Masaryk University Faculty of Arts

Department of English and American Studies

Teaching English Language and Literature for Secondary Schools

Bc. Tereza Menšíková

Magical Negro in Marvel Cinematic Universe Master’s Diploma Thesis

Supervisor: Jeffrey Alan Smith, M.A., Ph.D.

2018

I declare that I have worked on this thesis independently, using only the primary and secondary sources listed in the bibliography.

…………………………………………….. Author’s signature

I would like to thank my supervisor, Jeffrey Alan Smith, M.A., Ph.D. for his valuable advice and all the resources he provided me with.

Table of Contents

1. Introduction ...... 6

2. African Americans in the United States of America ...... 9

3. African Americans in Film ...... 12

3.1 Seemingly Positive Stereotypes ...... 13

3.2 Reshaping of Old Stereotypes ...... 14

3.2.1 Moral Virtue ...... 16

3.2.2 Assistance to the White World ...... 17

3.2.3 Magic and Folk Wisdom ...... 20

3.2.4 Relationship to the White Protagonist ...... 21

3.2.5 Desexualization ...... 22

3.2.6 Abrupt Disappearances ...... 24

4. Marvel Cinematic Universe and the Magical Negro ...... 26

4.1 Marvel Cinematic Universe ...... 26

4.2 Choice of Films ...... 28

4.2.1 Iron Man ...... 29

4.2.2 Iron Man 2 ...... 34

4.2.3 Thor ...... 36

4.2.4 Captain America: The First Avenger ...... 40

4.2.5 Marvel’s The Avengers ...... 44

4.2.6 Iron Man 3 ...... 46

4.2.7 Thor: The Dark World ...... 48

4.2.8 Captain America: The Winter Soldier ...... 51

4.2.9 Avengers: Age of Ultron ...... 55

4.2.10 Captain America: Civil War ...... 58

4.2.11 Doctor Strange ...... 62

4.2.12 Thor: Ragnarok ...... 64

4.3 Marvel Cinematic Universe’s Alteration to the Magical Negro ...... 67

4.3.1 ‘Traditional’ Magical Negro ...... 68

4.3.2 ‘Other’ as the Magical Negro ...... 70

4.3.3 Black Buddy ...... 72

4.3.4 Black Panther ...... 73

5. Conclusion ...... 75

6. Works Cited ...... 78

7. Resumé ...... 84

7.1 English Resumé ...... 84

7.2 České resumé ...... 85

1. Introduction

This thesis focuses on Marvel Cinematic Universe, a series of superhero blockbuster films produced by the United State-based Marvel Studios, and discusses the way these films portray African Americans and incorporate the Magical Negro stereotype.

Film watching and going to the cinema represents a popular pastime in the United

States of America; Matthew W. Hughey argues that the average American spends around 13 hours a year in the cinema with half of the adult population watching at least one film per month, the frequency rises to one film a week for younger audiences aged nine to seventeen years (“Racializing Redemption, Reproducing Racism”, 752). Furthermore, Clint Wilson II and Felix Gutiérrez describe the United States as “a media-dominated society” in which all

“depend on the media communication to portray and define those things that [they] have not personally experienced for [themselves]” (35). The use of racial stereotypes, such as the Magical Negro, might thus lead to serious social consequences in understanding racial relations and African Americans in general.

Filmgoers are well aware that the films depict fictional characters and their fully fictional lives, especially when it comes to superhero movies full of extra-terrestrials, super humans, extremely smart scientists inventing a new piece of technology overnight, there is no doubt that this part of the depicted world is just a product of authors’ imagination, not their personal experience. Nonetheless, in most cases of Marvel Cinematic Universe, they take place in America. The world impacted by these unrealistic characters is presented as the very world what American audiences are familiar with. It becomes even more important since, as John Iceland and Gregory Sharp interpret the results of 2010 census that “white isolation is considerably higher that the isolation experienced by other racial/ethnic

6 groups” (11). Hughey argues that these segregated whites then do not have any in-depth experience with African Americans (“Cinethetic Racism” 547), they thus shape their understanding based on the depictions of African Americans in media, and white people who consume these depiction eventually “think they know Blacks and their actual status because of the roles played while acting” (Glenn and Cunningham 137). Therefore, it becomes essential to identify racial stereotypes because they might fill in the vacuum of real experience and result in distorted whites’ image of social reality. Furthermore, provided the primary role of the film is to entertain, not to provide accurate information (Wilson II and

Gutiérrez 36), viewer might fail to identify how the images consumed influence shape their views.

The thesis is divided into two major parts; the first part focuses on American society and the views on race, and how mainstream film reflects this understanding. It also discusses filmic representation of African Americans with the emphasis on the Magical Negro stereotype. Since the stereotype results from ongoing development, the thesis also focuses on ‘positive’ stereotypes. The discussion of the Magical Negro stereotype later on is then based on Cerise L. Glenn and Landra J. Cunnigham’s article “The Power of Black Magic:

The Magical Negro and White Salvation in Film” and Matthew W. Hughey’s “Cinethetic

Racism: White Redemption and Black Stereotypes in ‘Magical Negro’ Films” in which the authors discuss how Magical Negro manifest themselves in various films and the implications behind the stereotype.

The second part focuses on the Marvel Cinematic Universe, specifically Iron Man,

Iron Man 2, Thor, Captain America: The First Avenger, The Avengers, Iron Man 3, Thor:

The Dark World, Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Avengers: Age of Ultron, Captain

America: Civil War, Doctor Strange, and Thor: Ragnarok. It discusses the Black character 7 that appear in these film with the focus on their relationship toward the white protagonists and their place in the hierarchy in the films. It also compares the filmic depiction of the original comic books, however, since film contain significant alteration to the original storyline, the emphasis is put on the film themselves. The analysis aims to categorize the characters and suggest implication of the use of the respective categories.

Provided the fact that Marvel Cinematic Universe focuses on commercial success and therefore mainstream audiences, the thesis focuses on the hypothesis that Marvel films do not challenge nowadays’ views on race and use the Magical Negro stereotype. Similarly, it does not address inequalities in American society and whereas it shows African American characters, it also keep them as the second-rank characters that do not steal attention from the main protagonists that are white. If this proves to be the case, the Marvel Cinematic

Universe can have potentially negative impact on the position of African Americans in the American society.

8

2. African Americans in the United States of America

According to 2010 Census, 13,6% (Rastogi 3) of American population consider themselves “Black or African American alone or in combination”. The views on race thus influence the lives of significant number of people; similarly, films that shape how

Americans understand race have, to varying degrees, impact on lives of many people.

Robert M. Entman and Andrew Rojecki argue that African Americans find themselves in a liminal position in today’s America, they are neither completely accepted nor fully rejected. They assume that about 20 percent of whites could be called “traditional racists” and some others well aware of social unacceptability of their racial convictions chose to rather hide them.(46-47) Such a percentage is an alarmingly high number with probable repercussions to the representation of ethnicities towards which is the animosity oriented.

Most common view on African Americans nowadays is that of colourblindness that

Erin Ash describes as the belief that “success among whites in comparison to minority groups is a result of individual determination, a strong work ethic, high moral values and educational investment, rather than a systematic privilege enjoyed by Whites” (88). Moreover, Ernest

Cashmore discusses what Meghan S. Sanders and James M. Sullivan call “symbolic racism”

– they claim “whites see black individuals differently to blacks as a group; they might like, admire, and respect certain individuals – actors, athletes, musicians, for example – but fail to generalize the qualities of they approve to black people as a whole” (qtd. in Cashmore 231).

Cashmore also asserts that African Americans associated with prised traits are viewed as exceptions to the rule, whereas those linked with disapproved traits are understood as typical representatives of the group (232).

9

In fact, many Americans argued that the election of Barack Obama as a president signifies the end of racism (Ash 96), nevertheless, it only signifies shift in social understanding of race, not eradication of racism whatsoever. While white Americans tend to highlight the positive change in race relations and racial discrimination compared to the past (Schuman et al. qtd. in Entman and Rojectki 46), scholars argue that the change does not signify the end of racism. Mia Masks asserts that “colorism exists today not merely as a vestige of an ignominious antebellum American past but also as a quotidian practice in the present” (100) and Bell Hooks elaborates the white denial further by claiming: “Most folks in this society do not want to openly admit that ‘blackness’ as sign primarily evokes in the public imagination of whites (and all other groups who learn that one of the quickest way to demonstrate one’s kinship within a white supremacist order is by sharing racist assumptions) hatred and fear” (10). The racism, even though in many cases unintentional, still remains everyday reality for African Americans. Nevertheless, in mainstream culture, there does not seem to be much challenging this attitude. Rather, films resorts to “more positive interaction between people of different cultures, especially between Blacks and

Whites” (Glenn, Cunníngham 136) which can lead to distorted understanding of racial problematics in the United States.

Furthermore, race represents a very vague concept. Lionel K. McPherson and Tommie Shelby argue that

there is no consensus on the precise meaning or reference of race in America today,

only a vague, shared sense that race is somehow related to visible, inherited physical

characteristics (e.g., skin color, hair type, physique) and continental origins (i.e.,

Europe, the Americas, Africa, and Asia). [. . .] The intersubjective social criteria

10

for racial classification in America are arbitrary and misleading from the standpoint

of the biological sciences (178-179).

However, despite of lack of a scientific basis related to understanding of race, it still continues to be a significant denominator when it comes to society.

Moreover, there is no general agreement on who counts as an African American.

A part of population has adopted so-called one-drop rule, that is “a person is black if and only if she has at least one traceable black ancestor” (McPherson and Shelby 179) which is not coherent with the fact that according to Anthony Kwame Appiah “even a majority [. . .] of the Americans who are descended from African slaves ‘look white’ [and] are treated as white, and identify as such.” (“The State and the Shaping of Identity” 284).

Nevertheless, McPherson and Shelby argue that most African Americans are aware of how vague the concept of race has become (181). Instead of one-drop rule, the designation of being an African American is based on physical feature that are, compared to one’s lineage, recognizable. According to McPherson and Shelby, there are at least five dimensions of African American identity, or what they call “modes of blackness” (176), these modes include “racial dimension” that is physical characteristics generally attributed to African

Americans; “ethnic dimension” that is based on assumption of a common culture; “national dimension” that encompasses two previous but also include links to geographical areas that are considered as place of distant origin; “cultural dimension”, that is ways of expression that have been significantly influences by African Americans; lastly they stress “political dimension” meaning support to political values that promote equality, even though there is not much general agreement on the best way to do it (177). According to them, these aspects determine the African American identity.

11

3. African Americans in Film

From the beginnings of cinema, African Americans occupied a diametrically different position from their white counterparts. To begin with, they were not even allowed to represent themselves, thus they did not have any power over how they are presented. In his documentary Ethnic Notions, Marlon Riggs points out the depictions of African Americans before and during early film era; the Mammy, together with Pickaninny for female characters and the Tom, the Coon or the Sambo for males, belonged amongst the most popular images of African Americans up until the middle of the twentieth century. Being the most prominent depictions, they clearly “shaped the most gut-level feelings about race” (Riggs, Ethnic

Notions).

Long before cinema was introduced, Americans consumed depictions of African

Americans in a supposedly entertaining way. Infamous Jim Crow character was introduced by T. D. Rice who saw a disabled African American dance Jim Crow dance, dance invented to outwit the law prohibiting dancing, and further exaggerated it with no intention to be faithful to reality (Riggs, Ethnic Notions). However, Leni Sloan highlights that many people, having no experience with Black people, took this images as real. This tradition was taken over by minstrels playing “like movies today, [. . .] to the tastes and values of their audiences”

(Ethnic Notions).

Nowadays mainstream cinema operates on the same principle, its aim is, first of all, to earn money while entertaining audiences, overt racist stereotypes are no longer generally accepted and would most likely result in commercial failure. Having mass audiences in mind, it operates in a relatively restricted area marked by their audiences’ comfort zone. This

12 comfort zone has shifted significantly over a century, but it seems that mainstream film has reacted to the changing social climate, rather than aimed to promote any change in society.

Current Hollywood production, which includes Marvel Cinematic Universe, aims at creating films that would be commercially successful, in other words, films that would attract as many people as possible and therefore earn considerable sum of money to the studios

(Miller 22). Thus, the assumed audience in minds of the production crew is as wide as possible, very various and vague. They need to please a wide range of population and avoid controversy that would endanger the interest of mainstream audiences. In other words, they cannot address serious social issues, such as racism.

3.1 Seemingly Positive Stereotypes

One of the stereotypes to remain acceptable and not to arouse the wave of protests was Uncle Tom. In fact, the first African American “character” to be filmed was Uncle Tom in Edwin S. Porter’s Uncle Tom’s Cabin. He was performed by “a nameless, slightly overweight white actor made up in blackface” (Bogle, Toms, Coons, Mulattoes, Mammies, and Bucks 3). Therefore, instead of showing real Black, caricatures were all that filmgoers got. Moreover, as Sloan points out in Marlon Rigg’s Ethnic Notions, it was not only whites that put on blackface, African American artists also darkened their skin tone and highlighted their lips to fit into the expectations set by white performers disguised as Blacks. Thus, in early period, the portrayals of people of different race than white were not depicted faithfully to how they really look and how they act, instead they were depicted the way people were used to. Little attention was paid how different those images are from the people they were supposed to represent.

13

It is remarkable that the first stereotype of African Americans to appear on a silver screen was a person likeable to white audiences. Since Uncle Tom stereotype stresses socially desired traits that are generally considered as flattering, such as compassion, devotion, and faithfulness, it only makes it harder to see through the friendly appearance of the archetype.

It is easier to recognize it when the character is a servant and thus systemically subordinate to his or her white masters. Those two aspects put together function as an advocacy of social setting in which whites hold dominant positions over Black people – the message of uncle

Tom stereotype is that African Americans are content of following orders and fulfil the wishes of whites because it is simply in their nature. If it were true, then there would be no need to change the racial status quo in the United States. Therefore, assumptions that such images might improve the racial status of African Americans is misleading; most likely, it is not going to hurt the perception of race as much as overtly negative stereotypes, but it supports the ideology of Black subordination.

Uncle Tom’s female counterpart is the Mammy, and she also holds an important position amongst the first stereotypes that were introduced in silent film era (Bogle, Toms,

Coons, Mulattoes, Mammies, and Bucks 17). As faithful and devoted as Tom, she also supports the ideology of Black people being deeply grateful and happy when they can spend their whole life serving their white family (Glenn and Cunningham 139). It is this “helpful aspect”, as Glenn and Cunnigham put it that is adopted and perpetuated in the Magical Negro stereotype much later.

3.2 Reshaping of Old Stereotypes

Since the beginnings of cinema, African American portrayals have continuously been altered with changes in the society – mainstream cinema reflects the time and social setting

14 in which it is produced (Smith 780) and consequently, it also reproduces power relationship of the time. Therefore, not holding positions of power and thus having lesser impact on the content of cultural products, African Americans have been pushed to fit into certain categories (Bogle, Toms, Coons, Mulattoes, Mammies, and Bucks 4)

Cerise L. Glenn and Landra J. Cunningham assret that magical Negro only is a new version of the traditional stereotypes. (137) Hughey remarks that in “time of social upheaval and change” (“Racializing Redemption” 751) stereotypes such as Magical Negro become very popular since “they resonate with mainstream preoccupation with race relations, growing narratives that whiteness was under assault, and the recognition by Hollywood producers and writers that they must combat their own history of racist film-making”

(“Racializing Redemption” 754). In today’s blindcolour social climate, Hollywood production want to, at least apparently, abandon racial stereotyping and not to show any overt racial discrimination – it has become simply inacceptable and it would be too risky for producers to incorporate it into their films even if they shared racial prejudice.

Back at the beginning of the 20th century, audiences were ready to show their discontent with racist portrayals when extremely racist Birth of A Nation was screened for the first time that resulted in banning its screening in multiple states (Bogle, Toms, Coons,

Mulattoes, Mammies, and Bucks 4), the same way, new audiences would punish the producers by commercial failure should they recognize continuation of overt stereotypes.

However, they also want to assure their white audiences of the perpetuation of their hegemonic privilege, they have thus adopted the stereotype that on the one hand does not seem demeaning, but on the other hand, does not empower its Black characters either. This happens on several levels.

15

3.2.1 Moral Virtue

Magical Negro joined the ranks of Mammy or Uncle Tom being the “saintly character”. Anthony Appiah, in fact, qualifies it as a specific category of African American images, ‘the Saint’: “the noble good-hearted black man or woman, friendly to whites, working-class but better educated than most working class Americans, and oh so decent.”

(Appiah, “No Bad Nigger” 80). Similarly, Hughey argues that the Magical Negro “is a paranormal or godlike Black character”. (Hughey, „Racializing Redemption “ 756). These portrayals are so upright that audiences are given little space to dislike them. Having in mind today’s racial status in the United States when “majority of white Americans still buy into some negative images of African Americans and into the positive view of the United States as not institutionally racist” (Feagin), it seems that African Americans have to show unrealistically good personal attributes to be accepted as ‘good guys’.

From this point of view, the Magical Negro can be understood as a continuation of what Herman Gray in Color Adjustment explains as a White Negro: “You almost have to over-endow the character with attributes that comfort white middle class sensibilities, and strip him or her of anything else, so that the sense of the white Negro becomes what it takes to make them acceptable” (Gray, Colour Adjustment). Typical example then would be Sidney

Poitier’s noble roles from the sixties (Bogle, Toms, Coons, Mulattoes, Mammies, and Bucks

97,141). Entman and Rojecki argue that this simplified shallow characters is socially irresponsible since “Whites already know that the members of their group come in all moral and intellectual shapes and sizes. They know much less about Black and the critics suggest that the film reinforces Whites’ ignorance of Blacks’ variety and humanity” (182).

16

Nevertheless, with oversimplified, either saintly or bad Black characters Hollywood film provided the audiences with black-and-white image of reality which might create an unrealistic expectation of perfection in Black people in order to accept them. As a result, those individuals that do not demonstrate the perfection or success might be understood as the confirmation of the other extreme and eventually strenghten colourblind approach in the white mind.

3.2.2 Assistance to the White World

As the Magical Negro appears in predominately white world, their relationship to white heroes and other white characters plays an essential role in determining the underlying ideology behind this format. Depicted as almost impossibly virtuous, Magical Negroes are also ready to share their saintliness in form of moral lessons, “they give every opportunity to a white character to be morally redeemed – while never raising the possibility that the MN

[Magical Negro] might offer a similar opportunity to an African American” (Hughey,

“Cinethetic Racism” 563). Hughey further suggests that magic is just a way to “shape cinematic blackness into the form of fantastic magical powers that transform black-white friendship into a use-value commodity for white characters’ salvation” (“Cinethetic Racism”

561). From this point of view, the Black character functions as a means to achieve the goal of a white hero. Furthermore, Hughey argues that the special abilities (magical powers) are

“attractive as long as it can be regulated to the servitude of whiteness.” (“Cinethetic Racism”

561) In other words, the ‘otherness’ of African Americans is accepted as long as it is contained and controlled by the hegemonic structure. Therefore, magical powers function as a valuable asset that could improve the situation in society that is shown as predominantly white.

17

Therefore, while the Magical Negro possesses extraordinary powers, those powers are always destined to the well-being of white majority, while the African American community remains overlooked. Nonetheless, “the centrality of the community” is one of “the core cultural African characteristics” according to Karenga (qtd. in Mazama 393-

394). Faithful portrayals of African Americans thus should take into consideration their ties to their own communities, which also includes at least meaningful conversations and cooperation, and certainly using one’s own capabilities to improve the situation of the community to which they are bound. From this point of view it would then only be logical that the Magical Negro’s superpowers help in the Black community as well. However, they cannot do so if they do not have any ties to them.

In fact, Anna Beatrice Scott asserts that the problem with the Magical Negro “derives from attempting to portray an entire culture through one character, rather than writing a character that propels the plotline like all the other characters. In seeking to vindicate both

Hollywood and black people through these magical being, the filmmakers [. . .] have simply created yet another white fantasy of being loved, cared for and vindicated by blackness itself”

(299). In other words, the portrayals of African Americans shrunk in an assisting character who assert white goodness.

Focus on improving the situation of white heroes is also one of the major characteristics of the Magical Negro that Glenn and Cunningham describe; according to them, Magical Negro characters selflessly help white heroes, refusing to accept anything in return (143). When abandoning their own interests and focusing on assistance to white characters, Appiah argues that only somehow morally superior African Americans can be seen as equal to other whites (“No Bad Nigger” 83). Thus, Black people need to prove themselves to fit in the company of white people that do not usually get in many cases 18 automatically associate with certain behaviour patterns because of racism. Furthermore,

Black characters’ devotion comes hand in hand with the lack of depth (Glenn and Cunningham 139). While going to great ends to support and inspire white people, they somehow could not help themselves face and overcome their own problems. African

Americans’ contribution towards their White counterparts’ good then continues to be the main aspect of these Black characters, putting Whites on the spotlight and pushing the helpers out of it. As a result, Black characters, in spite of how much assistance they could offer to Whites, remain powerless and unable to change anything unless guiding a White person.

Hughey explains this as the problem of “socioeconomic mobility”, for a White person, there is just a push from the Magical Negro character needed to improve their situation since “MNs [Magical Negroes] work in the assumption that white men are just down-on-their luck temporarily because they do not have the bad values of their darkened peers”(“Cinethetic Racism” 562) Therefore, at the same glorified for the attribution towards

Whites’ wellness, they have no impact on solving their own problems. It is what Hughey calls indication of a “complex relationship of antiblack stereotypes and narratives of white normativity and supremacy that together form a significant cultural structure – cinethetic racism” (“Cinethetic Racism” 568).

Hernán Vera and Andrew M. Gordon discuss Green Mile as one of the exemplary

Magical Negro films in which the Magical Negro character uses his supernatural powers to help white people, but then acts like “a kind of black Christ who goes willingly to his electrocution” (Vera and Gordon 180). Innocent, he obediently accepts his unjust sentence to death.

19

The Magical Negro can thus go to great lengths to help his or her white counterparts without expecting anything in return, however, they turn out to lose all their powers or ability to use them when they face their own problems.

3.2.3 Magic and Folk Wisdom

Green Mile’s Magical Negro character also contains another trait that Glenn and Cunningham and Hughey stress in the Magical Negro – “folk wisdom” in Glenn and Cunningham’s words (138) or “primordial magic” as Hughey puts it (552). Glenn and Cunningham assert that this kind of supernatural knowledge is opposed to using one’s own intelligence. African American characters who possess these powers can get into white world in which they keep the pace with white characters not by intellectual capacity, that is much valued in Euro-American culture, but by their innate and mystical spirituality.

Similarly, Hughey argues that the characters’ magic is what allows them to understand the white world and enables them to guide the whites to whom they decided to help (“Cinethetic

Racism” 557-558). In other words, ‘regular’ Black people would not have abilities either to understand white world or to teach and assist whites in troubles. Smith further asserts that even if Black characters became leaders, “their authority was largely still dependent on supernatural abilities, rather than rational and material means. Or, when able to gain access to legitimate authority, Black characters were unable to utilize it” (793). It take a white hero to make the decision and thus primarily resolve the crisis, and as a consequence, take most of the credit for the outcome.

This aspect also relates to the stereotype of the Noble Savage. Where white world, in other words Western culture originated in European concepts, relies on intelligence, logic, and science, the Magical Negro resorts to some kind of supernatural power. Similarly, the

20

Noble Savage does not depend on what is generally valued criteria of resolving any essential problem – reasonable assumption based on logical reasoning – they follow their instincts.

Originally, this stereotype was applied on Indigenous populations of the Americas; Olive

Patricia Dickanson argues that “the savage [. . .] could be either noble or debased, but [. . .] in any event was not civilized” (63) who live “according to the rules of the non-human world around them” (83). The virtue and harmony of the Noble Savage thus goes hands in hands with intellectual simplicity and lack of civilization – civilization that allowed to build a modern society and improve quality of life.

3.2.4 Relationship to the White Protagonist

The nature of the relationship between the white character and the African American counterpart represents an important signifier of the role of the Black character and the symbolism of the image. So called ‘buddy-film’ became established with The Defiant Ones and the formula has been successfully replicated in films such as The Shawshank Redemption or The Green Mile (Vera and Gordon 154). The pattern of respective central heroes is the friendship of a white and an African American was first introduced in The Defiant Ones. The two men have to work together to achieve a common goal, and more importantly, the main white character has to overcome his racism and eventually bonds with his African American

‘buddy’. While in this film the racial prejudice is addresses, it has disappeared in later films

(Vera and Gordon 154). Nevertheless, because of colourblind social climate and mass audiences not ready to admit that racism (either on a systemic or personal level) is still present, it constitutes to be one of the burning social problems of our time.

Furthermore, a specific seclusion of African Americans appears in films with buddy formula; interracial relationships between the “buddies” are most often kept between the two

21 characters with limited contact with other white characters except for the white buddy (Smith

787). Thus, even though the African American character is allowed to penetrate the white world, he or she does not function independently in this world and have their white friend to allow them to be present. Therefore, even though ‘buddies’, they usually are not presented as equals because of the Black characters’ helper status who thus remains subordinate to the white hero (Smith 793).

Superiority and dominance, especially in superhero movies, such as those in Marvel

Cinematic Universe, where a vast majority of characters happens to be male, represents an important ideological concept. More than in any other genre, it is linked to masculinity and virility; in superhero movies, the more masculine, the better. However, the Magical

Negro denies it characters masculinity since it deprives them of power.

3.2.5 Desexualization

Miller argues that today’s media offer two positions when depicting Black males:

“extremes of bad and good, of sexually threatening and sterile (20). Either, African American portrayals were sexless, or, they were oversexualized and thus represented a threat to (white) society. Uncle Tom and Mammy, both of them deprived of any sexuality whatsoever;

Mammy “almost as an antithesis of the white lady” (Christian, Ethnic Notions) she “was stripped of sexual allure” (Esther Rolle, Ethnic Notions). Closely connected to the assumption that “the white woman was the ultimate in female desirability, herself a symbol of white pride, power, and beauty” (Bogle, “Black Beginnings” 21), there is no doubt that the audiences distinguish between a womanly white ladies in the film and Black female servants.

22

Similarly, Uncle Tom does not represent any danger to his white masters. In contrast to Black Brutes that could be found in Griffith’s Birth of a Nation they lacked “Negro’s high- powered sexuality, then articulated the great white fear that every black man longs for a white woman” (Bogle, “Black Beginnings” 21). These good-natured servant would never even think about being a white ladies’ equals, not to mention any aspiration to become their sexual partners. Thus, these obedient servants do not pose a threat to white racial purity and their dominance in social hierarchy, they therefore remain acceptable for mainstream audiences because they do not make whites uncomfortable by opposing the status quo of white privilege and racial purity.

In fact, desexualisation of Black characters occurs throughout the 20th century, before the Civil Rights Movement, a “romantic relationship between a Black woman and a White man would have been a violation of racial attitudes of the time” (Bowdre 27). Even though, interracial marriage has become legal, The Magical Negro seems to be a more sophisticated continuation of this approach. Tia C. Tyree and Liezille J. Jacobs focused on superhero film with a Black leading character and analysed, among other things, their masculinity. They note that while these superheroes were appreciated for their work, they also “were out of place in the world and found acceptance elusive” and moreover found themselves dependent on other white characters that “help Black superheroes assimilate or exist within society” (18). Furthermore, Tyree and Jacobs came to the conclusion in their analysis of Black superheroes, that it is common that these characters are depicted in dysfunctional relationships or lacked sexuality in order to be viewed as acceptable (20).

Bell hooks argues that perpetuating portrayal of Black masculinity “constructs black men as ‘failures’ who are psychologically ‘fucked up’, dangerous, violent, sex maniacs whose insanity is informed by their inability to fulfil their phallocentric masculine destiny 23 in a racist context” (89). From this point of view, it is not surprising that films have adopted and perpetuate the concept of crisis of Black masculinity. African Americans characters are then either socially clumsy in their sexual relationships and subsequently fail their relationships, or they simply lack any sexuality and intimate relationships.

3.2.6 Abrupt Disappearances

The Magical Negro do not represent the central point of the film, as an assisting character, they appear when the white world need them. Hughey uses the term ‘disappearing acts’ to describe the supporting role of the Magical Negro. They vanish and then appear with surprising rapidity, while all these shifts are “for the betterment of white men”

(“Cinethetic Racism” 559) and signify that these characters are “harmless and temporary trespassers”(“Cinethetic Racism” 559). It is the sign of the Magical Negro’s not belonging to the white world, because if it has been otherwise, “regarded as a full character equal to the white character, there would be no need at the beginning of each film to so visibly enter a world to which they already belong, and no requirement that they leave that world by film’s end” (Hughey “Cinethetic Racism” 559). Similarly, Glenn and Cunningham identify this aspect of Magical Negro characters as a “limited role”. They remark that outside of his or her help to the main hero, the Magical Negro are deprived of depth and disappear when it is convenient (146).

The Magical Negro thus appears only temporarily and remains as long as she or he is needed. Her or his presence therefore depends on what the main white characters need to thrive and this fact ensures that the focus does not move from the white hero to their Black helper since they disappear as soon as they cannot provide any further service. Therefore, the Magical Negro asserts the importance of the white protagonist; he or she function

24 as an element that pushes the protagonist towards the resolution of the situation, but when they cannot be of use to the white protagonist, they disappear and do not steal the attention from whites to themselves.

25

4. Marvel Cinematic Universe and the Magical Negro

4.1 Marvel Cinematic Universe

Marvel Cinematic Universe encompasses superhero films inspired by Marvel comic books that have grown immensely popular in past few years. They are product of Marvel

Studios that, even though not belonging to traditional Hollywood, have become understood as the part of Hollywood mainstream. Johnson argues that Marvel “Marvel’s assimilation into the film industry presents an opportunity to complicate claims about imagined production communities in Hollywood (4). Nevertheless, Marvel Studios reflects Hollywood tradition which keeps white males in prominent positions (Tyree and Jacobs, 2).

It is true that Marvel Studios do not represent a historical core of Hollywood production, in fact, they might even be considered as somewhat concurrent branch of Hollywood. Nonetheless, it is important to note, with the exception of the last film Black

Panther that was released in 2018 and whose director and writers are African Americans, it is still white males who dominate Marvel films production. Furthermore, even though Black

Panther production was African American, the following film, Avengers: Infinity War production is dominated by whites, still following the trend from the past. Nevertheless, hopefully with more films with higher percentages of Black cast, African American producers will get more space and can promote more diverse portrayals of Black people.

Marvel Cinematic Universe is a series of film adaptation of Marvel comic books that have been considerably popular since Marvel’s first superhero film, Iron Man, in 2008

(J. M. Tyree 28). In fact, Tim De Forest states that Marvel Cinematic Universe has become

“one of the most lucrative franchises in film history" and Derek Johnson argues that Marvel

26

Studio was of the leading production of big-budget films in the beginning of the 21st century (1).

The Marvel Studios’ films have grown very popular: according to Matt Goldberg, the first franchise film, Iron Man , earned over 300 million dollars at the box office in the

United States and over 585 million dollars worldwide, and was followed by the success of other film from Marvel Studios. According to the data he gathered, the least successful film from those studied in this thesis, was Thor that still earned over 180 million dollars at the box office in the United States, and almost 450 million dollars in sum with the worldwide earnings. As for the most successful films, Avengers: Age of Ultron earned over $450 million in the United States alone, but including the rest of the world, the total reached $1.4 billion.

Considering these numbers, Marvel Cinematic Universe holds an important place in nowadays’ not only American but as well worldwide popular culture. Therefore, the images and ideology reach wide audiences and thus impact understanding of American society and relationships amongst its members. It then becomes essential what messages these films contain and what ideology they send to the world. Should they promote racial inequalities, they can contribute to racial inequalities not only in the United States but also worldwide. As a matter of fact, these film can influence how not only Americans, but people from different countries worldwide, view American society and African American’s place in it. These films, even though they “self-presented as uncomplicated, harmless fun”

(J. M. Tyree 34) still depict relationship between white heroes and their Black counterparts.

The films than have been more or less loose adaptations of the comic books, adjusting the original stories to new story lines considerably. The reason for the change, Johnson argues, is that “best-selling comic books sell perhaps fifty thousand issues, blockbuster films need to sell tens of millions of tickets to turn a profit, meaning that Marvel fans could 27 constitute only a small part of the potential audience for Marvel films and could not be

Hollywood’s sole target market” (20). Since there is this loose relationship between the film adaptations and the comic book inspiration, it becomes harder to track the changes that the heroes underwent, or, even more importantly, how the original material is transformed in the new media. As a result of the authors’ approach, the new material is, in many ways, a brand new film shaped, to a great extent, by the commercial success and consequently by the expectation of its implied audiences.

4.2 Choice of Films

The corpus for analysis has been chosen from films that together fall under designation of Marvel Cinematic Universe. However, other additional selection has been applied. Provided the nature of the Magical Negro stereotype, centrality to the story and considerable screen time did not constitute a decisive factor, however, films have to show a clear distinction between African American and white characters, in other words, physical features of the characters should not be considerably hidden or transformed by make up or costume. The reason of this choice is to make sure that there are clear criteria on depiction of race of the characters portrayed in the film for the audiences. Otherwise, it might be arguable if the dynamics of the relationship can actually relate to racial stereotyping and resonate with today’s American mainstream understanding of race. Therefore, despite their commercial success, Guardians of the Galaxy, and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 were not included in the analysis.

Furthermore, The Incredible Hulk has been excluded from the analysis since it has been relatively unsuccessful compared to the rest of the films of the Marvel Cinematic

Universe (Goldberg); more importantly, its protagonist Hulk, the only character that appears

28 in other Marvel films, was not played by Mark Rufallo as is the case of all other films by Marvel Studios which also breaks the sense of belonging to the franchise. Films Ant-Man and Spider-Man: Homecoming were excluded from the analysis because of the lack of African American characters that would bear resemblance to the Magical Negro.

Remaining twelve films from the Marvel Cinematic Universe were selected to constitute the core of the analysis: Iron Man, Iron Man 2, Thor, Captain America: The

First Avenger, Marvel’s The Avengers, Iron Man 3, Thor: The Dark World, Captain

America: The Winter Soldier, Avengers: Age of Ultron, Captain America: Civil War, Doctor

Strange, and Thor: Ragnarok. The thesis then focuses on African American characters, in the sense that McPherson and Shelby describe as discussed in Chapter Two.

The characters towards whom the attention is directed to in later parts of the thesis fit into this arbitrary understanding of race.

4.2.1 Iron Man

Iron Man is the film that started the whole franchise and its exceptional commercial success. It introduced the character of Tony Stark, a wealthy white business men in weapon industry. Show off and a ladies’ men, he represents that J. M Tyree calls “American Male as devilishly charming but irresponsible boy” (29). When he gets kidnapped, with a help of local physicist, Tony builds a prototype of what it to become Iron Man armour later on that makes his escape possible. Returning back, he starts to uncover what is happening in his own company behind his back. However, he has a few people to trust, one of which is his African

American friend, and the only African American with a significant role in the film, James

Rhodes, most often called Rhodey.

29

In both the film, Rhodey is very close to the protagonist – when he first appeared in Iron Man comic book series, he was Tony’s personal pilot (Roger, “Iron Man #118”), even though they developed friendship, comic book Rhodey keeps calling Tony ‘boss’ or ‘chief’ rather than using his actual name. While Tony addresses him as Rhodey, Rhodey, on the contrary, Rhodey can overuses the word ‘boss’ and sais sentences like this: “Uh, hey, boss, I was just kiddin’, y’know? Boss…?” and “Not to worry, boss! If it’s an exit you want, it’s an exit you’ll get” (Roger, “Iron Man #125”). Rhodey’s utterances represents sign of subordination and resulting politeness, because he addresses Tony this way in situations where the only person present is Tony, the repetition of the superordinate term serve as an emphasis of the difference between the two characters. Thus, comics portray rather than a friendship of two equals, unconventionally friendly employer-employee relationship.

Contrarily, Tony has never employed Rhodey in the film; it depicts them as friends who probably met in weapon industry. Nevertheless, while Rhodey describes Tony as his “friend” and “great mentor” when presenting him with an award, it turns out that irresponsible, childish and fun-loving Tony does not bother whether he humiliates his friend by not showing up at the ceremony and gambles and flirts instead. When Rhodey confronts him and express his disappointment in Tony’s irresponsible behaviour, Tony just laughs it off. Furthermore, he hand away his award to a stranger in a casino. It certainly is part of his charming boyish persona, having fun and making jokes all the time – he still remains likeable for audiences, and comes as a winner from his argument with Rhodey; he keeps his composure and ignores his friend’s justified irritation.

Tony’s attitude irritates Rhodey who tries to talk some sense to Tony: “I’m just your babysitter and so, when you need your diaper changed [. . .] let me know and I’ll get you a bottle, OK?”. In fact, he sums up the nature of their relationship – Rhodey takes care 30 of what needs to be done in order to promote Tony (and his company) while Tony ignores and fails to appreciate his friend’s effort. Nevertheless, Rhodey’s point is played down by the very next scene in which Tony foists him alcohol and Rhodey gets drunk and ridiculous.

Even though the film implies that both of them have drunk a considerable amount of alcohol,

Rhodey cannot control himself and ridiculously pours his heart, Tony seems as if he has not been drinking at all.

That is another contrast between Tony and Rhodey; whereas Tony flirts with every woman that he lays his eyes upon, Rhodey barely notices women around him. Surely, he is a professional and maintains his decorum, but in the film that almost glorifies protagonist’s promiscuity, it might give an impression that he lacks masculinity. He does not even seem to notice female flight attendants sexually provocative dance around the poles in the cabin, whereas Tony seeks to end the conversation to pay more attention to their dance.

In fact, the character of Rhodey is depicted as sterile, he has no relationship and he does not even notice sexual hints around him. This is not to claim that he should be irresponsible the same way as Tony act, but while he tries to lead him to a better, more responsible and meaningful way of life, he actually does not have any model of his own to offer.

In the beginning of the film, Rhodey fails to get Tony to act responsibly, but Tony eventually changes. However, this change comes with a traumatic experience and meeting

Afghan Yinsen. In the original comics, (Lee, “Tales of Suspense #39”), Tony gets captured by Vietnamese communists, but to set the story more contemporary, Tony’s captivity takes place in Afghanistan, so his friend and helper in captivity is no longer a Vietnamese as in the comics, but a local Afghan whose character bears a significant similarity to the Magical Negro even though he is not a Black Character. 31

In both comic book and the film, Tony finds an ally in Yinsen to whom he can trust and reveal his plans of the flight. Compared to the original comics where Yinsen, as an acclaimed physicist, could help Tony construct the armour that eventually allows him to successfully fight away his enemies and flee, filmic Yinsen does not know for a long time what Tony is constructing and as he is lacking valuable physical knowledge, he only follows

Tony’s instructions. Therefore, while the credit for the technology developed in captivity goes to both of them, in the film, the brain behind the whole armour is Tony.

Moreover, Yinsen gives an impression of an apparition from a different world, or at least a different country. Whereas all ‘ordinary’ Afghans that appear in the film wear shabby clothes, Yinsen despite his captivity always looks polished and not to deceive by his English, he maintains a slight touch of a foreign accent. In fact, when Tony wakes up form comatose, Yinsen is shaving his beard – not only does his look neater than the protagonist during whole captivity, but this act also distinguishes him from Muslims keen on traditions.

Furthermore, he does not have a single defect. Thanks to his strong moral compass, he can give Tony valuable lectures on the meaning of life, such as importance of family, and at the same time, he selflessly helps Tony to the extent that he sacrifices his own life so Tony can execute his plan. Nonetheless, not to make the film too sad by his sudden death, while dying, he assures Tony with his usual calm and dignity “It’s OK. I want this [to die]”.

This scenes became even less tragic as he explains that his family died and he looks forward to seeing them again. He only begs Tony not to waste the chance he got thanks to Yinsen.

In fact, Yinsen, despite not fulfilling African American criterion, fits into the Magical

Negro stereotype: he appears out of nowhere in time of need to save Tony’s life and assist him when he needs him just to die right before Tony sets himself free and returns to America. 32

Virtuous as he is, he can persuade Tony to care about the world he helps to build and in fact, he is responsible for Tony’s change into a superhero who saves the lives of innocents and hopes to stop violence. As Tony admits that his new (heroic) way of life feels fulfilling, it resonates with what message Yinsen gave him back in Afganistan. Eventually, despite how much little time they spent together, it was Yinsen who awoke superhero in Tony and gave

America the saviour it needed.

Tony then finds a new confidant in Rhodey once again. When Rhodey find him wandering in the desert, Rhodey demonstrates more happiness and gratefulness than the saved protagonist himself. Nothing has changed in relationship dynamics between the two friends – Rhodey cares about his friend immensely but does not receive much of gratitude. Eventually, Tony realises Rhodey’s faithfulness and considers sharing his secret plan to build his armour to help protect the world, but with Rhodey’s disapproving of closing down weapons manufacturing, he rather keeps to himself. In fact, Rhodey fits too much into a rigid army system to understand the importance of Tony’s decision. What Yinsen understood and revealed to Tony, remains hidden to Rhodey and builds a barrier between the protagonist and his sidekick who eventually helps Tony, but rather out of necessity and worries about Tony’s life, rather than approval for his actions. Rhodey, as a good obedient soldier, represents army values that prove not to be the best for peace in the world.

Only when he disobeys his orders and follows Tony’s lead, he actually contributes positively to America’s (and world’s) good.

Rhodey fails his attempts in guiding Tony towards more responsibility and it takes

Yinsen, an element foreign to American society, to forward Tony in the right direction.

Rhodey then only function as a device that allows Tony not to be disturbed by the army and follow Tony’s lead. 33

4.2.2 Iron Man 2

Compared to the first Iron Man, Nick Fury who only appeared in the post-credit scene, as well as Rhodey appear more frequently. They assist Tony who has to overcome the flaw in the technology that keeps him alive and faces a Russian physicist who is determined to kill him and destroy Tony’s legacy.

Rhodey appears in the beginning during the Senate hearing where Tony is questioned regarding the possession of the specialized armour. Surprisingly, the comittee invites Rhodey to offer his perspective which Tony finds hard to swallow; but Rhodey does not express any enthusiasm either to be there. Compared to Tony, however, Rhodey does not dare to break the etiquette, make humiliating remarks about the committee, or show any contempt.

Despite the evident attempt to support Tony’s claims, he cannot do so, and Tony decides to jump right in the middle of Rhodey’s speech. The same way he disrespects the senator, he ignores his friend speaking in a public and puts him into position in which he can do nothing but listen. During Rhodey’s further explanation requested by the committee, Tony jumps in again and ridicules the information that Rhodey has just provided, leaving him laying back in his seat with an impenetrable facial expression. For the rest of the hearing, he sits and passively watch Tony’s triumph and the standing ovation Tony receives.

In the end, the protagonist himself, not anybody else, even Rhodey who did his best, could protect or help Tony, Rhodey represents rather an obstacle that a powerful ally.

Nevertheless, he remains at Tony’s disposal and uses his position as a Lieutenant

Colonel as much as he can; but at the same time, he does not approve of Tony’s attitude and tries to guide him to get grasp of the situation when it is getting out of hand.

34

The worry about his friend and his duty as a U.S. soldier clash in him. In fact, he has two sets of motivation in the film: he cares deeply about his friends, who, in contrast, does not show much compassion about Rhodey in return, but he also keeps in mind his patriotic duty. Other than that, his character has no deeper, personal motivation, his goal is to serve the country and in more abstract sense to serve Tony as well, and if possible, do both of these together. When he comes to the conclusion that he cannot help Tony, he takes one of his suits and leaves Tony of his own because, as Tony explains him, “Iron Man doesn’t have a sidekick”.

In contrast to comics, Rhodey however acts more independently of Tony: film Tony’s irrationality springs from his slow dying, but in the comics, Rhodey takes on Tony’s armour because of Tony drunkedness arguing “I can’t keep him from destroying himself but maybe

I can keep others from destroying everything he’s built… Everything he’s accomplished”

(Gruenwald), he in fact does not want to do it, but takes over the task because he can see his boss would have ruined it otherwise.

When film Rhodey takes situation to his own hands, however, it makes the matters worse. Handing over the suit to the Army, he is ordered to involve an incompetent weapons’ supplier who secretly collaborates with Tony’s arch enemy. Rhodey does makes it possible to turn the suit into a puppet of the enemy. Rhodey’s decision in fact, led to potentially disastrous end, if it had not been for stepping in of the white protagonist. However, Rhodey gets the chance to make up for it when he finally gets control of his armour and during the fight at the end of the film, Tony announces him that he “could really use a sidekick”, nonetheless, the strategy comes from Tony’s head and leaves Rhodey as a follower of Tony’s instructions.

35

In the middle of the film, as soon as Rhodey leaves and Tony absolutely resigns on anything, another African American character appears, Nick Fury who knows what exactly

Tony needs to know and hear to get back on his feet. He cannot offer technological expertise but he can pass the message he once got from Tony’s father and provide the kind of push and encouragement that Tony needs. Furthermore, thanks to medicine, Tony’s symptoms of the poisoning slow down and he then can aim his attention towards finding the element that Fury tells him about. Moreover, setting up favourable conditions for Tony’s work, he disappears as quickly as he arrived, and leaves all work to figure out to Tony. Therefore, when he eventually finds the solution to his problem, the credit for the new technology goes to Starks,

Fury only insinuated that there was such a possibility.

Fury and Rhodey thus take turn in assisting Tony. When Rhodey, the same way as in the previous film, fails to make Tony act responsibly, Fury appears and gives Tony the push without which Tony would not be able to develop the cure for his condition. Then,

Rhodey reappears but because of his wrong decisions in the past, unintentionally, he represents a threat to Tony.

4.2.3 Thor

Thor introduces a new planet Asgard and the society that ought to represent Viking

Gods from Nordic mythology, who guard well-being of several planet, Earth included.

That would probably serve as explanation why majority of the cast is white with the exception of the character of Heimdall, serving as a gatekeeper. In fact, his cast to the role raise a wave of outrage on the part of white supremacists who call themselves

Council of Conservative Citizens and who oppose casting of a black actor for such a role and set up a website to boycott the film (Child).

36

The film tells the story of an Asgardian god Thor whom the his father, the king of

Asgard, deprives of his power and outcasts to Earth where Thor gets a chance to make up for his past mistakes and get back what he lost. The film is thus set in two different societies but both of them predominately white and presenting just two major Black characters – Heimdall and Fury. However, the only important Black character in the film itself is only Heimdall if we do not consider Fury’s after credit scene.

Race represents one of the differences between the comic books and the films. In the film, viewers can see Black people among Asgardians while in the first comic books in which

Heimdall appears (O’Sullivan and Team, Location 73), it consist of white people (Lee,

“Journey into Mystery #85“). However, the fact that Heimdall is played by a Black actor does not mean that racial equality in films has been achieved; to claim that, film needs to fulfil the criterion of comparable roles of its Black and white cast.

In Asgardian kingdom, Heimdall has accepted an essential task for fulfilling

Asgardian’s role of protecting not only Asgard itself, but other realms, including Earth – he protects and opens the portal that connects Asgard to the rest of the universe. Without him,

Asgardian soldiers could not travel to other planets that might need their protection.

Nonetheless, he does not fulfil his duties as well as his king expects him to do.

When he appears for the first time, he admits his failure and internalizes the blame for enemy on Asgardian soil – he understands it as his responsibility to protect the predominately white society and does not accept any fault on his part. Moreover, his self-blaming leads to a clouded judgement when he supports Thor and his warrior friends’ journey to seek justice for the intrusion which Heimdall blames himself for. Their actions does not result in the death of the whole group only thanks to the kings’ intervention who, as the viewer learns after the return of the whole party back on Asgard, takes the role of the gatekeeper 37 upon himself. Therefore, the king saves Thor and his warriors even though they find themselves hugely outnumbered, while operating the portal which Heimdall is supposed to do. After the return, he only angrily tosses the sword that Heimdall uses to operate the portal with back to him, which he, humiliated and with head bent down, accepts and quickly leaves the place with the other warriors returning.

Without any word, Heimdall understands that he has to leave his usual position and leave the place at the disposition of the white characters, king and his two sons.

Nevertheless, the chamber that he so promptly leave is the place where he usually spends all his time so he can protect the realms, but at the moment he understands that his service is not required, since the king can easily operate the portal more efficiently than Heimdall himself.

He thus understands that even though his place is by the portal, he has to leave it to his subordinates and conveniently disappear only to return when they finish.

Otherwise, he comprehends what his role is and never forgets to stress his “sworn oath to protect this realm as its gatekeeper” as well as that he “is bound by honour to [his] king” and all his actions are driven by his understanding of Asgard’s needs. Therefore, he always selflessly focus on the well-being of the citizens of Asgard or the planets he watches over. Moreover, his support for Thor’s reckless aggression does not stem from a personal urge for retribution – he views it as an opportunity to improve his watch and never again to fail his superordinate.

In contrast to other Asgardian characters, Heimdall is incapable of treason, and his disapproval with a new mischievous king Loki takes on the form of a covert sabotage of a direct order. As if he cannot overcome the dominance of other characters, he has to find more sophisticated ways not to openly revolt against what he does not approve of. As a result, he is capable of open physical resistance when discharged of his duties. However, 38 his resistance abruptly stops as Loki freezes his whole body right after Heimdall’s charge with only eyes gleaming through the ice – although incapable of fight, he can still reach

Earth, and when Thor calls for him, he finds enough force to break the ice and open the portal to let Thor come and save the situation. Thus, he gains the strength for his action from the knowledge that he is needed, only the protagonist in troubles gives him enough strength to set himself free and hurry to help.

Heimdall also differs from other characters by his isolation, both spatial and social.

His comic book model has a sister – Sif (O’Sullivan and Team, Location 85), one of Thor’s warrior friends who, however, remains white as in the comic book.

Nonetheless, the film keeps their relationship on a pragmatic basis of orientation towards common goal – well-being of all peaceful beings which omits any possibility of a deeper bond. Moreover, as he does not develop any personal relationship that would not stem from his duty, he appears in physical isolation from the city that shelters all Asgardian heroes, he unceasingly keeps a vigil in the chamber connected to the rest of Asgard by a long bridge.

From there, he can observe what is happening anywhere and open the portal, but he finds himself somewhere in the middle in between the world of gods, and the planets they protect.

One of Asgardians, but isolated at its gate with little access to the city. Even when the portal is destroyed and the bridge ends in the air abruptly, Heimdall still keeps his watch at its end.

Although he cannot open the portal and transport warriors from or to Asgard, he still possesses his gift that allows him to turn his gaze upon any place in the universe and thus he can bring consolation to Thor who finds it extremely hard to come to terms with the fact that he has lost the opportunity to come back to the Earth to his loved one.

39

4.2.4 Captain America: The First Avenger

Captain America: The First Avenger is the first film of the franchises to introduce one of its most famous heroes, Steve Rogers alias Captain America. It tells the story of an ordinary boy with dreams of making a difference that come true when he is chosen thanks to his strong moral qualities to take part in an experimental transformation to become a super- soldier. Consequently, he develops into the personification of American patriotism and fight against Nazism in form of the vicious organization called Hydra.

There are very few African Americans throughout the whole film. The two Black characters that appear in the film, Gabe and Fury, were in fact first introduced in the same comic books, however, the film makers have omitted Fury’s part from the comics and introduce his character much later with significant modification to the original Sargent

Fury that first appeared in the same comic book issue as Gabe Jones.

Whereas in the comic books, Gabe belongs to Fury’s team, in the film they never meet or work towards a common goal. Filmic Gabe is one of Hydra’s captive whom Captain

America free, amongst other soldiers, when he was looking for and eventually saving his best friend Bucky who had been taken into captivity by Nazis. After that, he fights and acts as a support during the Captain’s missions.

In the film, Gabe is a multilingual student of Harvard speaking several languages.

That is a positive shift compared to Gabriel Jones in Comic book series Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos form the sixties. In the first issue (Lee, “Sgt. Fury and His Howling

Commandos #1” ), the authors present the characters to readers, while they focus on audacity, strength and wits, for Gabe it is his musical talent: “’Gabe’ used to blow the sweetest trumpet this side of Carnegie hall! Now he gives out with the hot licks on the field of battle…

40

But his notes are just as true, and his hand and heart as steady as ever!” (Lee, ”Sgt. Fury and

His Howling Commandos #1”). On the battlefield, he can then be distinguished by his trumpet that he never abandons. In fact, more often he is depicted playing his trumpet than actually fighting: for example, when the first issue ends with the Howling Commandos coming to attack on Omaha Beach, all of them are ready to fight, whereas Gabes blows his trumpet and seems to be more absorbed by his music that the fight. Furthermore, compared to the rest of the crew, he is relatively passive, playing music, running or asking question to the commander what the next step to do is.

The film does not recycle the stereotype of an African American jazz musician; instead of playing the trumpet as a moral support to the soldiers, he takes part in the fighting itself as well as in the preparatory phases when his interpreting allows the planning of operations. Nonetheless, even if he participates in the fighting, in the very few fight scenes he appears audiences can barely notice him. When ambushing the Nazi train, despite the fact that he is the only one from the Howling Commandos to follow Captain America and Bucky, he does not fight. While Captain America and Bucky face the enemy, as if Gabe did not belong to them. Only at the end, he appears for a few second to take captive the scientist what was the aim of the whole operation. Similarly, in not so frequent fight scenes of the Howling

Commandos, he often seems to stay behind and join in later.

The question of race is not once mentioned throughout the film, thus Gabe, as an African American is allowed to serve side by side of his white fellow soldiers, as if it had been an ordinary thing in the American army during the WWII. Nevertheless, O’Sullivan and Team explain that Gabe was recruited from a segregated unit thanks to his “military proficiency and skill” (Location 108). However, incorporation of an African American soldier into the newly created unit without drawing attention to the causes of the apparent 41 lack of African Americans in the American Army during the WWII, might offer mainstream audiences with reassuring images of racial harmony.

The second African American character that plays some role in the film, Nicholas

Fury, was given less space that comic book readers would have expected. In fact, Fury, is the leader of the Howling Commandos – a very tough one but always taking a good care of his subordinates. Nevertheless, this task was taken over by Captain America who heroically fought with the support of the Howling Commandos and eventually overcame the Red Skull. Nonetheless, in the film Fury only appears at the very end of the film and in the post-credit scene taking place in the 21st century. After sacrificing himself, Captain

America has been frozen for 70 years and it is Nicholas Fury who explains to Captain

America what has happened. All in black, in a perfectly fitting coat, his calm and straightforwardness without excess emotions, just a touch of understanding and empathy in Fury’s eyes, give the character dignity that Gaby never had. The final scene before credits then shows Captain America starting to grasp the reality and Fury just watching him sympathetically and at the same time introducing him to a new world and becoming his guide in it.

Moreover, in the post-credit scene, Fury approaches Captain American again.

The hero is trying to cope with the shock and keeps destroying one boxing bag after another, unable to come to terms with the reality. This is the right moment for Fury to provide Captain

America with what he needs to find his place in the world and get over the shock – a new mission to save the world. The film thus condenses Fury’s help to Captain America into less than three minutes of the film – he is quick to step in out of nowhere when Captain struggles to understand the situation, but also he seems to be the only one to understand Captain’s worries and offer the way to heal for the trauma. 42

Nonetheless, Captain America has another mentor; the earliest person to recognize

Captain’s potential, a genius doctor who seeks to make up for the monster that he has created before he fully developed the serum that transformed Captain America into a strong protector of the weak. Somehow, he knows how Steve cheated and tried to enrol in different states so that could leave for WWII, but everybody refuses him because of his poor physical condition.

Dr Abraham Erskine represents the only doctor that can see through the physique and correctly estimate the abilities of a young man in front of him. Unlike even Captain’s best friend Bucky, he encourages the hero to explore his potential and not to give up on his dreams and what he thinks is right.

However, Abraham Erskine is not an American: his German accent, fact that he fled

Germany, and his name stress his otherness and raise a possibility he is Jewish, however, he never explicitly states that. In other words, he differs from other Americans considerably, but decided to offer them all his expertise and support their politics. In fact, a non-American joining the other side for their moral principles serves as a confirmation of American moral superiority and righteousness.

The night before he dies he gives a last piece of advice to Captain America:

“Whatever happens tomorrow, you must promise me one thing. That you will stay who you are. Not a perfect soldier but a good man”. It is thus him who stresses Captain America’s personal trait that later on makes him a leader of The Avengers – his strong sense of justice and will to protect innocent people. Furthermore, he provides the means that allow Captain

America to get a physical strength that he lacked when they met. Nevertheless, having created a superhero, Dr. Erskine dies right after the procedure. His death gives Captain his first opportunity to prove the success of Erskine’s serum while he pursues his assassin.

43

4.2.5 Marvel’s The Avengers

The first Avenger film from 2012 does not focus on a single superhero but combines several ones more or less prominent in previous films. Moreover, it gives much more space to African American Director Fury who manages organization S.H.I.E.L.D. and brings the white superheroes together so they can protect the world from villainous Loki that has plotted with aliens to rule the Earth.

In contrast to the original Marvel books from sixties, where Nick Fury is white, the film follows the more recent comic books series ‘Ultimate’ that started in 2000 which reimagine his character as an African American (Gavin). Nevertheless, the film is also inspired by the original comic book “Avengers #1” (Lee) where Fury did not appear, however, at that time, he had already been a part of the interconnected comic-universe and comic book readers were familiar with him being white. Therefore, filmmaker’s choice to follow the Ultimate comics contributed towards a cast that reflects better the composition of American society. Nevertheless, this is not to say that the

The film begins with the evacuation of a scientific centre to which Director Fury arrives in the disarray of the evacuation to assess the scale of the problem. He acts as an natural leader and despite the graveness of the situation, he remain calm and gives clear orders while his composure contrasts with soldiers’ quick packing and moving. Fury seems to know a great deal about the technology that the scientist test and that causes all the panic, however, he is taken aback by the piece of information that Hawkeye, no expert in physics or any related field, has gathered just by observing the technology. Therefore, despite all the specialized information Fury had access to, he did not use his common sense to come to the conclusion that Hawkeye revealed to him.

44

Fury is also the first to deal with the villain, and tries to negotiate representing all people while Loki is revealing his master plan, Fury prolongs the conversation so he as well as Loki die in there together when the whole centre explodes. He would then willingly sacrifice himself for the well-being of the whole world but his plan did not work and Loki escapes and neither Fury nor anybody else can stop him taking the valuable technology.

Eventually, Fury assesses the situation and announces: “As of right now, we are at war”, showing his ultimate authority.

Fury’s plan to deal with Loki consists in involving superheroes and keep his distance so they can use their potential best. Compared to the previous films, Fury gets into fight scenes but never comes victorious out of them. He ends up either hurt or he misses his target when he shoots, in other words, he cannot work as efficiently as the superheroes he brings together. Once he assembles all of them, he only directs the heroes to finding the answers.

He wanders around and in his own way, encourages the heroes to take their chances.

However, the tactics he employ tos give the Avengers “the right push” so they overcome their individual differences and cooperate consists in manipulation and hiding the truth.

In fact, he unites the heroes in a way he has never had in mind; thanks to his schemes, the heroes find a way to each other because they do not trust the director.

Fury in fact lacks the soothing aspect of a good-hearted but powerless Magical Negro.

Frequently, he uses irony and sarcasm without any hint in his facial expression; hardly ever does he lose his temper and stops controlling his emotions, but he does not hesitate to show his disapproval or annoyance. His guidance of other character then relies in challenging their own heroic selves and need to prove themselves as capable of saving the peace and the world. Therefore, even though he might give an impression of power, the ability to deliver relies on white heroes that he has assembled together. 45

4.2.6 Iron Man 3

Iron Man is the last film of the Iron Man series which focuses on Tony and his closest.

All of them, his girlfriend Pepper, personal bodyguard Happy and good friend Tony were introduced in the first Iron Man film and their relationship to the protagonist further developed in following franchise films. In this film, Tony struggles with anxiety attacks after he risked his life in Marvel’s The Avengers, but he also has to stop another evil organization and its leader that threaten the democracy in the United States.

Rhodey, the way film depicts him, is Tony’s best friend, although Tony, on an occasion, asserts that actually Happy, his bodyguard whom Tony very often overlooked, is his best friend. Otherwise, the closest person, with the exception of Tony’s partner Pepper, is Rhodey. However, he plays another significant role – he also is a devoted soldier who serves loyally his country.

Thanks to his ties in army, he can make Tony’s actions to prevent the threats more effective. He provides him with classified information, and to a certain extent, he can keep

Tony undisturbed by armed forces that would like exercise control over Tony’s equipment.

As in the previous films, he represents a good soldier who always puts the good of his country in the first place. Therefore, when he violates army protocols, he does so with good intentions. Furthermore, doing so, he makes a country a good service, because the Army proves powerless in facing the threat of hostile super soldiers. Thus, Rhodey also represents the failure of the Army, the same way as his employee, he cannot work without Tony’s assistance. Tony’s motivation to cooperate with Rhodey does not primarily springs for genuine attempt to help his friend, but he is more concerned about the well-being of the world and his heroic task in saving it.

46

Rhodey supplements Tony’s efforts, and allows Tony to focus on saving his loved one, while the President of the United States finds himself in mortal danger. When it seems that the two of them can focus on saving either Tony’s beloved Pepper or the President,

Rhodey remarks the inevitability of choice, however, he looks at Tony the way that makes it clear that he expects Tony to be the one to make this call. Moreover, compared to his friend,

Rhodey represent sidekick that follows the protagonist’s lead and does not challenge his superiority.

Nevertheless, in a short part of the film, the dynamics change and the leading role goes to Rhodey. Tony without his armour and with shooting skills that do not compare to Rhodey’s, and without having a real combat experience without technological enhancement, Rhodey takes the lead and also proves his shooting skills to contradict Tony’s claims of impossibility of the task. In fact, it is the only part of the film (or the franchise so far) during which Tony is ridiculed while Rhodey glorified. Without his usual gadgets,

Tony panics and he relies on Rhodey to accept the responsibility of leadership. Nonetheless, when he gets his technology back, he changes back into the confident and cheeky protagonist he has been before.

Furthermore, during the fight in the residence, although Tony is covered in little bit of blood, which is a proof of a hard fight, he never gets sweaty. Contrarily, Rhodey sweats excessively and his wet skin and sweat-stained shirt contrasts with Tony’s perfectly matt skin. They both find themselves in the same circumstances, however, from their appearance, the filmgoers can judge that Tony is handling it better because he does not have the signs of hard physical effort or nervousness.

Rhodey’s character also serves as a comic relief than an actual heroic character on various occasions. His password “WAR MACHINE ROX” makes laugh not only Tony, 47 but his enemies during a combat mission as well. In fact, the armour that he took from Tony constitute the main source of pride in him, but it also makes his character laughable because he takes himself too seriously. Therefore, whereas Tony’s narcissistic remarks and floating sometimes annoy other superheroes or people in his closest environment, the public applauds him for it, Rhodey’s attention to his own persona results in humiliating himself.

The film as a whole depicts the white protagonist who can, with help from his African

American friend, stop the villain in destroying American democracy. Although the protagonist struggles with anxiety attacks in the beginning, he succeeds in getting himself together and reaffirm his heroism as both genius inventor, fighter, and protector of his girlfriend. Similarly, Rhodey proves himself a competent soldier and fighter, but he lacks the personal drive that Tony has - his girlfriend Pepper. Rhodey’s life outside of his friendship with Tony, consist in patriotically serving his country and as a result, saving the President. Both of them, in fact, work together to save people, but whereas Tony pursuits the villain and at the same time saves his girlfriend, Rhodey has nothing else to save as the President, and symbolically the American democracy. Thus, as he cares about Tony and the well-being of the United States (and the whole world), he lack some sort of a more personal drive.

4.2.7 Thor: The Dark World

The second Thor film about the Asgardian god of thunder Thor follows up on the first film and similarly to it, it takes place on Earth as well as in Thor’s home, Asgard. Therefore, as the protagonist travels between different worlds, the gatekeeper who opens the portal and allows this kind of travelling, figures in the story.

48

The second film provides more chances for Heimdall to appear as it extends the types of situation in which he takes part. However, that results into the fact that Heimdall’s task as a gatekeeper and opener of the portal is taken for granted. Heimdall’s service become a matter-of-fact duty and his endless vigilance does not need to be acclaimed or appreciated: when Thor needs to be transported, he just shouts Heimdall’s name and Heimdall does his part without even appearing on the screen. Moreover, when on a different occasion a party returns through the portal, they pass Heimdall unnoticed as if he has not allowed their return; and the camera does the same. In other words, the warriors treat him as a servant that does not deserve their attention or greeting. Furthermore, he does not express any displeasure over how he gets treated, keeps his stoicism and suppresses any facial expression that would suggest his personal opinion. The lack of expressions, in fact, flattens the character. Never smiling or frowning, he reminds of a robot rather than a human being that processes and expresses his feelings. He keeps his composure even when a car flies by his side – which surely intensifies the comical effect of the incident but deprives Heimdall of human instincts and natural responses.

As well as in the first film, Heimdall keeps his vigil in a renewed chamber at the end of the rainbow bridge far from the Asgardian city and everyone in it. He thus spends most of his time in isolation with no personal ties that would not relate to his task as a gatekeeper.

He does not leave it for social occasions such as the spectacular funeral of the queen or Asgardian traditional festivities and remains symbolically restricted to the chamber by the portal. The only person with whom Heimdall has formed some kind of bond is the protagonist Thor, the bond that they started to develop at the end of the previous Thor film when Thor was suffering and in need of consolation.

49

However, the development of this bond reflects the change that Thor has undergone since he first appeared on the silver screen. At first, he was a cheeky, defiant, and impulsive warrior who cared more about his public persona than the consequences of his actions.

Nevertheless, Thor depicted a young man’s transformation from reckless young man into a mature protector who eventually accepts responsibility, but at the same time, sacrifices his happiness. Continuing to struggle to cope with the new circumstances, he finds consolation and moral support in conversations with Heimdall who can provide him with remarks that would help the hero to rediscover his balance. One such occasion arises when Thor confides in Heimdall that “merriment can sometimes be a heavier burden than battle”, Heimdall suggests that Thor is “doing one of them incorrectly”. Paradoxically, he comments on an activity he never participates in; he has not appeared on a single feast, on the contrary, the film stresses Heimdall’s permanent presence by the portal (or where the portal used to be in case it gets destroyed).

He only leaves the place when he has failed to fulfil his duty, he joins Thor who invites him to plan a secret mission that might prevent the enemy from an ultimate win and rule over all. Nonetheless, during the meeting of just a few warriors, Heimdall does not act as their equal – he stand behind motionless and stares somewhere in from of him.

Compared to the rest of the plotters, shadows partially hide him and bring more attention to the plotter sitting at the table. Heimdall thus gives an impression of a servant waiting for the command.

Afterwards, as it his “sworn duty to notify [the king] of crimes against the throne”, he asks the king to his usual position by the portal and announces his treason. He is such a good servant that he commits a treason because he believes otherwise the villain would

50 eventually defeat them, but immediately reports to his authority to ease his conscience for disobeying direct orders, even though he did not deem them reasonable.

Heimdall also fights little bit more than in the previous film and compared to it, he succeed to slower the enemy. As a guardian of the entrance, he notices an enemy ship and single-handedly destroys it only to find out there are more ships to come.

When he focuses on creating a shield around the palace, protecting it but not himself, he holds the place most exposed to the enemy but his protection aims at the palace.

4.2.8 Captain America: The Winter Soldier

The second film with Captain America as its protagonist tells the story of corruption inside Nick Fury’s S.H.I.E.L.D. that Captain America uncovers; Hydra, a division of Hitler’s

Nazis that has covertly operated since the WWII, infiltrates Fury’s organization and plans to use the technology S.H.I.E.L.D. has developed to push forward their own agenda hostile to the American democracy. Captain America then with some help thwarts Hydra’s attempts.

As well as with Fury, Captain America works together with Natasha Romanoff, a former Russian spy that belongs to Avengers, but he also finds a new sidekick, Sam alias

Falcon. They meet in the opening scene that clearly demonstrates Captain America’s superiority. Good condition and physical strength represent one of the main criteria of estimating the ‘super-heroism’ of the character in films discussed in the essay. Marvel

Cinematic Universe offers two major types of protagonists: those physically stronger than ‘normal’ people and extremely good fighters (such as Captain America or Thor); or those extremely intelligent who can develop their own gadgets and strategically employ them (such as Tony Stark) so they make up for the physique that does not compare to superior strength of supernatural characters.

51

However, new Captain’s Black Friend Sam, does not fit to either of these categories.

He cannot compare with Captain’s physical performance which the opening scene makes clear. Sam and Captain America meet during their morning run, Captain’s better condition

(and running speed) turns into a joke every time he passes by Sam who finally tries to match to him but ends up out of breath sitting and leaning against a tree. Furthermore, Sam sweat stains contrast with Captain’s fresh look without any hint of physical effort. Sam is thus shown as a ‘regular’ soldier whose physical condition comes second to a flawless physical performance of Captain America. Nonetheless, he joins Captain America on his missions, but his entering ticket to fight side by side of Captain America and Natasha consists in his possession and ability to flight a special set of wings. He can thus support his friends from air but, unlike Tony Stark, he has not constructed the gadget himself, Army made it possible for him to join Captain America. Without his device provided by somebody else, he would not keep the pace with the rest.

When Captain America and Sam meet for the first time, Sam ask Captain America to visit him at work to “make [him] look awesome in front of the girl at front desk”. In fact, doing so, Sam suggests that he would welcome some sort of assistance with his love life and makes it clear that Captain America’s popularity would get him more attention.

Therefore, he does not rely on his own charisma and ability to attract women and insinuates that friendship with the white superhero would make him more desirable. Moreover, when Sam meets Natasha for the first time, he attempts to flirt with her that she ignores and just smiles at him mysteriously, not giving away what she actually thinks.

Sam represents a perfect model of a responsible American citizen. Having served in the Army and experiencing a trauma, he copes with it by helping others in the Department of Veteran Affairs. When Captain America grants Sam’s wish and pays him a visit at 52 his work, Sam in fact reminds of a priest. In contrast to Appiah’s claim that the Saint in films never helps African Americans, the film hints that Sam’s work consists in assisting both white and Black soldiers; his audience includes both Whites and African Americans battling with PTSD, nonetheless, during the scene, the only member of the audience that interacts with Sam is a white woman.

Standing at a lectern, more than a group therapy, Sam looks like an approachable priest who shares his wisdom with those who need it. Furthermore, it does not stop when Sam’s group leave, he only gets Captain as his audience, and addresses the feeling of emptiness that Captain America feels. However, Captain America gives Sam possibility to share his trauma and the conversation does not exclusively centre on Captain’s emotional troubles.

Thanks to sharing emotions and preoccupations, they can form a bond, and Sam turns out to be the only person that Captain America trusts after he is attacked. Sam not only immediately shelters Captain and Natasha, but he offers them his help despite the trauma he had to go through and his past resolution never to fight again. He thus joins Captain

America in his fight, but without his special set of wings, he would not be more than an ordinary fighter.

Contrarily, director Fury is a twofold character. On the one hand, he has the best of the world on his mind, on the other hand, his actions to secure peace would lead to a disaster had not it been for a few faithful people around Fury, such as Captain America and his helpers. Fury represents a leader with a clear vision, he has surrounded himself with a few people to whom he trust and executed a project which would cause a lot of controversy, and therefore, he decides to keep it secret. When approached, he eventually shares it with Captain America, who offers his point of view and awakes Fury’s doubts 53 about the project. Nonetheless, the doubt comes too late because Hydra has already got hold of strategic positions. Therefore, the film depict an African American on an important position of power, however, his leadership turns out to be defective – he cannot prevent his closest co-workers from turning against him; the same way, he is unsuccessful on a personal level – his closest friend in the franchise, orders Fury’s assassination. Fury survives only thanks to Agent Hill, a white female agent with unconditional loyalty to Fury.

In many ways, Fury challenges social customs – he makes ironic and sarcastic remarks towards people he answers to, and creates a comic relief. In fact, his opposition to authorities became his trademark, and as he does not hesitate to share his opinion.

With his provocativeness, maybe audiences would not be driven away even if he opens such a controversial topic as today’s racism that in the colourblind world can arouse some a wave of contempt and therefore endangering marketability of the film. At one instance, Fury almost touches upon racism:

Fury: My grandfather operated one of these things [elevator] for forty years. My

granddad worked in a nice building, he got good tips. He’d walk home every night,

roll of ones stuffed in his lunch bag. He’d say “hi”, people would say “hi” back. Time

went on, neighbourhood got rougher. He’d say “hi”, they’d say “keep on steppin’”.

Granddad got to gripping that lunch bag a little tighter.

Captain America: Did he ever got mugged?

Fury: Every week some punk would say: “What’s in the bag?”

Captain America: What did he do?

Fury: He’d show them. Bunch of crumpled ones and loaded 22 Magnum. Granddad

loved people. But he didn’t trust them very much.

54

What at the beginning looked like a topic that could eventually touch upon racism that Fury’s grandpa most likely experienced; instead, Fury comments on a negative change and growing rate of criminality. Film carefully employs a blindcolour scheme. The viewer in fact gets an impression that there has not been anything such as racism when his grandpa started working. Happy to have a servant role, he was glad people were nice to him. In the problems had faced, not at a single occasion, does colour of his skin influence the way some people treat him.

When Fury follows the advice he got from Captain America and want to postpone the project, his former friends sends his employees to kill Fury. Even though he survives, viewers believe he has really died, only to find out together with Captain America, Sam and Natasha that they have been brought to his secret facility. Nevertheless, that is the point at which the dynamics between him and the protagonist changes. Having proven wrong while driven by fear and mistrust, Captain America takes the leadership from Fury, who not absolutely willingly has no choice but to state “Looks like you’re giving the orders now,

Captain”. No longer needed as a leader of the band of superheroes, Fury decides to simply disappear and leave the leadership to the white protagonist.

4.2.9 Avengers: Age of Ultron

Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015) unites superheroes from Marvel’s previous films and introduces a few new ones. From character previously discussed, it includes Rhodey,

Sam, Fury, and Heimdall, however, they rather flash by and the film does not treat them as other heroes, their contribution kept to minimum. Newly introduced characters actually play a more essential roles that either of Rhodey, Sam or Fury. The group that defeats the evil

55 artificial intelligence determined to decimate the Earth’s population thus consist of exclusively white people.

Sam and Rhodey both come to Tony’s party in the beginning of the film but once it is over as if they ceased to exist. As Sam has previously agreed that he would help Captain

America find his old friend, he misses Avenger’s fight, but he remarks that avenging is

Captain’s world so he does not want to be part of it. This commentary thus contains the implication that either filmgoers should not miss him and accept his disappearance.

Contrarily, Rhodey appears on a screen a little more, but never as an equal member of Avengers, always as their support. Otherwise, he does not receive much credit about saving the day.

At Tony’s party, Rhodey ridicules himself in front of Thor and Tony with a story about his armour that he likes to tell to make people laugh, however, Tony and Thor give him an embarrassing look and Thor asks if it is a whole story and do not laugh at all as expected. When Rhodey replicates the same story with a different audience that reacts the way he expects, the embarrassing effect remains. Moreover, Rhodey brings attention to the original story later on, planning on new stories to show off. Rhodey also stays until the end of the party and has the occasion to fight side by side with other heroes and Fury’s right hand Agent Hill, but Sam has already left. Male heroes then come up with an idea to pick up Thor’s hammer – each of them tries (unsuccessfully) on their own, except for Rhodey, who only joins Tony when he could not succeed, but never actually tries simply on his own. As a sidekick, he does not get equal opportunity to prove himself, only to assist

Tony.

After the party, Rhodey disappears and appears with Fury when Avengers start to come to terms with possibility they lose and die. He quickly teams up with Tony 56 and cooperate smoothly, but when things get out of hand again, Tony instructs: “Rhodey, get the rest of the people on board that carrier” and only then he addresses the rest as “Avengers”.

Therefore, while the Avengers heroically risk their lives, Rhodey and Fury remain in relative safety and insure that that they transport all people. Therefore, they take part in saving people but the credit for beating the enemy and securing the peace comes to the white heroes.

After last Captain America, Fury kept his distance from the rest of the characters.

Nevertheless, he always appear out of nowhere with no or very little explanation to provide some support when the situation turns really desperate. When Tony fights self-doubt and accuses himself of all wrongs, Fury guides him through but at the same time assures him that he is no longer a “director of anybody, just an old man who care very much about [him]”.

Similarly, he brings Natasha news about Banner, when she processes that she lost him.

Finally, he brings an old S.H.I.E.L.D. Helicarrier to assist with evacuation that Avengers would never make possible without Fury’s help.

Nonetheless, Fury does not stay, once the job is done, he leaves so Captain America can manage the team on his own. In a post-credit scene, Fury is present in a new facility to train recruits, but it is Captain America, who takes responsibility of directing. Furthermore, this facility allows Sam and Rhodey to become one of Avenger; they form a team with Vision and Scarlet Witch that appeared in the film for the first time. Therefore, they can become

Avengers, but they have to be in a second, less experienced and therefore less elite team.

Heimdall appears in the film only in Thor’s vision warning him of danger. Being at the feast surrounded by women, Heimdall represents what would happen should Thor fail.

Becoming blind, symbolically thus ceasing to protect the world, and abandoning his place at the portal, Heimdall’s pursuit of his own pleasure represent the abandon of his service and distortion of order. 57

4.2.10 Captain America: Civil War

Captain America: Civil War depict considerable number of characters from the previous franchise films. There are also two Black sidekicks, Sam works together with

Captain America, and Rhodey supports Tony. Moreover, it introduces a new character, Black

Panther, a king to be of an African country.

In contrast to the Age of Ultron, this Avenger film however, it also includes Rhodey and Sam. In fact, the previous film has not treated either Sam or Rhodey as a part of the team

- Sam disappeared after the opening party, Rhodey flew to Sokovia mostly to help with the evacuation. However, during the meeting with the Secretary of State, they are both present in the room and have something to say regarding the proposed accords that would limit the scope of Avengers’ initiative. Nonetheless, camera ignores them and when it takes the desk at which they are sitting, the viewer can see all the white Avengers, but none of the two African Americans. Furthermore, when the Secretary shows the footage of disaster that the Avenger’s fighting in the past caused, the camera focuses on Sam and Rhodey who both lower their eyes as if feeling guilty for what happened. However, Sam did not participate in those fights at all, and Rhodey’s role was so limited that the film did not treat him as a part of the Avengers. These two characters are in fact incorporated among Avengers only at the time of the crisis so that they can share the weight of the decision together with the characters that have taken part in more fights and were present at more catastrophes that them.

When the Secretary leaves, the discussion about his proposed regulations continue,

Sam and Rhodey argue but the camera does not directly focus on them, instead, they are blurred in the background because camera focuses on Captain America reading the file.

58

The two Black heroes are thus starting to be considered to be a part of Avengers only at the moment when they break apart by a disagreement on how they should operate.

In the split, Rhodey takes Tony’s side, while Sam follows Captain America. Each of them thus only logically share their closest friends’ opinions.

Sam also represents a moral support for grieving Captain America; he sits next to him at the funeral of Peggy whom she loved before he ended up frozen for decades and he continues to be by his side wherever the Captain goes. Devotedly, he accepts Captain

America lead and helps him to find his old friend Bucky no matter what the personal cost,

Sam encourages Captain America and Bucky to pursue the villain while he and other characters on Captain’s side cover them and allow their departure from the fight scene, even if it means the arrest and harsh persecution of Sam as well as the other Captain’s supporters.

Therefore, he is not afraid to accept the sacrifice of his personal freedom and well-being, if it means that Captain can, together with his old best friend, save the world form a disaster.

More importantly, becoming a new Captain’s best friend, Sam has not a pinch of jealousy towards Bucky who tried to kill him previously, and accepts the fact that Captain

America has chosen him as a partner for the task. Thus he stays and fights off the other heroes who aim to arrest Bucky and consequently Captain America. Nevertheless, while Captain

America still leads the group who opposes signing of the accords, he discusses the tactics with Sam whose role has developed from a follower to more of a partner since the Captain

America: Winter Soldier.

Rhodey, African American Colonel, on the contrary supports the regulation proposed by the Secretary and share Tony’s opinion. In fact, Rhodey turns to be the only one of all the characters not to violate them. During the meeting with the Secretary, he seeks eye contact with Tony, but even before Tony expresses his agreement with the Secretary’s 59 proposal, Rhodey’s mind is set and he vigorously advocated for the consent with the Accords that would regulate the Avenger’s actions. His justification lies in the fact that these accords were proposed by the institutions that protect the democratic values, and one of his arguments stresses that the Secretary has been awarded the Congressional Medal of Honour. Thus, he based his arguments on awards and institutional guaranty which have been questioned on many occasions in the previous films. While Tony has accepted because of his conscience, and Natasha later violated the accords because she understood Captain and Bucky’s mission,

Rhodey has never got to the point where would assess the situation, instead he followed the orders with no regard to potential consequences. Thus, while other characters examined the present situation to decide what to do or followed their feelings, Rhodey did not allow his feelings to come in the way. Similarly, his personal judgement consisted in not questioning the authorities that, from his point of view, have better qualification to make decisions. Thus, the same way he does in Iron Man movies, Rhodey represent the public institutions which however eventually turn out to be mistaken about the regulations they try to put on the Avengers’ actions.

In the fight between the two sides of once friends, Rhodey gets hit and uncontrollably falls from high – even if Rhodey and Sam forget their disagreement and rush to save falling

Rhodey, they cannot catch him in time before he hits the ground. As soon as Tony remarks his friends’ troubles, he forgets or chooses to disobey direct orders to get Captain America and Bucky arrested, and hurries to save Rhodey, nonetheless, it is too late. As Rhodey lies on the ground injured, Tony looks absolutely devastated and protectively holds Rhodey before the arrival of medics. In this case, a white friend nurtures his African American friend and tries to absorb the shock of possibility of losing him.

60

This scene constitutes a reversal of the “particular icon of a black man nursing his white friend” as Vera and Gordon discuss for buddy films, such as The Defiant Ones and Lethal Weapon movie series (157). In Captain America: The Civil War, however the dynamics turn and the white character expresses the devastation by potentially fatal injury of his Black friend. At the end of the film, he takes responsibility for Rhodey and for the first time in the whole series, he selflessly help Rhodey and devotes his time and energy to Rhodey’s recovery.

The film also introduces a new character, an African to be a king of fictitious

Wakanda kingdom, Black Panther. At first, he is introduced as a diplomat wearing a perfectly fitting suit but with a distinct accent that makes it clear he is not an American citizen.

His harmonious relationship to his father whom the film shows as a wise old king transforms but whose death in an explosion turns Black Panther into a warrior thirsty for vengeance that he only abandons at the end of the film.

As his comic book model, his combat style is very animal like, in a black suit with retractable claws he is closer to a wild animal than a soldier armed with high-tech armour, in other words, relying on his senses, he is a warrior “unlike a mere human” (Lee,

“Fantastic Four #52”).

This fighting stale appears in the film as well, however, the film highlight Black

Panther’s wisdom and resonates with the Noble Savage who is “said to possess the noble qualities of harmony with nature” and “a natural or innate moral compass” (Hughey,

“Racializing Redemption” 755). It is this innate compass that does not allow his to revenge his father’s death and makes him wiser that the rest of superheroes. Unlike Tony, he is wise enough to control his emotions and assert: “Vengeance has consumed you. It’s consuming

61 them. I am done letting it consume me”. Subsequently, he thwarts the villain’s attempt to commit suicide so he does not escape justice from the legitimate democratic organizations.

Furthermore, he has a link to nature and native wisdom despite the highly developed technology that he can use to put Bucky into sleep until a remedy for his condition that represents a danger to the American society is found. The wisdom that he possess, thus, enables him to abandon his human thirst for vengeance, and instead focus on how he can uses resources he has to help the white protagonists and as a result, predominately white society.

4.2.11 Doctor Strange

Doctor Strange tells the story of a surgeon who while looking for a way to heal from an irreversible injury ends up becoming a powerful sorcerer and protector of the world against the menace from deep universe. In its cast, the producers has altered the original comic book characters appears in, Strange Tales #111 (Lee): Ancient One, originally an Asian master who guides Dr. Strange, is a white woman of a Celtic origin; contrarily,

Mordo, another of Ancient One’s disciples who is white in the comic books, is performed by a Black actor. Therefore, the positions of power – the Master sharing her teaching with her disciples and the best sorcerer is white, whereas the character who is openly malicious in the comic books is Black. However, whereas the comic books demonize the character, the filmic Mordo genuinely cares about the protagonist and turns into a negative character much later in the after credit scene.

From the beginning, Mordo has accepted the role of Doctor Stange’s supporter.

He knows that Strange is looking for Kamar-Taj where he could learn how to heal himself.

Mysteriously, he follows Strange around the city and saves him from attackers, later when

62

Ancient One refuses to teach Strange because of his arrogance, it is Mordo who comes to her and persuades her to give Strange a try. The same way, when Ancient One challenges

Strange’s abilities and leaves Strange on the slope of Mt. Everest to die unless he masters her teaching and teleports himself back, Mordo worries about Strange and wants to escort him to safety although Strange succeeds to open the portal himself and Mordo’s preoccupations turn out to be unjustified.

In contrast to Mordo from the comic book who plots against Dr. Strange since his arrival, filmic Mordo goes out of his way to get him on a path towards understanding the magic and becoming a powerful sorcerer. However, unlike Strange, Mordo blindly follows Ancient One and tries to teach Strange to do the same. He does not question her leadership and the source of her immense power and advises Strange: “trust your teacher and don’t lose your way”. As long as Mordo trust his teacher, he can help to protect the world, nonetheless, once he realises that Ancient one has secretly drawn from the dark power, he abandons most of what she taught her disciples. Whereas Strange understands Ancient

One’s sacrifice that has been driven by worry about the world and takes it as a betrayal and a reason to abandon Ancient One’s past teaching.

In fact, Mordo cannot process the fact that Ancient One has her own ways to protect the world because it did not fit into his black-and-white understanding of the world. Having lost a leader and refusing to accept Strange who advocates Ancient One’s use of dark power,

Mordo turns into a dangerous element. His powers, previously used to benefit the world, turn into a destructive world that threatens anybody who possesses magic power, no matter if he does not harm anybody by using them. Eventually, Mordo ignorant of his own demon about which Ancient One warned him becomes a self-proclaimed vigilante who lacks analytical skills to assess social benefit or harmlessness of sorcerers. Thus, compared to white 63

Mordo in the comic books who is simply evil on his own, black Mordo in the film turns into a social danger because he does not properly understand the world around him.

4.2.12 Thor: Ragnarok

In Thor: Ragnarok, protagonist Thor learns that he has an evil sister, Hela, who seeks to usurp power over Asgard and ultimately over all planets in her reach. To stop her, Thor needs as much help as he can get not only from his mischievous brother Loki, and one of Avengers Hulk, but he also needs to cooperate closely with Black characters, Heimdall and exiled Valkyrie who run from Asgard. Valkyrie, in original comic books a Nordic looking woman with straight blond hair and very light skin (Lee, “Giant-Size Defenders #1”

1974) is reimagined with the cast of Tessa Thompson who reacted to controversy around her cast for a Nordic warrior by stating that Idris Elba performing Heimdall “can’t be the only black person in the neighbourhood” (Cook). Applying Mc Pherson and Shelby’s definition of being Black, general audiences are likely to identify her, based on the shade of her skin, as an African American character.

In the series, the first sign of troubles comes when Thor calls for Heimdall. Having fled because of disapproval of the usurper of the throne, a new gatekeeper opens the portal, but lacking both Heimdall’s moral virtue and knowledge of whatever happens in the realms, he is a poor substitute of the previous gatekeeper. A new, incompetent servant Scurge, criticizes Heimdall for not using the portal to his own benefits which only highlights

Heimdall’s moral superiority over this opportunist. Scurge eventually opens the portal for Thor after his female companions bring Thor’s calling to his attention, but he lacks the grace and reliability of his predecessor.

64

Having been proclaimed traitor, Heimdall keeps away from the city but he never stops taking care of good of Asgard and other realms they should protect. Therefore, when the city falls in hands of Thor’s evil sister, to prevent her from inflicting her evil in other places in the universe, Heimdall secretly steals the sword which controls the portal. As Hela gains her strength and send her soldiers after those who resist her, Heimdall wanders through forest looking for fugitives and saving them from certain death from Hela’s soldiers.

Furthermore, he remains overly polite, as if they are doing him service by getting out of his way while he is charging at the attackers. This way, Heimdall leads to shelter hundreds of Asgardians and the only thing that he cares about is the safety of Asgardians that are depicted as predominately whites. There are some black people amongst them, however, never a whole Black family. Black people in Asgard are similar to Heimdall, surrounded by white people, they are on their own with no ties to a Black community or a Black family.

After his escape, Heimdall did not lose his ability to see more than any other

Asgardian. In time of crisis, he can connect with Thor and show him how severely Asgard needs him. In other words, Heimdall has not lost his magic gift that he uses to serve the Asgardian society. Thanks to it, he can temporarily lead the people, but only with an anticipation of Thor’s return and taking over the leadership. Therefore, in a peaceful time,

Heimdall would never become a leader – only when a rightful king happens to be out of reach, Heimdall accepts his responsibilities but at the same time, calls for Thor to come and help him to protect the people; once it is done, he gladly hands over the leadership and accepts an advisory position.

Valkyrie is, contrarily to Heimdall, a resigned character who has given up on any ambition and her life is driven by greed and excessive drinking in exile. Being 65 the only survivor of legendary female warriors called Valkyries, she is addressed by this generic name and lacks a proper name that would distinguish her from other legendary

Valkyries. Nevertheless, the name that Thor and Loki address her after realizing her identity flatters her more that Scrapper 142 that calls her lunatic Grandmaster.

Valkyrie is first introduced as an antihero: she drinks heavily and struggles to stand straight. She earns her living by kidnapping potential fighters and sells them into slavery to fight in Grandmaster’s tournaments. The only person she cares about is herself and she does not even try to hide it, arrogant and lacking any significant motivation, she has resigned upon her existence. Her drinking then serves as a comic relief but also a signifier of her failed existence.

Nevertheless, she used to be an admired and powerful warrior, but she has given up on her previous life. When Thor recognize her and approaches her, Valkyrie keeping in mind her own comfortable life, refuses to help him because it would lower her comfort.

Nevertheless, she eventually agrees to join Thor and help to save Asgard from the menace that had led her to exile. She then, succumbing to Thor’s pleas for help, not only allows Thor to escape the hostile planet, but she also joins him in the fight on Asgard willing to sacrifice her own life only to defeat the same goddess that she could not have overcome ages ago.

In fact, meeting Thor allowed Valkyrie to make up for her fleeing off from a lost battle.

From Valkyrie’s perspective, Thor is the person that can serve as redemption from her unhappy and unhealthy life and eventually becomes her mentor. Without him, she would have probably drunk herself to a closer death, but Thor gives Valkyrie the incentive to save him, follow him to Asgard and make up for her previous failure and giving up on fighting.

66

4.3 Marvel Cinematic Universe’s Alteration to the Magical Negro

The films analysed represent a white world in which more or less frequently appear

Black characters. All protagonists of the films released up to the year of 2017 were white:

Captain America, Thor, Iron Man, or Doctor Strange. Nevertheless, Marvel has recently released Black Panther with an African King and superhero in one person as its protagonist

– further study to compare similarities and difference in depiction of race might result be fruitful.

Looking closely at the helping Black characters in Marvel Cinematic Universe, there might be identified two main categories – the ‘traditional’ Magical Negro and a ‘Black buddy’. Furthermore, there is one Black character who does not fit into any of these categories: Black Panther. Even though this thesis focuses on Black character, it also discusses another phenomenon – helping characters that fulfil the characteristics of the Magical Negro, but their ‘otherness’ is manifested by different origin and not by their identification as African Americans.

Despite numerous differences in the characters, all Black characters have no deepet ties other than to the white protagonists. Whereas even the “minor” white heroes, in other words those who did not have their own film, have their own love interests or as in the case of Hawkeye, their own family, Black heroes are depicted as loners and there is no or very little mention of their relationships. Only Rhodey and Sam seem to be interested in building a relationship, but films does not show any success of their attempts. Furthermore, they both try to use the resource provided by the white protagonists to achieve their goals Black Panther constitutes the only exception, since the loss of his father represents one of the major plot-

67 lines in the story. Nevertheless, the film in which he appears commences with the death of his father, leaving Black Panther on his own only driven by vengeance.

4.3.1 ‘Traditional’ Magical Negro

The ‘Traditional’ Magical Negro approximates to the concept of the Magical Negro that introduces characters who devotedly serve white protagonists of the film without little regard to their own well-being. They also assume service roles and if they participate in decision making, their decisions turn out to be wrong and require the white protagonist to put things right. In Marvel Cinematic Universe, those encompass Heimdall, Fury, and Mordo. However, whereas Heimdall and Fury never stop to cooperate with white protagonist, Mordo abandons the teaching he has received from the Ancient One and turns into a dangerous social element opposite of how he appeared in the film up to the after credit scene.

From the first film that he appeared in, Heimdall represents a servant not only to the king of Asgard, but to the whole predominately white society as well. In many aspects, he is a good Uncle Tom who never thinks of betraying his master for his own benefit, if he breaks a direct order, he does so only to serve a good cause, and, more importantly, he reports himself right away. Contrarily, Fury does not obey anybody, in fact, he rather disrespect the authorities. Moreover, in the first part of the films, he is in a leading position

– the director of a powerful organization – and his role entitles him to control the (white)

Avenger’s actions. Nevertheless, his disrespect of authorities manifest itself in cases when

Fury balances between fulfilling the (white) Avengers’ expectations and following the instructions he gets from world authorities. Therefore, although not as officially as in Heimdall’s case, Fury does follow the lead of the heroes and uses his own resources

68 to their benefits. Moreover, Fury eventually gives up his directorship realising that his action have not been beneficial for society – had it not been for Captain America’s intervention, he would have unintentionally made possible a mass murder.

Furthermore, both characters remain at the heroes’ disposal whenever they might need them. Nonetheless, when the situation in the world and main characters’ mental state allows it, they stay in background and do not interfere. Heimdall opens the portal whenever anybody needs it, he obediently spends all his time by it and observes the world and checking on threats towards the peace, however, he does not interfere with the rest of society, when he cannot help: therefore, he does not attend celebrations or funerals – he cannot make a difference there. Similarly, Fury does not constitute a member of Avengers; he gives them a push (when he thinks they need it) he gives them advice and assurance of their own skills, but he never considers himself to be one of them and they do not treat him as such. In other words, Fury understands his outsider position and accepted his role as a support for the superheroes’ missions. Heimdall and Fury are thus ready to help, but not necessarily to be heroes acclaimed for the saviour deeds.

In fact, Heimdall approaches to the essence of the Magical Negro better than Fury, because he lacks Fury’s flaws. While Fury makes mistakes and mislead decisions for which he later needs white heroes to make up for, Heimdall epitomizes what Appiah calls the Saint

– because he does not seem to have any negative character traits, he deserves to guard the sword that operates the portal, but he easily lends it to white characters who need it and patiently wait for them to return the sword back to him. As if he is worthy of the task only because he is so virtuous; other characters do not need to demonstrate such characteristics to be allowed to perform the task.

69

Heimdall’s special gift, ability to see everything that happens anywhere in the realms, allows him to understand complicated natural phenomena such as convergence that takes the best physicist on Earth many years of study to grasp it. Nevertheless, he can understand it not because of his superior intelligence but because of his ‘magical power’. Fury does not possess any supernatural power, but to make up for it, while he acts as a leader, and more importantly, as a mentor in time of crisis, keeping heroes working together and providing them with essential encouragement not to give up on saving the world.

Mordo represents the Traditional Magical Negro until the after credit scene.

He recognizes Dr Strange’s powers and trains Dr Strange so he can become more skillful that Mordo would ever be. Once introduced to the art, Dr Strange, critically assess Mordo’s teaching and follows his own rules, whereas Mordo blindly follows Ancient One’s instructions. Nevertheless, when he realises that she kept her secrets from him, unlike

Strange, Mordo cannot process the new situation and takes it as a betrayal and at the end of the film, he turns into a villain attacking other sorcerer who, in his opinion, do not deserve to possess the power.

The Traditional Magical Negro thus serves as the means of development of the white hero, they impact the protagonists in the way that allows further improvement of their qualities that they need to assume the role of the protector and saviour. However, it does not necessarily mean that they need to be morally perfect – it is the case of Heimdall

– but Fury as well as Mordo err and make their decisions based on mislead judgement.

4.3.2 ‘Other’ as the Magical Negro

The films analysed offered a new alternation of the Magical Negro, a Non-American, the ‘Other’ as a Magical Negro character. Yinsen and Dr. Erskine, both of them distinctively

70 non-American assume the positions of Magical Negroes. Only their difference from the white hero they are assisting does not consist in the colour of their skin, but their origin.

Both of them transform the protagonists’ lives in the way that allows them to become real superheroes – for Captain America it means transformation of his body, for Tony it represents rethinking of his values. They appear in the time of utmost need and the protagonists have no one else to rely on. Moreover, they die off once they have done their part in creating the hero.

However, as non-American ‘Others’, they do not have the place in the American – their main task was to help them that might be the reason why they die as soon as they accomplish the task of awaking the hero. Simply, they do not fit in the world of the white characters that do not need their assistance anymore. Nevertheless, before they die, they provide the protagonists with the piece of advice that is, although simple, a guiding principle in assuming their heroic roles.

Therefore, the Magical Negro helping stereotype in Marvel Cinematic Universe does not necessarily restrict itself to African Americans, but it is applied to characters distinguishable from white characters in term of racial or national identity. In case of Captain

America: The First Avenger that takes place during the WWII, it incorporates a German character with a Jewish name – an immigrant fleeing from Hitler. In Iron Man, Tony survives and escapes from his captivity in Afghanistan only thanks to Afghan Yinsen during the War in Afghanistan. Therefore, not only they are non-American, but also they are virtuous characters that did not cede the social climate hostile to the United States.

These Others have a very strong moral compass. Both of them rejected the dangerous regimes in their countries and they can see the protagonists’ potential and appeal to most pure personal traits of the heroes. Moreover, they assert the heroes’ worth by willingness 71 to sacrifice themselves for the survival of the hero. Furthermore, their death, especially in Yinsen’s case is downplayed by his embrace of it – his assertion that he wants to die mitigates emotions that his death might provoke.

4.3.3 Black Buddy

Black Buddies represent sidekicks that developed closer relationships with their white counterparts. While following the lead of the white protagonist, they consolidate their role as utmost authority as its followers. Whereas Traditional Magical Negroes appear in time of need and otherwise keep a relative distance, Buddies cooperate closer with the protagonist.

Most importantly, this category encompasses Rhodey and Sam because they develop close friendship each with their own superhero, whereas Gabe collaborates not only with Captain

America, but belongs to a combat unit that fights side by side with Captain America. It also includes Valkyrie who follow Thor to make up for her past.

The saintliness Rhodey and Sam approximates the Traditional Magical Negro in the way, that outside of their assistance to the protagonists, they devotedly serve the United States of America. Rhodey serves in the Army and his work allows him to protect the American people even outside of his friendship with Tony. The films show him in two different positions: assisting Tony, and serving to his country. Similarly, Sam follows

Captain America’s lead and accepts his missions, but on top of it, he runs a support group for army veterans and genuinely care about people.

Nevertheless, compared to the Traditional Magical Negro, they do not create or awake the superheroes – on the contrary, the white protagonist provide these characters with possibility to become heroes. After Rhodey takes Iron Man suit, he experiences admiration, and more importantly, can join Tony in fight. Before, he could only observe

72 and work as a liaison between Tony and the U.S. Army. Similarly, Sam is a retired soldier who has no wish to return to combat when he meets Captain Soldier, but Captain gives him an incentive, the Captain to follow, that persuade him to take up arms once again.

This is also the case of Valkyrie who cut herself from Asgard and refused her responsibilities. Resigned she has tried to hide her past until she met Thor. However, after he persuaded her to assist him, she joined Thor to fight valiantly and protect the people who did not help her when she lost the fight with Hela. Similarly, Captain America has set Gabe free from the Nazi prison, so he can join the Allies and contribute to win WWII. Therefore, in the case of the Black Buddy, white hero’s worth consists in encouraging the Buddy in doing what is right and what society needs.

Nevertheless, compared to both categories of the Magical Negro, the white protagonists’ relationships to their Black Buddies develop into more reciprocal relationship.

When Rhodey gets hurt, Tony cares deeply about his friend and provides him with all his attention to help him recover; Sam takes part in decisions of what Captain America is going to do; Thor brings Valkyrie her armour as an encouragement and sing of gratitude for her help. Whereas Gabe has not developed any closer relationships with the Captain America, he has closely interacted and built a friendship with other member of his Commandos.

4.3.4 Black Panther

Black Panther stands apart from the three groups. He has not any stronger ties to any of the superheroes and takes his action independently on them. Furthermore, unlike other

Black characters discussed, his loyalty stays with his African people and his close relationship to his father represents his root and strong feeling of belonging to his own community. Therefore, whereas other characters discussed build some kind of relationship

73 and cooperated with the protagonists, Black Panther does not seek to build any. His alliance with the heroes consists in reciprocal benefit of joining forces. Therefore, contrarily to the

Traditional Magical Negroes or Black Buddies, Black Panther does not ideologically support the relationship in which white maintain the dominance. From this point of view, he thus remains independent and does not assume service roles as does the Traditional and ‘Other’

Magical Negroes, or Black Buddies.

Nevertheless, the character of Black Panther is distinctive by his relationship to the nature. His appearance in the film is linked to it by the panther costume with retractable claws, also by his fighting style that does not rely on weapons but his physical strength and claws. Furthermore, Black Panther has the kind of wisdom inherited from his father.

His connection with his roots and religion of his people, he comes to the realization that killing his enemy would irreversibly spoil his purity – no longer would he count as a protector and diplomat, he would abandon his noble causes and serve as an executioner.

Realizing that Captain America was correct about his friend not having committed the crime

Black Panther wanted to kill him for, he realizes that hatred has blinded him and caused him to abandon the traditional values of his people. It is him who decides that he would not complete the vengeance he was looking for and leave the task to the authorities. However, the authority to determine what justice is going to look like are the Western authorities. Black

Panther thus represents a pure Noble Savage who eventually controls his emotions thanks to the traditional teaching, and leaves the task of punishing the crimes to the Western democracy that however aligns with the sense of justice of people of Wakanda. The Noble

Savage stereotype thus suggest the authority of the ‘democratic world’ – their nature driven instincts and pure sense of justice corresponds to that represented in the film and proves that this democracy has not been corrupted by the civilization. 74

5. Conclusion

African Americans have faced exclusion from film industry in different form.

In the beginning of cinema, they were not allowed to perform, however, later on, the film industry has developed film stereotypes to contain the representation and not to challenge the white hegemony.

This thesis discusses films based on Marvel comic books and created by Marvel

Studios, so called Marvel Cinematic Universe. Belonging to the mainstream cinema that successfully aims at the commercial success, the images they produce and the ideology contained in the films reach considerable amount of people. Therefore, the stereotypes contained can negatively impact or strengthen pre-existing assumption of mainstream audience on race in the United States. The widespread understanding of race is colourblindness – most Americans believe that there is not much racism (either personal or systemic) and that whites do not benefit from their privilege, rather inequalities in society result from negative attitude of ethnic minorities, African Americans amongst others.

The Magical Negro represent a seemingly positive character, in other words exhibiting what is viewed as positive traits and values, it might be understood as a flattering portrayal of African Americans. However, at the same the stereotype delimits the possibilities of its character. Originated in stereotypes of Mammy and Uncle Tom, the Magical Negro develops the stereotype of a simplified and faithful servant into a more covert service to the well-being of the white hero or predominately white society as a whole. It also build on ‘buddy films’ that depict Black-white relationship in which the African American character builds unequal relationship to the white protagonists and thus affirms his superiority.

75

The Magical Negro stereotype consists in depicting unrealistically positive characters; thanks to their immense moral virtue, these characters are allowed to enter the white world. However, their presence is conditioned by the assistance to the white protagonists who find themselves in some kind of crisis which the Magical Negro helps them to resolve. To do so, instead of their intelligence, they use some kind of Magic or folk wisdom which they are, however, unable to use on their own to resolve their own problems.

Moreover, while they are present, they remain isolated and maintain relationship with the white hero they are helping to, which goes hand in hand with the lack of romantic relationships. As well as Mammy or Uncle Tom, The Magical Negro focuses only on helping the white character and they seem not to need any partner. Then, when their task is finished, their white hero successfully saved, they disappear and do not have any further role in the film.

The characters analysed were divided into two main categories: the Magical Negroes, and the Black Buddies. The Magical Negroes were furthermore divided into two types:

Traditional Magical Negroes, and ‘Other’ Magical Negroes. Whereas Traditional Magical

Negroes represented African American characters, ‘Other’ Magical Negroes portrayed the characters that even though joining forces with the white protagonist, they originated in the hostile country and constructed the ‘otherness’ through lenses of American society.

The character that does not fit into any of these categories is Black Panther does not cooperate much with other characters but as a Noble Savage respecting and following democratic justice system, he symbolically asserts it righteousness.

The characters that were identified as the Traditional Magical Negroes are Heimdall,

Fury, and Mordo. They work tirelessly to protect the world and provided the support that white heroes need so they can use their full potential, however, in comparison with Black 76

Buddies, they do not build a very close reciprocal relationship with the protagonists.

They cooperate based on the need not the bond that friends build.

The ‘Other’ Magical Negroes represent true moral leaders of the white protagonists,

Yinsen and Dr Erskine. In comparison with the Traditional Magical Negroes whose assistance is repetitive in the time of crisis. The Other Magical Negroes allow the white protagonists’ change so they can become the superheroes the worlds need, however once they ignite the spark in them, they die and having done their part, they disappear.

The Black Buddy category includes Rhodey, Sam, Valkyrie and Gabe. These are the characters that gradually developed a bond with the white protagonist and even though they still assumed service roles and follow the lead of the white protagonist, the protagonist manifested some sort of a reciprocal relationship. In fact, the white protagonist provided the Black Buddies with the push to do more good. Furthermore, they developed true friendship with their counterparts. This became most distinct in Captain America: Civil War when once cynical and selfish Tony takes care of Rhodey recovering from a serious injury.

Whereas American film has significantly improved the racial representation since its beginning, it still resorts to the use of stereotypical portrayals. The Marvel Cinematic

Universe depicts Black characters that hit the glass ceiling in form of white leadership and they cannot equal to their white counterparts. Just like in colourblind schemes, the inability of any of them to effectively assume leadership in any of the twelve films analysed is not caused by any form of racism but by the characters’ lack of capacities.

Therefore, in all of the film analysed, the task of saving the world was completed by the white characters who were, in some cases, assisted by the Magical Negroes or the Black Buddies.

77

6. Works Cited

Appiah, Anthony. “No Bad Nigger”. Media Spectacles. By Marjorie Garber, Jann Matlock,

Rebecca Walkowitz. Ed. New York: Routledge, 1993. Web. 7 Apr. 2018.

&cad=4#v=onepage&q&f=false>

---. “The State and the Shaping of Identity”. The Tanner Lectures on Human Values. Clare

Hall, Cambridge. 30 Apr. and 1 May 2001. Lecture. Web. 31 March 2018.

Ash, Erin. “Racial Discourse in ‘The Blind Side’: The Economics and Ideology Behind the

White Savior Format.” Studies in Popular Culture 38 (2015): 85-103. Web. 13 Feb.

2018.

Avengers: Age of Ultron. Dir. Joss Whedon. Perf. Samuel L. Jackson, Don Cheadle, and

Anthony Mackie. Marvel Studios, 2015. Film.

Bogle, Donald. “Black Beginnings: From Uncle Tom’s Cabin to The Birth of a Nation”.

Representing Blackness: Issues in Film and Video. By Smith, Valerie, Ed. London:

Rutgers. 1997. Print.

---. Toms, Coons, Mulattoes, Mammies, and Bucks: An interpretive History of Blacks in

American Film. New York: Viking Press, 1973. Print.

Bowdre, Karen M. “Passing Films and the Illusion of Racial Equality”. Black Camera 5

(2014): 21-43. Web. 1 Oct. 2016.

Cashmore, Ernest. Celebrity Culture. New York: Routledge, 2014. Print.

78

Captain America: Civil War. Dirs. Anthony Russo, Joe Russo. Perf. Anthony Mackie, Don

Cheadle, and Chadwisk Boseman. Marvel Studios, 2016. Film.

Captain America: The First Avenger. Dir. Joe Johnston. Perf. Derek Luke, Samuel L.

Jackson. Marvel Studios, 2011. Film.

Captain America: The Winter Soldier. Dirs. Anthony Russo, and Joe Russo. Perf. Anthony

Mackie, and Samuel L. Jackson. Marvel Studios, 2014. Film.

Child, Ben. “White Supremacist Urge Thor Boycott Over Cast of Black Actore as Norse

God”. The Guardian. 17 Dec. 2010. Web. 29 Apr. 2018.

Color Adjustment. Marlon Riggs, Dir. Herman Gray, Perf. California Newsreel, 1992.

Documentary.

Cook Tommy. “Tessa Thompson on Redefining Valkyrine in ‘Thor: Ragbarok’”. Collider.

12 Sept 2017. Web. 29 Apr. 2018.

DeForest, Tim. „Marvel Comics“. Encyclopaedia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica, inc.

10 Nov. 2017. Web. 29 Apr. 2018.

Dickanson, Olive Patricia. The Myth of the Savage: And the Beginning of French Colonialism

in the Americas.Edmonton: The University of Alberta Press, 1997. Print.

Doctor Strange. Dir. Scott Derrickson. Perf. Chiwetel Ejiofor. Marvel Studios, 2016. Film.

Entman, Robert M. and Andrew Rojecki. The Black Image in the White Mind: Media and

Race in America. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 2000. Print.

Ethnic Notions. Marlong Riggs, Dir, Esther Rolle, Narr., Barbara Christian Perf., Leni Sloan,

Perf., George Frederickson, Perf. California Newsreel, 1986. Documentary. 79

Feagin, Joe R. Foreword. Screen Saviors: Hollywood Fictions of Whiteness. By Hernán Vera

and Adrew M. Gordon. Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, 2013. Kindle.

Glenn, Cerise L., and Landra J Cunningham. “The Power of Black Magic: The Magical

Negro and White Salvation in Film.” Journal of Black Studies 40 (2009): 135-152.

Web. 19 Sept. 2016.

Goldberg, Matt. “Marvel Studios at the Box Office: How Much Has Each Film Made”.

Collider. 21 Feb. 2018. Web. 29 Apr. 2018.

Gruenwald, Mark, Ed. ”Iron Man 170”. Iron Man. 10 May 1983. Marvel Unlimited

Hooks, Bell. Black Looks: Race and Representation. Boston: South End Press, 1992.

Hughey, Matthew W. “Cinethetic Racism: White Redemption and Black Stereotypes in

‘Magical Negro’ Films”. Social Problems 56 (2009): 543-577. Web. 17 Jan 2018.

---. “Racializing Redemption, Reproducing Racism: The Odyssey of Magical Negroes and

White Saviors.” Sociology Compass 6 (2012): 751-767. Web. 6 Feb. 2018.

Iceland, John, and Gregory Sharp. “White Residential Segregation in U.S. Metropolitan

Areas: Conceptual Issues, Patterns, and Trends from the US Census, 1980 to 2010”.

Popul Res Policy Rev. 32 (2013). Web. 7 Apr. 2018.

Iron Man. Dir. John Favreau. Perf. Robert Downey Jr., Terrence Howard. Marvel Studios,

2008. Film.

80

Iron Man 2. Dir. Jon Favreau. Perf. Robert Downey Jr., Don Cheadle, Samuel L. Jackson.

Marvel Studios, 2010. Film

Iron Man 3. Dir. Shane Black Perf. Don Cheadle. Marvel Studios, 2013. Film.

Jasper, Gavin.”The Rise and Fall of the Ultimate Marvel Universe”. Den of Geek! 7 Apr.

2015. Web. 29 Apr. 2018.

ultimate-marvel-universe-hulk-spiderman-deadpool-marvel-comics>

Johnson, Derek. “Cinematic Destiny: Marvel Studios and the Trade Stories of Industrial

Convergence.” Cinema Journal 52 (2012): 1-24. Web. 31 Jan. 2017.

Lee, Stan, Ed. “Avengers #1”. Avengers. 10 Sep. 1963. Marvel Unlimited.

---. Fantastic Four #52“. Fantastic Four. 10 Jul. 1966. Marvel Unlimited.

---. “Giant-Size Defenders #1”. Giant-Size Defenders. 10 Jul 1974. Marvel Unlimited.

---. “Journey Into Mystery #85“. Journey Into Mystery. 01 Oct 1962. Marvel Unlimited.

---. ”Sgt. Fury and His Howling Commandos #1”. Sgt. Fury and His Howling Commandos.

10 May 1963. Marvel Unlimited.

---. “Strange Tales #111”. Strange Tales. 10 Sept 1966. Marvel Unlimited.

---. “Tales of Suspense #39”. Tales of Suspense, 10 Mar 1963. Marvel Unlimited.

Marvel’s The Avengers. Dir. Joss Whedon. Perf. Samuel L. Jackson. Marvel Studios, 2012.

Film.

Mask, Mia. “The Precarious Politics of Precious: A Close Reading of a Cinematic Text”.

Black Camera 4 (2012): 96-116. Web. 10 Oct. 2016.

81

Mazama, Ama. “The Afrocentric Paradigm: Contours and Definitions”. Journal of Black

Studies 31 (2001): 387-405. Web. 18 March 2018.

McPherson, Lionel K., and Tommie Shelby. “Blackness and Blood: Interpreting African

American Identity.” Philosophy & Public Affairs 32 (2004): 171-192. Web. 28 Jan

2018.

Miller, Chris. “The Representation of the Black Male in Film”. Journal of African American

Men 3 (1998): 19-30. Web. 9 Jan. 2018.

O’Sullivan, Michael, and Ohotmu Team.Marvel Cinematic Universe Guidebook: The

Avengers Initiative. Marvel, 2017. Kindle.

Scott, Anna Beatrice. “Superpower vs Supernatural: Black Superheroes and the Quest for a

Mutant Reality”. Journal of Visual Culture 5 (2006): 295-314. Web. 18 March 2018.

Smith, Jason. “Between Colorblind and Colorconscious: Contemporary Hollywood Films

and Struggles Over Racial Representation.” Journal of Black Studies 44 (2013): 779-

797. Web. 30 Jan. 2017.

Stern, Roger, Ed. “Iron Man #118“. Iron Man, 10 Jan 1979. Marvel Unlimited.

---. “Iron Man #125”. Iron Man, Aug 10, 1979. Marvel Unlimited

Rastogi, Sonya, Tallese D. Johnson, Elizabeth M. Hoeffel, and Malcolm P. Drewery, Jr. “The

Black Population: 2010: 2010 Census Briefs”. United States Census Bureau.U.S.

Department of Commerce. Web. 28 Apr. 2018. 82

Thor. Dir. Kenneth Branagh. Perf. Idris Elba. Marvel Studios, 2011. Film.

Thor: Ragnarok. Dir.Taika Waititi. Perf. Idris Elba, Tessa Thompson. Marvel Studios, 2017.

Film.

Thor: The Dark World. Dir. Alan Taylor. Perf. Idris Elba. Marvel Studios, 2013. Film.

Tyree, J. M. “American Heros”. Film Quaterly 62 (2009): 28-34. McPherson, Lionel K., and

Tommie Shelby. “Blackness and Blood: Interpreting African American Identity.”

Philosophy & Public Affairs 32 (2004): 171-192. Web. 28 Jan 2018.

Tyree, Tia C. M. and Liezille J. Jacobs. “Can You Save Me?: Black Male Superheroes in

Hollywood Film.” A Journal of Black Men 3 (2014): 1-24. Web. 9 Jan. 2018.

Vera, Hernán, and Andrew M. Gordon. Screen Saviors: Hollywood Fictions of Whiteness.

Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, 2013. Kindle.

Wilson II, Clint C, and Gutiérrez, Felix. Race, Multiculturalism, and the Media: From Mass

to Class Communication. Thousand Oaks: SAGE Publication, 1995. Print.

83

7. Résumé

7.1 English Résumé

The Master’s thesis discusses the Magic Negro stereotype in the films created by Marvel Studios. The Magical Negro stereotype is one of the seemingly positive stereotypes that stresses white dominance while showing valued traits in the Black character.

Therefore, while the characters provides assistance to the white protagonists they also manifests their subordination.

The Marvel Cinematic Universe develops two main categories of the seemingly positive Black characters: The Magical Negro, further divided into the Traditional Magical

Negro and the ‘Other’ Magical Negro; and the Black Buddy.

The Traditional Magical Negro includes Heimdall, Fury and Mordo, because those characters help the white protagonist while keeping their distance. They rush to help the protagonist when they need them but they keep their relationship focused on the task of protecting the world. The ‘Other’ Magical Negro encompasses Yinsen and Dr. Erskine, who none of the American, represent outsiders who provide the protagonists with the push needed to assume their superhero roles. Immediately after doing so, both of them die.

The Black Buddies, in contrast to the Magical Negro, build a stronger, eventually reciprocal relationships with their white counterparts. However, they still assume service role and provide support to the white protagonist to whom they cannot equal.

Therefore, even though the stereotypical portrayals have significantly improved since the beginning of the cinema, Black characters are still being pushed into stereotypical roles that support the notion of white superiority. Furthermore, they support the colourblind understanding of the world, since the African Americans in Marvel Cinematic Universe fail

84 to reach or effectively assume leading roles not due to the white privilege but because of the lack of their own capacities.

7.2 České resumé

Tato diplomová práce zkoumá stereotyp “Magical Negro” ve filmech od Marvel

Studios. Tento stereotyp je jeden ze zdánlivě pozitivních, který nicméně vyobrazuje bělošskou nadřazenost, zatímco v afroamerických postavách zdůrazňuje obecně ceněné charakterové vlastnosti. Ve výsledku, zatímco tato postava pomáhá hlavnímu protagonistovi, stejně tak poukazuje na jeho nadřazenost.

Tzv. Marvel Cinematic Universe používá dvě hlavní kategorie zdánlivě pozitivních vyobrazení Afroameričanů: „Magical Negro“, který se dále rozdělen na tradičního „Magical

Negro“ a ‚Odlišeného‘ „Magical Negro“; a „Black Buddy“.

Do první skupiny tradičních „Magical Negroes“ se řadí Heimdall, Fury a Mordo, jelikož si od protagonistů udržují vzdálenost, zatímco jim pomáhají. Kdykoliv jsou jejich služby potřeba, přispěchají. V opačném případě ale udržují vzájemný vztah zaměřený výhradně na ochranitelské aktivity. ‚Odlišný‘ „Magical Negro“ zahrnuje Yinsena a Dr.

Erskina, kteří oba dva představují cizince ze znepřátelených území a kteří dodají potřebný impulz k tomu, aby se z hlavních postav vyvinuli opravdoví hrdnové. Poté, co svůj úkol splní, zemřou.

„Black Buddies“ ve srovnání s „Magical Negro“ s bělošskými protagonisty budují silnější a eventuálně i vzájemný vztah. Nicméně, stále se vyskytují v pomáhajících rolích a jejich hlavní úkol spočívá v pomoci hlavnímu hrdinovi, se kterým si nejsou rovni.

Ačkoliv se stereotypní vyobrazení rasy od počátků kinematografie do značné míry zlepšilo, Afroameričanům jsou stále nabízeny role, které podporují myšlenku bělošské

85 nadřazenosti. Filmy tímto způsobem také podporují barvoslepé vnímaní světa, protože afroamerické postavy v „Marvel Cinematic Universe“ jsou zobrazené jakožto neschopné efektivně vést a řídit, proto zaujímají role pomocníků.

86