A brave tale of racial discrimination? Or a popular showcase of cultural appropriation?
Performance DBQs:
What is the central conflict with which the song's narrator is grappling?
What is the evolution of the narrator's relationship to her racial identity?
Examine the imagery of the video. What is being portrayed? How does the imagery support, or fail to support, the song?
Paragraph DBQs:
In your own words, define the "tragic mulatta/o" trope.
Does this trope appear in "Half-Breed?" If so, how?
How might this trope be harmful to individuals with mixed race ancestry?
Transcript DBQs:
In what ways are headdresses important to Indigenous people?
In the 1970s, Cher claimed she was one-sixteenth Cherokee but, in later years, denounced this as false. Knowing, now, who can and cannot wear a headdress, was Cher correct to assume she could wear a headdress for the "Half-Breed" video? Why or why not?
How are headdresses typically constructed, according to the video? Is Cher's headdress constructed with respect to Native American tradition? Explain your reasoning.
Images DBQs:
What do you notice about the traditional clothing and headdress of the Cherokee woman on the left?
What aspects of the Cherokee woman's clothing differ from Cher's costume from "Half-Breed?"
How is Cher portraying Cherokee culture through the design choices of her "Half-Breed" costume?