X-RAY
Part 2:
The Show
VISION
T
he act typically would star white
men who would blacken their face
with greasepaint and wear lavish and
outrageous attires. They spoke in a
mock- slave dialect and would act out
extreme versions of black stereotypes
and colloquialism. The banjo (which
originated from an African skin lute and
evolved into the American five string)
was the instrument of choice for performing minstrel songs, this is why it
became assimilated into white folkloric
music and rejected by blacks later on.
Part 3:
The Characters
Dan Emmet:
Songwritter
and entertainer
who claims to
have invented
blackface
Introduction:
Dear reader,
The objectification of individuals
is a common human practice.
When a group of people is seen
as a unanimous entity, it becomes easier to justify their degradation. In this guide we will
explore this topic as it relates
to popular culture in The United
States. To be clear, the purpose
of this guide is not to amuse or
entertain but rather educate.
Discretion is advised given the
sensitivity of the subject, however we believe this topic should
not be taboo.
For now though, courage.
The Editor.
Part 1:
The Minstrel
R
ooted in preindustrial Europe, The
Minstrel Show evolved from a long
history of carnivals and traveling entertainers. A tradition Dating as far as
the thirteenth century, minstrels would
perform songs, tell stories and act out
plays for their lords. After the middle
ages, as feudalism became less common, many court entertainers were
forced to take their acts on the road,
thus giving birth to a new medium. By
the renaissance carnivals became the
most common form of entertainment.
Once the art form migrated to America
it began to mutate into more modern
incarnations, one of which was The
Blackface Minstrel.
Blackface Minstrel Shows began
somewhere (mainly the American
south) in the 1830s, staring lower
class white men masquerading as
plantation slaves. Performer would
copy Negro music and dances, in efforts to ridicule the alleged savagery of
American slaves. It is unclear if these
routines were performed as pure parody or if they were meant to express a
genuine fondness for African cultural
forms in a time where the racial divide
was a part of everyday life. After the
civil war freed slaves began to adopt
the practice, bizarrely dressing up as
whites playing blacks.
By the civil war Minstrel shows had
become the most binding form of popular culture. Before radio and television, these traveling performer where
responsible for spreading much of the
elements that constructed the mantle
of American culture. Jokes like “why
did the chicken cross the road?” and
songs like “Oh, Susana” and “(I wish I
was in) Dixie” had their origin in blackface entertainment.
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The show often featured a cast of reoccurring stock characters, each one designed to represent a negative clichéd
vision of the African American social
pyramid. The impact of these atrocious
characters was so powerful, that many
continue to hide in American entertainment to this day.
Jim Crow
This character comes from the 1830 “Daddy” Rice composition “Jump Jim Crow”, also known as “Jim Crow Jubilee”.
The performer would blacken his face and sing the lyrics
while dancing a jig, depicting a stereotypical carefree slave.
Jim Crow is a representation of the Sambo stereotype; always laughing, lazy and irresponsible.
The etymology of the name comes from an old farming practice of soaking corn in alcohol and leaving it out for praying
crows to consume. The crows would become unable to fly,
due to their inebriation, and begin to jump helplessly. Once
grounded, the farmer would then kill the birds by clubbing
them.
Zip C oon
Created by George Dixon in 1834, this character was meant
to mock Freed slaves. Often confident and flashy, The Zip
Coon dresses in mismatching expensive articles of clothing
and has an inapposite speech. His attire and mispronunciation of big words render his attempts for validation useless.
The tune featured in the Zip coon act shares the same melody as the folk song “Turkey in the Straw”. It is also featured in
the 1928 Walt Disney cartoon Steamboat Willie.
Uncle Tom
(The Old Darkie)
Perhaps the most famous character to come out of
the tradition; he was immortalized in Harriet Beecher Stowe’s 1852 novel, Uncle Tom’s Cabin. This
te