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The Birth of a Nation</Em> University of South Florida Scholar Commons Graduate Theses and Dissertations Graduate School 11-7-2014 The Birth of a Nation: The aC se for a Tri-Level Analysis of Forms of Racial Vindication Charles Fred Hearns University of South Florida, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarcommons.usf.edu/etd Part of the African American Studies Commons, and the Film and Media Studies Commons Scholar Commons Citation Hearns, Charles Fred, "The Birth of a Nation: The asC e for a Tri-Level Analysis of Forms of Racial Vindication" (2014). Graduate Theses and Dissertations. https://scholarcommons.usf.edu/etd/5366 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate School at Scholar Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Graduate Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of Scholar Commons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. The Birth of a Nation: The Case for A Tri-Level Analysis of Forms of Racial Vindication by Charles F. (Fred) Hearns A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts Department of Africana Studies College of Arts and Science University of South Florida Major Professor: Abraham Khan, Ph.D Laurie Lahey, Ph.D Andrew Berish, Ph.D Date of Approval: November 7, 2014 Keywords: Film, Racism, Black, White, Supremacy Copyright © 2014, Charles F. (Fred) Hearns TABLE OF CONTENTS Abstract ........................................................................................................................... ii Research Questions ....................................................................................................... 1 The Argument ................................................................................................................ 2 Methodology .................................................................................................................. 3 Introduction ................................................................................................................... 4 Chapter I -- The Genesis of Black and White Stereotypes in American Culture ........... 7 The Impact of Racist Literature and Oratory During the "Nadir Years" ............... 7 Dixon, Griffith and Racism in Early Silent Film ................................................. 10 Summary .......................................................................................................... 19 Chapter II -- The Roots of Racial Vindication in America ........................................... 21 Definitions: Racism, Anti-Racism and Racial Vindication ................................. 21 The Tradition of Racial Vindication in Literature ............................................... 27 The Tradition of Racial Vindication in Oratory and in Public Protest ................. 36 The Tradition of Racial Vindication in Silent Film .............................................. 37 Summary .......................................................................................................... 42 Chapter III -- The Birth of a Nation: Benefits of a Tri-Level Analysis of Racial Vindication ............................................................................................................ 46 The Making of The Birth of a Nation and America's Response ........................ 49 Racial Vindication After The Birth of a Nation Through the Written Word ........ 51 Racial Vindication Through Oratory and Public Protests After The Birth of a Nation ................................................................................................... 60 Responses to The Birth of a Nation in Silent Film ............................................ 69 Washington, Scott and The Birth of a Race ...................................................... 72 Black Film Makers and the Quest for Racial Vindication .................................. 83 What a Tri-level Analysis of Racial Vindication Teaches Us ............................. 87 Summary .......................................................................................................... 89 Conclusion .................................................................................................................. 93 References ............................................................................................................ .......98 Appendix: Timeline .................................................................................................... 106 i ABSTRACT Early American film scholars often critique the relative ineffectiveness of a single literary work, protest movement or silent film to achieve effective racial vindication following the release of The Birth of a Nation in 1915. Thomas Cripps, for example, examines a relatively ineffective isolated attempt to counter the notions of White supremacy promoted in the film. This study makes the case for applying a non-traditional tri-level analysis when measuring the effectiveness of such attempts. The paper focuses on efforts to redeem the image and the potential of African Americans after 1915 in the Black public sphere in three concurrent vehicles: the written word, the activism of individuals and progressive organizations and the production of silent films. The study defines and distinguishes between racism, anti-racism and racial vindication. Racial vindication is the method used by the men and women that this study focuses on. The paper begins by documenting how notions of White supremacy and Black inferiority were at the root of America's socio-cultural atmosphere during the nineteenth and early twentieth century. This set the stage for D. W. Griffith's movie. The study then looks at how contemporary scholars in the 1910s and 1920s -- writers, visual artists, civic and community leaders and film makers -- attempted to counter Griffith's propaganda through various means. I argue that there is considerable merit in analyzing the combined efforts of these outspoken men and women to attempt to rescue the humanity of African Americans from Griffith's clutches in three broad arenas. My argument does agree with many film scholars that no one single act of racial vindication sufficiently challenged the effectiveness of The Birth of a Nation. We use as a case study the silent film The Birth of a Race (1918). When this film is considered in isolation, it does have a minimal affect on stemming the tide of racism in America. This is precisely the point of this thesis. No prominent Griffith scholar has published a comprehensive study that considers how literature, sociopolitical activism and silent film all worked in concert to combat the impact The Birth of a Nation had ii on America. This paper does so. It contributes to the historiography of early American silent film and the racial vindication movement by calling for a triangular analysis and validation of the cumulative impact varied forms of resistance had on representations of White supremacy in The Birth of a Nation. Chapter III and the study's conclusion comment on the benefits that such an analysis contributes to future studies of racial vindication in response to artistic expressions deemed to be racist. iii RESEARCH QUESTIONS 1. What is the genesis and the cultural context of the racist theories, science and scholarship that painted the national landscape in 1915, leading the way for filmmaker D. W. Griffith's The Birth of a Nation? 2. What influence did the traditions of racial vindication and of a Black public sphere play in motivating writers, activist organizations and film makers (with emphasis on The Birth of a Race a case study) to counter the notions of White superiority and Black inferiority? 3. What are the differences between racism, anti-racism and racial vindication, and were these movements in play following the release of The Birth of a Nation? 4. What lessons can we learn from conducting a cross-genre analysis of the racial vindication movement in America in response to The Birth of a Nation? 1 THE ARGUMENT I argue that by scholars applying a comprehensive tri-level (genre) analysis of the racial vindication movement in the Black public sphere in America, following the release of The Birth of a Nation (1915), they provide a more effective assessment of the cumulative viability of varied responses to the film than does the more commonly applied single-genre analysis. 2 METHODOLOGY The argument uses qualitative research, supported by archival research that makes use of both primary and secondary sources. Primary sources used in the study include the films The Birth of a Nation (1915), the film The Birth of a Race (1918) and early twentieth century newspaper articles. The literature review relies heavily on secondary sources including essays, pamphlets, web sites, plays and books. Reference material comes from the University of South Florida (USF) Library, USF Special Collections, the Hillsborough County Public Library John F. Germany Main Library History Division - Special Collections, the Tampa Bay History Center Witt Research Library, the New York, N. Y. Public Library Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, the USF Library Services Website, internet websites and from the personal library of the author. 3 INTRODUCTION U. S. Supreme Court Justice John Marshall Harlan said in his dissenting opinion in the Plessy v. Ferguson Supreme Court decision of 1896, "In the eye of the law, there is in this country no superior, dominant, ruling class of citizens. There is no caste here ... Our Constitution
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