Culture As Means Of Survival Essay Research free essay sample

Culture As Means Of Survival Essay, Research Paper Professor Jim Gray of Sonoma State University defines civilization as a agency of endurance. Traveling by this definition of civilization the development of black wit has decidedly been a foundation in the endurance of the comedy in America. This paper will be a treatment of how African American Humor has evolved and for centuries has changed and continues to alter the manner we look at comedy. Before get downing this paper, I must emphasize the importance of wit for all races. Truly, the environment in which most wit takes topographic point has helped American civilization and people survive. Harmonizing to Constance Rourke, wit is of import because: # 8220 ; 1. Wit is a portion of the natural life procedure and is normally taken for granted or non recognized as holding serious importance. The fact that wit is a model for `non-real # 8217 ; or `play # 8217 ; activity and non taken as a `serious # 8217 ; interaction allows messages and preparations to be `risked # 8217 ; within its model which would non otherwise be acceptable or possible. 3. Wit allows the geographic expedition of new thoughts in state of affairss of uncertainness or strangeness. Similarly allowed are the dialogue of tabu subjects, sensitive issues, and fringy serious content. 4. Wit performs a boundary map on both internal and external lines, patroling groups in footings of rank and acceptable and competency behaviour. 5. Wit can work as a get bying device to let go of tenseness, allay fright, forestall menace, defuse aggression or distance the unpleasant.6. Humor can stand for an inexplicit contradiction, paradox or `joke in the societal construction # 8217 ; made explicit. The `joke # 8217 ; constitutes a reversal within its boundaries of the forms of control in the existent universe. 7. `Canned # 8217 ; gags and `situational # 8217 ; gags are non wholly separate. Canned gags are non sealed from the state of affairs in which they are told as they ever affect it and integrate interaction into their form ; state of affairs gags ever have some im pact beyond their context. Langston Hughes says, # 8220 ; Humor is express joying at what you haven # 8217 ; t got when you ought to hold it. Of class, you laugh by placeholder. You # 8217 ; re truly express joying at the other cat deficiencies, non your ain. That # 8217 ; s what makes it funny-The fact that you don # 8217 ; t cognize you are express joying at yourself. Humor is when the gag is on you but hits the other fellow first-Because it boomerangs. Humor is what you wish in your secret bosom were non amusing, but it is, and you must express joy. Humor is your unconscious therapy # 8221 ; ( Hughes, 1966 ) Laugh for centuries has been the medical specialty that has helped to guarantee the endurance of African Americans. # 8220 ; Herded together with others with whom they shared merely a common status of servitude and some grade of cultural convergences, enslaved Africans were compelled to make a new linguistic communication, a new faith, and a unstable new lifestyle. # 8221 ; ( Joyner, 1984 ) As Africans were unloaded by boat and placed onto plantations, slave Masterss were wholly enthralled by the manner they spoke, moved, and danced. Out of bondage emerged a civilization that would act upon America # 8217 ; s mainstream civilization for eternity. Slavery created bondage for Africans and when it looked like they were traveling nowhere fast ; they laughed, American ginseng, and amused one another with conundrums, gags and carnal narratives from the fatherland. Slave Masterss could non gestate why slaves in such a suffering province were so joyous, what they did non cognize was many of the vocals, gags and conundrums were more than surface deep and many times about the maestro. The slaves made the best of the fortunes through wit and by express joying at the manner the slave maestro treated them and their reaction to this intervention. They were express joying at the slave maestro and at the same clip express joying at themselves. However, it did non take long earlier slave Masterss made slave merry-making public. Many times slaves were called upon to entertain maestro and their invitees. Slave merry-making was besides encouraged because it besides increased the monetary value of the slaves. # 8220 ; Peoples took notice to the manner slaves spoke and moved, out of bondage evolved Blackface Humor. # 8221 ; ( Watkins, 1994 ) Blackface comedy was when a individual ( white ) painted their face with black make-up and acted like a slave ( Sambo ) . Blackface wit gave whites the opportunity to raise African American Humor from its original context, transform it, so spotlight it as their ain amusement, amusement ( for non-black audiences ) it became popular for it is supposed originality. As blackface amusement became more popular so did the histrions. George Washington Dixion introduced # 8220 ; Coal Black Rose # 8221 ; ( Watkins ) one vocal # 8220 ; Sambo and Cuffee # 8221 ; , ( Watkins ) was a amusing vocal about a black adult female and her lover. Dixion performed this act all over the universe ; some would reason that Dixion was the first white blackface performing artist to set up a wide repute. By the 1830 # 8217 ; s, blackface performing artists were everyplace going one of the most popular attractive forces of the American phase. Billy Whitlock, Frank Brower, Frank Pelham and Dan Emmett were besides really popular blackface performing artists. Dixion created the one adult male, show but these work forces created a company of blackface performing artists. They besides steadfastly established the image of inkinesss as carefree plantation darkies, outrageously frocks and ignorant. Although there were other blackface performing artists before them, these work forces were the lone 1s who could give a existent show from the make-up to the costume. # 8220 ; By the 1840 # 8217 ; s blackface public presentations had reached an unprecedented degree of national popularity. # 8221 ; ( Watkins ) There were many public presentation companies, even professional juvenile companies. Each followed a criterion ; they had a three-act presentation. The first act opened up with a walkaround where the full company came out made up in face pigment and dressed in suits. They than gathered in a hemicycle to jump amusing vocals and gags. Here is a common type of gag many used ; it is called ; # 8220 ; Mr. Bones # 8221 ; and # 8220 ; Mr. Tambo # 8221 ; : Mr. Bones: # 8220 ; Mr. Tambo sir! # 8221 ; Mr. Tambo: # 8220 ; Yes, Mr. Bones # 8221 ; Mr. Bones: # 8220 ; Does us black folks go to hebbin? Does we go through dem aureate Gatess? # 8221 ; Mr. Tambo: # 8220 ; Mr. Bones, you know the aureate Gatess is for white folks. # 8221 ; Mr. Bones: # 8220 ; Well, who # 8217 ; s gon na be dere to open demm Gatess for you white folks? # 8221 ; For many of the white people watching the show the most amusing and exciting portion was the gag stating. In the 2nd act-the # 8220 ; olio or assortment section # 8221 ; was the stump address talker. This occured when one member performed a amusing, black version of a subject. Subjects would run from, emancipation, adult females # 8217 ; s right to vote, instruction or another current political or scientific subject. The end was to demo how inkinesss could non grok nor construe sophisticated thoughts. The 3rd and concluding portion of the show was a slapstick plantation skit, having vocal and dance with costumed work forces and adult females dressed as slaves. After the Civil War, blackface companies hired on free black work forces and adult females to execute tungsten ith them. White audiences became disquieted and angry at many companies. After the war and emancipation – during the Reconstruction period constitutional amendments were passed to guarantee civil rights and vote rights for former slaves and some inkinesss were elected members of the House and Senate ; Whites wanted to be assured that inkinesss were still inferior and blackface companies were non demoing this by go oning to engage inkinesss. Therefore, audiences depleted, and many companies that had incorporated inkinesss started to execute on circuits like the â€Å"Chitlen circuit, † which hit most black owned theatres. Blacks who were portion of the companies started to ramify off and get down their ain companies. In making this, they altered the usual blackface public presentation modus operandi. First, they altered vocal wordss, alternatively of singing vocals that downgraded inkinesss ; songwriters would play on white frights and mock them. Many inkinesss took off the face pigment and introduced musical comedies. Black musical comedies made many black performing artists successful. White already loved black music so the musical comedy tantrum right into the market. Still many of these comedies were on the circuit, and confined to black theatres. It was non until subsequently that musical comedies were featured on Broadway. When musical comedies appeared on Broadway # 8220 ; Lyles and Miller a really successful squad created a whole new attack to the comedies. # 8221 ; ( Watkins ) They presented at the terminal of their Acts of the Apostless a group of adult females who danced and sang with the stereotyped attitude many felt black urban adult females had. This simple add-on astounded Broadway and critics raved. Finally, every black company evolved to utilize this signifier. Black Musical Comedies took inkinesss to another degree of comedy yet, they were unable to agitate the sambo stereotyped image given to them by white blackface performing artists. # 8220 ; Licensed wireless was introduced in 1920, because of the low budget and inadequate installations, intelligence shows and music provided by local groups dominated the airwaves. By 1922, there were over 522 accredited Stationss and wireless gross revenues increased from $ 1million in 1920 to $ 400million in 1925. By 1929, one in every three places owned wirelesss ten old ages subsequently there was a wireless in about every place. Radio was a medium where its hearers could hear concerts, amusing soliloquies, featuring events and political addresss as they happened. # 8221 ; ( MacDonald, 1981 ) Radio at first ab initio neglected inkinesss, as in the blackface public presentation yearss they were imitated by Whites. In 1925, Freeman F. Gosden and Charles J. Correll a minor couple debuted as instrumentalists on a wireless station in Chicago. They played at this wireless station for a piece and subsequently moved to a station owned by the Chicago Tribune. There they were approached by direction about making a broadcast edition to the amusing strip # 8220 ; The Gumps. # 8221 ; The two refused the offer but suggested an option, a black # 8211 ; dialect show. Gosden and Correll made a series based on two black names # 8220 ; Sam # 8216 ; N # 8217 ; # 8220 ; Henry # 8221 ; , which would subsequently go known as # 8220 ; Amos # 8216 ; N # 8217 ; # 8220 ; Andy # 8221 ; . Sam # 8216 ; N # 8217 ; Henry debuted on January 12, 1926 ( Tormenting, 1925-1976 ) The characters Sam and Henry still depended on the stereotyped images of inkinesss created during the blackface ( fo lk singer ) public presentation old ages. Blacks were superstitious, na? ve, easy influenced, lazy, nescient and conniving. On March 19, 1928, three months after the # 8220 ; Sam # 8221 ; # 8216 ; N # 8217 ; # 8220 ; Henry # 8221 ; show had been cancelled, # 8220 ; Amos # 8221 ; # 8216 ; N # 8217 ; # 8220 ; Andy # 8221 ; cryptically appeared on a rival station in Chicago. Gosden and Correll had come up with the thought presented it to the station and it was accepted. This show was far more successful than Sam and Henry ; Amos N Andy was recorded and leased to forty other wireless Stationss. In August 1929, Pepsodent became the first major patron of a black comedy show. Amos N Andy was the figure one show in the state. By 1935, 70 per centum of American place ( 40 million ) hearers tuned in each dark. Sayings from the show hit the streets # 8220 ; Ain # 8217 ; t dat sumptin # 8217 ; , # 8221 ; # 8220 ; Splain digital audiotape to me # 8217 ; , # 8221 ; and # 8220 ; Holy Mackerel # 8221 ; became popular. Even with its popularity, the show had a down clip. Radio Stationss modernized their broadcast methods ; comics were no longer forced to work without an audience. This is when assortment shows get down to take the market. In 1943, Gosden and Correl returned to the air with a exhaustively revamped half an hr version of # 8220 ; Amos # 8221 ; # 8216 ; N # 8217 ; # 8220 ; Andy # 8221 ; . The show was performed before a unrecorded audience and featured an orchestra and chorus. # 8220 ; Amos # 8221 ; # 8216 ; N # 8217 ; # 8220 ; Andy # 8221 ; represented a discovery for black comics on wireless and telecasting every bit good. Although one-man Acts of the Apostless were non popular during the assortment show period, Moms Mabley set the phase for many comics that would come after her. Jackie # 8220 ; Moms # 8221 ; Mabley. Born in North Carolina in 1897, Mabley grew up in Cleveland Ohio, by the clip she was 16 she had became a phase performing artist. She began as a terpsichorean and vocalist and dabbled in comedy. During the 1920 # 8217 ; s, she was executing on the chitlen circuit in Dallas, where another squad saw her act and helped her get better engagements. Like many performing artists, she appeared in skits with other performing artists at first. However, Mabley did non like this and she was one of the first cartoon strips to turn to monologue wit. She appeared on the phase with outsize brogans, tattered gingham frocks and eccentric chapeaus she acted like a typical down to earth older black adult female. Mabley worked with many performing artists but she did her best when she was entirely. She was celebrated for her costume and her shuffling, she would sing some amusing version of a popular vocal, state narratives or merely stand at that place and the audience loved it. Mabley foreshadowed the displacement to direct societal commentary and stand up amusing techniques that would rule wit and comics to come. Dick Gregory, Flip Wilson, Redd Foxx, Steve Allen, Richard Pryor, Whoopi Goldburg, Eddie Murphy, and many other popular black and white comics have evolved from the history of comedy. The images that were passed on from bondage still thrive at the root of gags many comics of today tell. Black comics have eventually gotten away from the white reading of black wit and created original black wit from an African American position to the universe. Black comedy has come to be the voice of the battle, hurting, and joy African American people have gone through and are go oning to traveling through. Humor will go on to be a impulsive force to convey people of all ethnicities together to express joy at the good and bad times of our state. Without wit, would we truly last? 1. Hughes, Langston. The Book of Negro Humor. New York: Dodd, Mead A ; Co. , 1966 2. Joyner, Charles. Down by the riverbank: A South Carolina Slave Community. Chicago: University of Illinois Press, 1984. 3. MacDonald, J. Fred. Don # 8217 ; t Touch That Dial! Chicago: Nelson Hall, 1981. 4. Rourke Constance. American Wit: A survey of the National Character. New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, Harvest, 1931. 5. Watkins, Mel. On The Real Side. New York: Touchstone, 1994