood films. For many years the Legion issued its own film ratings. Term Seal of Approval Definition Begun in 1934, this was a way of “enforcing” the Hollywood Production Code by specifically labeling films that had been passed by the board of censors. Term Anarchist Definition Someone who believes in toppling all forms of social control and/or government. Term Rudolph Valentino Definition Actor of Italian descent who became the most famous Latin Lover of the 1920s. Term Gangster Film Definition Film genre that focuses on the rise and fall of a violent mobster figure. Term Mafia Definition Organized crime “family” of Italian or Italian American descent. Term War Movie Definition Hollywood genre that dramatizes men coming together to fight a battle. Term Italian Neorealism Definition Italian film movement of the 1940s that regularly represented Italians as poor, working-class people. Term Anti-Semitism Definition Prejudice against or hatred of Jews. Term Yiddish-language Films Definition Small-budget films made by and for the Jewish community in the 1920s and 1930s. Term Al Jolson Definition Famous Jewish vaudeville and early film star best known for singing jazz in blackface makeup. Term Eddie Cantor Definition Popular Jewish stage and early film star who often sang in blackface makeup. Term House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) Definition Congressional committee that investigated communism in the United States in the 1940s and 50s.