City University of New York (CUNY) CUNY Academic Works All Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects 6-2020 Black Skin, White Gaze: The Presence and Function of the Linchpin Character in Biopics About Black American Protagonists Nicole N. Williams The Graduate Center, City University of New York How does access to this work benefit ou?y Let us know! More information about this work at: https://academicworks.cuny.edu/gc_etds/3856 Discover additional works at: https://academicworks.cuny.edu This work is made publicly available by the City University of New York (CUNY). Contact:
[email protected] BLACK SKIN, WHITE GAZE: THE PRESENCE AND FUNCTION OF THE LINCHPIN CHARACTER IN BIOPICS ABOUT BLACK AMERICAN PROTAGONISTS by NICOLE N. WILLIAMS A master’s thesis submitted to the Graduate Faculty in Liberal Studies in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts, The City University of New York 2020 ii © 2020 NICOLE N. WILLIAMS All Rights Reserved iii Black Skin, White Gaze: The Presence and Function of the Linchpin Character in Biopics About Black American Protagonists by Nicole N. Williams This manuscript has been read and accepted for the Graduate Faculty in Liberal Studies in satisfaction of the thesis requirement for the degree of Master of Arts. Date Juan Battle Thesis Advisor Date Elizabeth Macaulay-Lewis Executive Officer THE CITY UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK iv ABSTRACT Black Skin, White Gaze: The Presence and Function of the Linchpin Character in Biopics About Black American Protagonists by Nicole N. Williams Advisor: Juan Battle Throughout its existence the American film industry has--through the stories it has chosen to tell as well as discriminatory practices such as whitewashing and the erasure of non-White people-- enshrined whiteness as the default American racial identity.