American History X

Racism and Enlightenment in American History X By Lea Weller BA

Tony Kaye’s American History X (1998) explores racism in contemporary American Society showing social pressures surrounding neo-Nazi groups. It “probes the mind-set of the white supremacy movement” (Fulwood, 2008, page 120), controlling the youth of Venice Beach in California, brainwashing youths to believe ethnic minorities are to blame for poverty and crime. This social film represents a dystopian setting and is set not long after the Rodney King Riots. Levy states that American History X “provides an instructive example of the simplistic approach taken by movies in the all-too-rare cases when they tackle social issues, here racism” (Levy, 1999, page 313). Racism is evident throughout America and represents a social problem even today.American History X can be seen as a “significant landmark in the representation of race relations in American film history” (Chanter, 2008, page 24-25). A neo-Nazi ideology is evident throughout the film and we see how the ‘white supremacists’ namely Derek and Cammeron form ‘Aryan soldiers’ and how Derek’s enlightened incarceration allows him to reform his views.

Kaye encourages the audience to sympathise with charismatic Derek whilst he preaches racist propaganda, yet we are to dismiss this and agree with the new reformed views that he implores later in the film. The change in Derek’s view is “due to the disillusionment and violence he suffers at the hands of his neo-Nazi prison friends” (Chanter, 2008, page 123). Derek is brutally attacked by the neo-Nazi’s after he disagrees with the gangs liaising with the minorities, or as the case was inside, the majorities. Palumbo states how the black laundry worker Lamont explains to Derek, “In here, you the nigga. Not me” (Palumbo, 2010, ONLINE). He believed he had the protection of the neo-Nazi group from blacks, but this illusion was soon shattered after the violation and humiliation he suffered due to a minor disagreement. After the vicious rape, whilst hospitalised, Sweeney, Derek’s old English teacher and current school principle, visits him to voice his concerns about his brother’s racist behaviour, for example writing a history paper onMein Kampf.

He comes out with the assertion of Hitler being a Civil rights icon. Something which prompts Dr. Sweeney to give him a history lesson in what’s actually happening, or what he calls as “American History X”.

(Ratnakar, 2009)

Danny is also brainwashed by Cammeron and protected due to Cammeron seeing Derek as a Hero for his racist act. Derek vows to change Danny’s thinking; Sweeney agrees to give him a good reference for his parole board. After befriending Lamont, Derek starts to realise that the minority are just like the majority, talking about everyday things; Derek and Lamont discuss women and sex and how much they miss it. Derek is then allied with the Black majority of the prison inmates as he has an ally in Lamont and they earn each other’s trust and respect. So Derek is now protected by the ones who he longed to hate, switching his views and no longer considering the outside minority as a cause for concern.

American History X shows ‘whiteness’ as normal, giving us not only visual references to the white racist violence but also shows us the logical explanations behind these extreme views. The film shows the racist logic from the view point of the neo-Nazi’s and subtly challenges the audience to give the group a valid argument against their views. Derek’s speech shows their views:

Alright listen up! We need to open our eyes. There are over two millions illegal immigrants bedding down in the state tonight. The state spent three billions dollars last year on services for those people who had no right to be here in the first place. Three billion dollars. 400 million dollars just to lock up a bunch of illegal immigrant criminals who only got in this country because the fucking INS decided it's not worth the effort to screen for convicted felons. Who gives a shit? Our government doesn't give a shit. Our border policy is a joke! So is anybody surprised that south of the border are laughing at us, laughing at our laws.

Every night thousands of these parasites stream across the border like some fucking piñata exploded. Don't laugh! They're nothing funny going on here this is about your life and mine. It's about decent hard-working Americans falling through the cracks and getting the shaft because their government cares more about the constitutional rights of a bunch of people who aren't even citizens in this country. On the Statue of Liberty it says: "Give me you’re tired, you’re hungry, you’re poor. “Well, it's Americans who are tired and hungry and poor. And I say, until you take care of that, close the fucking book. 'Cause we're losing. We're losing our rights to pursue our destiny. We're losing our freedom. So that a bunch of fucking foreigners, can come in here and exploit our country.

And this isn't something that's going on far away. This isn't something that's happening places we can't do anything about it. It's happening right here, right in our neighbourhood, right in that building behind you. Archie Miller ran that grocery store since we were kids here. Dave worked there, Mike worked there. He went under and now some fucking Korean owns it who fired these guys and he's making a killing 'cause he's hired forty fucking border-jumpers. I see this shit going on and I don't see anybody doing anything about it. And it fucking pisses me off. So look around you. This isn't our fucking neighbourhood, it's a battle field. We are on a battle field tonight. Make a decision. Are we gonna stand on the side-lines quietly standing there while our country gets raped? Are we gonna ante up and do something about it? You're god damn right we are.

(Derek, American History X, 1998).

This gives the viewer a chance to step into the shoes of a neo-Nazi extremist seeing their views. Chanter states that

American History X grabs you because it throws you inside the racist mind […]Derek is chilling because he’s not merely spewing bile and epithets - he’s making racism make sense – like a master rhetorician…. We get that racism is bad. American History X works because it risks showing us why some people believe it’s good.

(Chanter, 2008, page 204)

Derek later tries to rebuild a new idea, an anti-racist view. American History X not only shows us why people believe racist propaganda but it shows us the class oppression in America at the time, which makes these ideas and views plausible. The film indicates the gender oppressions that American women still faced, treated with no respect and expected to stay domesticated. This treatment of women is not a positive depiction, showing the sexist attitudes of the working class neo-Nazi groups and the marginalisation of women at the time. American History X shows the continued oppression of women and the fact that their ideas and views do not count; for example Derek’s sister Davina tries to explain that their neo-Nazi views are wrong and they dismiss her anti-racist remarks. When Derek’s mother and sister agree with Murray, who is his mother’s new love interest, and Jewish, Derek handles his sister violently for agreeing with Murray and silences his mother,

Murray: What are you doing Derek, this is your family?

Derek: Right, my family, my family so you know what? I don’t give two shits about you or anybody else or what you think, you’re not a part of it and you never will be.

Murray: That has nothing to do with it

Derek: Oh it doesn’t? You don’t think I see what you’re trying to do here? You think I’m gonna sit here and smile while some fucking kike tries to fuck my mother? it’s never gonna happen Murray, fucking forget it, not on my watch not while I’m in this family…I will fucking cut your shilock nose off and stick it up your ass before I let that happen. Coming in here and poisoning my family’s dinner with you Jewish, nigger loving, hippy bullshit! Fuck you! Fuck you! Yeah, walk out. Asshole, fucking kabala reading mother fucker, get the fuck outta my house! See this that means not welcome!

(Murray and Derek, American History X, 1998)

Derek shows Murray his tattoo, a swastika over his heart, stating “not welcome”. “There are reasons and personal justifications for Derek’s beliefs” (Ewing, 2010), stemming from a conversation with his father, stating that everything wrong in America is down to the minorities. Derek’s father is shot by a black youth whilst putting a fire out. Neo-Nazi leader Cammeron comforts Derek and turns a group of youths into an army of ‘white soldiers’ for his old fashioned racist attacks. He brainwashes them into thinking that it was the black people’s fault their father was killed. Derek kills two black youths trying to steal his car and is sent to prison for three years.

Derek and others of the neo-Nazi’s feel they are bottom of the classes in America and even fall below the minorities and feel that is not right. The neo-Nazi’s attack and terrorise non-white American citizens, as in their opinion the white American deserves those jobs that the minorities have. The neo-Nazi’s do not see the economic poverty suffered and danger the immigrants face to achieve safety from their native country; they only see that what is being taken is rightfully theirs. The ideas are rooted in ‘whiteness’, showing a scene where a Korean female shop worker is assaulted then milk is poured over her skin. “This image condenses within it not only a reference to the sustenance of the material body, but also a reference to the mother-nation. The message is clear enough: become like us. Be white” (Chanter, 2008, page 207). The idea is impossible, so shall never be accepted. The shot is filmed in slow motion and close up showing the effect of the liquid erasing the skin colour and provoking ideas that women have a place; such as traditional domestic duties and breastfeeding. The milk punishes her, showing her: this is the milk you should be feeding your children at home, not taking away jobs from white men so they cannot provide for their traditional white family.

The overall ending of the film shows the moral rights rediscovered by Derek and Danny, but it is too late for Danny as he is shot and killed at his school by a black youth he had been feuding with due to his previously racist views. Danny did not have time to rectify his wrongs and he paid the price. Derek blamed himself knowing Danny idolized him and would continue his racist legacy, leading to his death. Danny previously stated that

I hate the fact that it’s cool to be black these days, I hate this hip-hop fucking influence in white fucking suburbia and I hate Tabatha and all her Zionist MTV fucking pigs telling us we should get along save the rhetorical bullshit Hillary Rodham Clinton cause it ain't gonna fucking happen.

(Danny, American History X, 1998)

Danny’s views change when forced to write a history paper on his brother’s life, finally understanding the root of their racist views. But this sudden realisation had come too late. There is a scene where the brothers dismantled their bedroom

Upon his parole, Derek sheds his neo-Nazi identity by pulling down the Nazi banners and Hitler posters hung on his bedroom wall and warning his brother to sever his ties with the skinheads. The references to the Holocaust in American History X taint skinhead racism by linking it to Nazi genocide.

(Baron, 2005, page 204)

The brother’s reformation has a moral message; what is learnt through family generations can be unlearnt; new lessons learnt and violence prevented. American History X makes the audience look at themselves and the prejudices they have made in the past or present. It makes us question personal views of racist movements and the views they preach, and it makes us question why skin colour still matters, why in this day and age racism is still scarily evident in numerous societies. Ratnakar states “American History X is a movie that holds up a mirror to the ugly racism prevalent in us. It’s not a pretty picture, but it’s something we can’t choose to ignore” (Ratnakar, 2009). American History X encourages the audience to look at the social problems of both racism and gender oppression. One can say that this film is an important tool used by the film industry to show the effects of racism and its lasting effects.

Bibliography

Baron L., (2005) Projecting the Holocaust into the Present: The Changing Focus of Contemporary Holocaust Cinema. USA: The Rowman and Littlefield Publishing Group Inc.

Chanter, T., (2008) the picture of abjection: film, fetish, and the nature of difference. Indiana: Indiana University Press

Ewing, J. B, (2010) American History X (1998). Cinema Sights. [ONLINE]http://cinemasights.wordpress.com/2010/10/10/american-history-x-1998/ (Accessed 31/01/2011)

Fulwood, N., (2003) One Hundred Violent Film That Changed Cinema. United States of America: Sterling Publishing Co.

Levy E., (1999) Cinema of Outsiders: The Rise of American Independent Film. United States of America: New York University Press.

Palumbo, P., (Date Unknown) ‘Ethnicity and Linguistic Tyranny in America: The Use of "Nigger" in American History X’. The Columbia Journal of American Studies

Ratnakar (2009) American History X – The Mind of a Racist. Passion for Cinema. [ONLINE] http://passionforcinema.com/american-history-x-the-mind-of-a-racist/ (Accessed 30/01/2011)

Filmography

American History X (1998) Tony Kaye. USA: Newline Cinema.

By Lea Weller BA

The information below has come from: https://culturalresearchers.weebly.com/studies/racism-and-popular-culture-american-history-x

Racism and Popular Culture: American History X -- Eliana Jimenez

5/14/2014

Cultural Analysis of Film: American History X

Eliana Jimenez

Racism is one of the biggest flaws humanity has exercised throughout history and continues to exercise in modern day society. Racism has affected people’s lives in various ways and some examples would include Hitler’s extermination of Jews in concentration camps and the formation of the group known as the Ku Klux Klan which were both based on the ideology of white supremacy. There is a direct correlation between such ideologies in American culture and the film industry. An example of a film would be American History x. American History x is an American drama film directed by Tony Kaye that was released in 1998. The setting of the film takes place in Los Angeles, California. The film is about a man who is a former neo nazi skinhead who tries to prevent his younger brother from following in his same footsteps. It greatly captivates the whole idea of racism in American culture. The film deals with concepts such as racism, white supremacy, affirmative action, minorities, and immigrants. A psychoanalytic film theory approach is the best method to analyze certain characters in the film, the audience, and what the director is trying to imply about his viewpoint on racism in the way he executes the film. It is the central thesis of this cultural research paper that through the production of the film American History x the director attempts to have an impact on the thoughts and perspective of the audience on the concept of racism.

In order to psychoanalyze the film one can apply the psychoanalytic theory approach. But what is the psychoanalytic theory approach? “This approach focuses on unmasking the ways in which the phenomenon of cinema in general, and the elements of specific films in particular, are both shaped by the unconscious of four agencies. These agencies are known as the filmmaker, the characters of a film, the film’s audience, and the discourse of a given film” (Psychoanalytic Film Theory web). Analyzing the film psychoanalytically, gives the audience insight as to why certain decisions were made when creating the film and why certain scenes were shown.

The film begins by introducing the audience to the two protagonists of the film named Derek and Danny Vinyard in a black and white scene at their home. Derek is in his room sleeping with his girlfriend while Danny is resting in another room. Danny notices the black men outside who appear to be members of a Crip gang and quickly alerts his brother. Members of a Crip gang are notoriously known for street-level sale of drugs as well as robberies, thefts, and assaults (gangs.umd.edu/Gangs/Crips.aspx). Derek, then jumps out of bed, in his boxers and exposes his built physique with a swastika tattoo on the left side of his chest. He then retrieves a gun, exits the house and aggressively starts shooting at the men outside.

In this first scene, the director chose black men to portray the thugs. He may have not recognized that this decision revealed something about his unconscious state. Why not portray the thugs as white men, why black men? In American culture if the word “thug” is stated there is a certain representation in everyone’s mind of what a thug would look like. Most people would associate the word thug as identifying a black individual, it is a common stereotype. However, people are not born with this stereotype in mind, it is learned from the society in which they live in. According to psychoanalytic Simon Clark, “We are all inherently racist because society precedes us as individuals” (pins.org.za). The director’s choice of choosing black men to portray the thugs shows that in his unconscious state he may believe in this stereotype. However, one can also argue that he purposely made this decision and it had nothing to do with his unconscious state. That he made this decision because he knew the audience of the film would be able to relate to the film more if the films representations match the representations that already psychologically occupy their mind. The director might also have made this choice to show the tension between races. If he would have chosen white men to play the thugs, the film would not really be portraying the idea of racism.

In this scene the director may also subconsciously be trying to imply that in a white supremacist society, whites believe they are superior and well educated and black individuals are not. However, the audience sees that whites could possibly also not be refined and that who you are is not based on the color of your skin. The director portrays this idea when Derek gets out of bed and exposes his swastika tattoo. This exposure of the tattoo shows that whites could also be uneducated and that the screw ups are not always the black folks which is what some racist individuals believe. The swastika tattoo would not be seen as a social norm or as something positive by the audience unless they believe in white supremacy and racism.

However, psychoanalytic Sigmund Freud, would agree that there is something subconsciously intriguing and attractive about the swastika symbol. The symbol not only represents hatred but it also represents unity within a single race, domination, power, and superiority which are all very appealing to the audience. The audience may view the symbol of a swastika as a representation of something negative if they are not racist individuals but in their unconscious state there is something very seducing about the symbol. For this reason, the director chose someone built to portray Derek. He wanted the seducing symbol to be placed on someone who matches the same perception. Derek is attractive and there is something about his “beautifully built physique” (http://www.freedomsite.org/colum/promajority5.html) that is enticing to the audience just like the swastika symbol.

In producing this film, the director is showing both sides to racism and why some people may practice racist acts in American culture. He is giving both viewpoints that concern racism, the individuals who believe in racism and the individuals who are affected by it. Unconsciously he is probably attempting to possibly unite the American culture by making people understand both sides of racism. Maybe if people learn to understand each other and not judge each other based on color then we would be able to be more united as a culture and as a nation.

The next scene shows Danny’s principal Mr. Sweeney who is African American, having a meeting in his office with one of Danny’s teachers, Murray, who is Jewish. They are discussing a controversial essay that Danny wrote about Mein Kampf (an autobiography written by Hitler). Murray is not content with the paper Danny wrote because it emphasizes Hitler as “a great civil rights leader”. He believes Danny will not change the principals he believes in for reasons that are later revealed. Mr. Sweeney, however, chooses to be optimistic toward Danny and believes he can unlearn his racist views. He assigns himself as Danny’s teacher and names the course American History x. He tells Danny to write an essay reflecting on the events and circumstances that led to his brother’s incarceration. Derek was arrested over the shooting at the beginning of the film and was sentenced to three years in prison. Danny needs to submit the reflective essay the next morning or he will be expelled from the school.

As Danny is walking home he looks around at his neighborhood and feels a sense of sorrow because he sees how his neighborhood used to be predominantly white and is now composed of individuals from other races. Subconsciously, he wishes his community was only composed of white people because he sees black people as inferior to him due to their skin color. He sees them as someone different than he is, he sees them as the “other”. If his neighborhood was inhabited by only white folks, he would have a closer feeling to the concept of oceanic oneness. “Freud described the concept of oceanic oneness as the sense that we’re part of existence once and for all, and that nothing, not even our deaths, can erase the fact” (http://www.shroomery.org/forums/showflat.php/Number/12474463). If all the people surrounding him in his neighborhood were white, Danny would sense a feeling of communion and oneness. He would feel in sync with society. Since his neighborhood is multiracial it disrupts that feeling of oneness.

Once he arrives home he encounters his brother Derek who has been released from prison. Derek tells Danny to listen to Mr. Sweeney and to complete his assignments. Meanwhile, Mr. Sweeney is called in to the police station because the cops are worried over Derek’s release from prison. During this scene at the station there is a television playing Derek’s interview concerning his father’s death. His father was killed by two black men who were crack addicts. Derek is crying in the interview and talking about crimes minorities are committing and all the burdens they are causing in America. According to Derek, his father’s death was race related. Subconsciously, because his father was murdered by two black men he blames the whole black race for his father’s death and he views them all the same. He views all minorities as crack addicts who can’t function properly and are disfiguring the integrity of the American race by just occupying space in their nation. Some critics may argue that one is not able to analyze the unconsciousness of a character in a film because they are not actually going through the situations they are in. They are portraying fictional characters (http://www.nettonet.org/Nettonet/Film%20Program/theory/psycho_theory.htm). However, even though the characters are not real one can hypothetically infer what they are thinking in their unconscious state. One can infer what an individual might be thinking if they were to actually go through the circumstances the actors are faced with.

Back at home Danny begins to work on the assignment Mr. Sweeney gave him. The rest of the movie is told through Danny recapping memories for his essay. As Danny begins to type we are shifted to the scene that Danny is describing in the essay. His brother Derek is sitting in a car talking with an older man who is the neo nazi leader of their group. He appointed Derek to recruit other individuals like them who are tired of having Blacks, Hispanics, and immigrants flourishing in their land. The scene is then shifted to Derek giving a speech to a group of youths who are also skinheads. He is speaking very passionately about the decline of America due to the minorities in their land. He states that they are stealing their jobs, their opportunities, and are also abusing the government system by acquiring welfare and aid when a lot of them do not even need it. He worries about the purity of the white race because he thinks minorities are going to end up being the predominant folks inhabiting America if they do not put an end to it.

He refers to the grocery store across the street as an example. He laments how it used to be owned by someone named Archie Miller who is most probably white and now it is owned by Koreans. He states that the Koreans hired 40 “jumpers”, meaning 40 people who crossed the border. He then tells the group that they have to take action and claim their land back so they all charge against the store wearing ski masks over their faces and completely destroy it inside. They also terrorize the workers inside the store especially a young woman by pouring many jars filled with liquids in her mouth. This scene is shown in black and white.

The director purposely made Derek state all of his concerns in this scene to reflect the possible concerns that racist individuals have in American culture. Many white individuals in society also have the same fears that Derek describes. Is the director motivating them to speak up in society about their feelings and thoughts through Derek’s character? These are questions the audience may not be asking themselves while watching the film because they are in some sort of mental gaze while watching it. But these are important questions one should ask oneself in order to see how films and the media may impact our thoughts and perspectives psychologically.

Danny then remembers another scene that is also black and white where his family is having dinner at his house and Mr. Murray is also present as his mother’s guest. Mr. Murray was Danny’s teacher at the beginning of the film who did not approve of Danny’s essay. The discourse of the film is not linear which means this scene occurred before Danny wrote his paper. He is just recapping this scene from his memory. At dinner Mr. Murray is discussing the L.A. riots and the minorities in the town and how he pities them. Derek soon gets angry at Mr. Murray for sympathizing with the blacks and Hispanics. He says the following: “You think I'm going to sit here and smile while some fucking kike tries to fuck my mother. It's never going to happen Murray...I will fucking cut your Shylock nose off and stick it up your ass before I let that happen. Coming in here and poisoning my family's dinner with your Jewish, nigger-loving, hippie bullshit. Fuck you! Fuck you!!...Get the fuck out of my house! See this (he exposes the Swastika on his chest)? This means not welcome!!” Derek’s sister and mother become frantic because Derek becomes violent and pulls his sister by the hair. He becomes angry at his sister and mother for buying into everything Mr. Murray was stating. It is at this moment that the audience realizes why Mr. Murray did not seem optimistic toward Danny in the beginning of the film. He most probably thought Danny was just like Derek and that their racist mind set was not going to change.

We are then shifted back to the scene that began the film during the robbery attempt on Derek’s truck still shown in black and white. We are then shown that Derek did kill two of the thieves. Derek told one of the thieves to open his mouth and place it along the sidewalk. One could hear the man’s teeth scrapping on the curb. Derek then kicks the man very hard toward the back of his neck “thrusting his mouth into the sidewalk and busting open his face” (http://www.freedomsite.org/colum/promajority5.html). This was a horrific scene for the audience to watch. The director might have done this purposely to affect the audience’s perspective on racism and to show the true horrors it can lead to.

Danny then takes a break from his essay and decided to attend a party being controlled by neo nazi skinheads. Derek warned Danny to not attend the party but he decided to go anyway. Derek no longer wants to be associated with the skinhead crowd and no longer wants to believe in their ideologies. However, the large group of skinheads are not aware of this and greet him as a king when he arrives to the party. They all see him as a hero for killing the two black men that attempted to steal his truck. They see him as a hero because the two black men he killed are two less minorities inhabiting their land. Derek for some reason wants to leave that life behind so he goes to Cameron’s office who is the leader of the neo nazi skinhead group. Cameron quickly gets angry when he realizes Derek no longer wants to be associated with them and threatens to kill him. Derek then decides to leave and the large group of people outside realize what was happening and they also become angry. They become angry because the person they viewed as a hero for following through with his white supremacist beliefs has just resigned those beliefs for reasons that will later be revealed. The group of people begin to charge at Derek and he decides to flee the scene. Danny then catches up with him several minutes later and begins to slam him against the wall asking him what is wrong with him. Danny himself seems very angry because Derek is renouncing the racist beliefs they have supported and internalized for so long.

Derek then begins to explain to Danny why he has changed his racist views. His transformation began while he was in prison for three years for murdering the black men outside of his home. In prison he was paired with a black man named Lamont, to do laundry as their jobs. In the beginning Derek didn’t seem to want to befriend him but it was his friendship with Lamont that started his rehabilitation. However, before he became close with Lamont he decided to stick with white men who were also supporters of Hitler’s views and also had a swastika tattoo. However, the relationship Derek had with them soon made a turn for the worst. Derek noticed one day when they were in the outdoor part of the prison, one of his fellow Hitler worshipers was giving money to a man who looked Hispanic in exchange for what appeared to be drugs. This angered Derek because in the white supremacist ideology he believed in you weren’t suppose to associate yourself with any minorities. It angered him that these so called followers of Hitler wore the Swastika tattoo but yet contradicted the meaning of that tattoo which meant “not welcome”. Derek realized they weren’t real supporters of Hitler so he decided to leave their group. He began playing basketball with black men in the prison and this enraged the group he was previously a part of because they then felt that he wasn’t taking what they believed in seriously. As a result, the neo nazi group in the prison pinned him to the wall while he was showering and sodomized him. The prison guard knew this was about to take place and closed the door of the bathroom so that the group would be able to perform this vile act. The director may be subconsciously trying to imply that he believes many individuals in the justice system are corrupt.

After that scene, Derek wakes up in the prison’s medical ward and had to receive stitches in his anus from the beating. He is crying in tears and probably feels extremely degraded at this point. The white men who raped Derek wanted to commit this act in order to demonstrate power over him and make him feel worthless by taking away his masculinity. From a psychoanalytical perspective, the white men committing the act probably feel degraded themselves and are trying to project this feeling onto Derek. Mr. Sweeney who is Danny’s principal comes to visit Derek in the medical ward because he was previously Derek’s principal as well when Derek was younger. Mr. Sweeney is not present there to judge Derek. He is there because he is worried about him and he is also concerned about Danny leading into the same path as he did. He acts very priest like in his conversation with him. He asks Derek if any of the racist views he has believed in has improved his life. Derek begins to sob and says no. He then asks for Mr. Sweeney’s help and begs him to take him out of that place. Through Derek the director may be showing the audience that he believes racism will accomplish nothing in one’s life so why act with such prejudice.

A few days later Derek is back working with Lamont doing laundry. Their friendship continues to grow. Derek asks Lamont why he was in prison. Lamont responds by stating he was in prison for robbing a T.V. His sentence was 6 years in prison. Derek could not fathom that Lamont was given 6 years for robbing a television. However, Lamont then explains that he was given 6 years because an officer approached him while he was carrying the T.V. and tried to grab the T.V. from him and it accidentally fell on the officer’s foot. As a result, Lamont was charged with assaulting a police officer as well not only for robbing a television. Derek survives the remaining of his sentence without being attacked again and it is implied that it was Lamont who made sure he wouldn’t be hurt again. Shortly after he is released from prison. By the director showing that Derek got a lighter sentencing than Lamont for a worse crime, he is possibly stating once again that he believes the justice system in America is corrupt. He may be motivating the audience to attempt to collectively change this unfortunate reality.

It is ironic how Derek was placed in jail for killing two African Americans but yet it is precisely an African American who ends up saving him in prison. The moral concept being shown here is that one should not discriminate against each other based on one’s color because you never know when you may need that individual’s help.

The scene then shifts back in color to the scene where Derek is telling Danny all of his experiences at the prison and why he no longer believes in his previous racist views. “I'm lucky. I feel lucky Dan, because it was wrong (what I did). It was eating me up. It was going to kill me. I kept asking myself: 'How did I buy into this shit?' It's because I was so pissed off”. Dereck is implying that his prejudice and racist beliefs were wrong. The director may indirectly be telling the audience that in the end being a racist person will not only necessarily harm others but it will also consume and harm the racist individual. Danny was shocked to hear about everything his brother went through and states that he is very sorry for all of those events that happened to him. Derek then states that he’s not telling his brother what to do but to closely evaluate his footsteps. Derek is implying to Danny to pay close attention to the path he has taken because if he doesn’t change he will end up in the same position as him. They then walk home and go to Danny’s bedroom. They both begin to tear down all the posters Danny has on his wall of Hitler. This symbolizes that Danny will also get rid of his racist views.

The next scene shown is the earliest event throughout the whole movie and is also shown in black and white. In this scene Derek is shown having dinner with his family including his father. During this time Derek and Danny were not neo nazi skinheads, they were normal young men. Dereck is having a conversation with his father at the dinner table. He is talking about his teacher who is Mr. Sweeney. At this point back in time Mr. Sweeney was a teacher but the audience knows that he will eventually become the principal. Dereck was telling his father that he admires his teacher very much and that he is a very intelligent man who has a PhD. He also enjoys the choice of books that his teacher chooses and states he is reading many books based on black literature. “Derek's father sarcastically comments: "Is this part of Black History month?" He laments that this kind of thing - "affirmative Blacktion" - is "everywhere." He exhorts Derek to "not swallow whole" what his Black teacher is teaching: "I mean, do you have to trade in Great Books for Black books? The father continues: "You have to question these things, you have to look at the whole picture. You know we're talking about a book here, but I'm also talking about my job." Affirmative action ("employment equity" in Canada) is a volatile issue. Derek's father describes how two Black firefighters were hired even though they scored lower on the testing than did other White applicants: "Does that makes sense?" (Of course it doesn't)Yeah sure, everything's equal now; but I got two guys watching my back responsible for my life, who aren't as good as two other guys. They only got the job because they're Black, not because they were the best.

Derek: That sucks.

Father: Yeah. Is that what America is all about? No, America is about best man for the job. You do your best, you get the job. You know, this affirmative action crap, I don't know what that's about, it's like some hidden agenda or something going on. You see what I'm saying?

Derek: Yeah I do. I don't know. I didn't think about it like that” (http://www.freedomsite.org/colum/promajority5.html).

In this scene the audience discovers how Derek and Danny’s racist beliefs first started. The director is showing that racism is learned in society, one is not born with it. Through the upbringing and raising of children parents sometimes psychologically store racist beliefs in their child’s mind unintentionally or intentionally. Freud believed we were born with a clean slate which refers to our mind being born completely free from thoughts and ideas (http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-a-blank-slate.htm). The director may believe in this theory because he chooses to show the scene of Derek’s father psychologically influencing him toward the end of the film to maybe explain why everything in the film has occurred. Although the worry of affirmative action is a valid concern, some people just psychologically use it to fuel their racist attitude instead of actually caring about the possible unfairness of it.

The film then returns to the scene where Danny is typing his assignment in his room. The next morning Danny heads off to school with his paper in his hand. Derek walks him to school and seems quite worried as they walk the streets. The audience understands Derek’s worry without the characters even speaking a word because they can infer that the relatives or friends of the two black men that he killed will seek revenge. Derek drops Danny off at the front of his school. Danny then enters the male’s bathroom. A few seconds later a young African American young boy approaches Danny and shoots him violently with a gun. Derek hears the gunshot and commotion from outside and runs inside the school building. He enters the bathroom and finds Danny laying on the floor with blood spatter everywhere. He runs to Danny, grabs him and begins to sob with tears. The movie then ends with the voice of Danny finishing the conclusion of his essay. "Hate is baggage. Life's too short to be pissed off all the time. It's just not worth it." He then ends the movie with a quote: "We are not enemies, but friends. We must not be enemies, though passion may have strength, it must not break our bonds of affection. The mystic cores of memory will swell and again and touch as surely they will be by the better angels of our nature."

At the end of the movie Danny realizes that everything he and his brother believed in was a lie. Unfortunately, they realized it too late. It took shocking and horrific experiences to reform Derek’s mind that was originally programmed with racism by his father. Freud practiced this notion when he was psychoanalyzing his patients. He would hypnotize them into a deep sleep where they can try to access their unconscious state. It takes being in a highly uncomfortable situation to psychologically “fix” oneself. If Derek had never gone to prison he would definitely still be practicing his racist beliefs because he needed to be shocked into seeing the reality of the situation (http://www.simplypsychology.org/psychoanalysis.html).

In the end one can see how the director tried to impact the audience’s viewpoint on racism. In my opinion, the director is essentially stating that racism is a cyclical repeating pattern that does not have an end. It is learned through our guardians and society and then reinforced in ways of thinking and in our actions. The director is urging the audience to not act with prejudicial beliefs because it will not only lead to the corruption of others but it will also lead to the corruption of oneself. The quote at the end is the director’s way of saying the whole point of the movie was to open up the eyes of the audience on the concept of racism and to show them that we should treat each other equally and with integrity. “We are all friends”, implies a Christians perspective on racism because in the Bible we are all regarded as brothers and sisters. The only way to end racism is to try and access the unconscious part of our mind by really evaluating ourselves and trying to figure out the possible feelings we are projecting onto others instead of just focusing on hatred toward people. Although not everyone in society is racist, racism will never end because humans are ultimately flawed and always will be.

Works Cited

American History x. Dir. Kaye, Tony. USA, 1998. Film.

"American Politics & Pop Culture.” 13. American History X: Race & Culture in Film II Archives. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 May 2014.

Clark, Simon. "Psychoanalysis and Racism." Pins.org. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 May 2014.

"Crips." Gangs.org. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 May 2014.

"The Freedom-Site --- CONTROVERSIAL COLUMNISTS - A Description and Analysis of the Film American History X." The Freedom-Site --- CONTROVERSIAL COLUMNISTS - A Description and Analysis of the Film American History X. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 May 2014.

"Freud's Explanation for the Oceanic Feeling - The Psychedelic Experience - Shroomery Message Board." Freud's Explanation for the Oceanic Feeling - The Psychedelic Experience - Shroomery Message Board. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 May 2014.

McLeod, Saul. "Psychoanalysis." Simply Psychology. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 May 2014.

"Psychoanalytical Film Theory." N.p., n.d. Web. 12 May 2014.

Rankin, Alan, and Melissa Wiley. WiseGeek. Conjecture, 12 May 2014. Web. 12 May 2014.

American History X

The information below has come from: http://dramatica.com/articles/american-history-x by KE Monahan Huntley

//American History X//, written by David McKenna and directed by Tony Kaye (also the cinematographer), is a highly polished presentation of an ugly subject: the rhetoric of hate. The fine acting of Edward Norton and Edward Furlong extricates the film from a cliché driven script. From a Dramatica perspective, it is a particularly good illustration of how concerns and benchmarks relate in the four throughlines.

The objective story domain is examined in psychology. Divergent thinking and manipulations, both subtle and overt, are problematic. Skinheads, under the leadership of white supremacist Cameron Alexander, control Venice Beach. The LAPD is working with Venice Beach High's charismatic and African American principal, Dr. Robert Sweeney, in conceptualizing (os concern) a way to eradicate their intolerable presence. The plan entails convincing Cameron's protégé, Derek Vinyard (protagonist and influence character), to take their side. Derek is a former pupil of Sweeney's. At one time he was open to his mentor's ideas (os benchmark-conceiving) -- that is until his revered (and racist) father dissuaded his impressionable son from following the leader.

Derek's firefighter father is killed in a drive by, leaving the teen vulnerable to the influence of Cameron-manifested when Derek deliberately and viciously wastes Crips gang members carjacking his truck. Without the eyewitness testimony of his fourteen year-old brother, Daniel, he only serves three years jail time. His release from Chino starts the objective story (ic benchmark-present).

The same day as Derek's release, Daniel, a student at Venice Beach High is in the principal's office: " . . . arguing for Hitler as a civil rights hero" in his history paper "My Mein Kamph." Outraged, Sweeney conceives (os benchmark) of a way to make Daniel think (mc solution) about his fixed mindset (mc domain), and charges Daniel to give a written account of the past three years (mc concern-memory): "I want you to analyze and interpret all the events surrounding Derek's incarceration. How these events helped shape your present perspective (mc response) concerning life in contemporary America. The impact on your life -- your family's."

The most vivid throughline is explored in the relationship story domain (physics) where the concern is understanding. Derek has returned as head of the household. He has undergone a profound change in Chino, and no longer wants himself nor Daniel to take any part in the skinhead movement. Each new piece of information Derek offers Daniel (rs benchmark-learning) of what had happened to him in jail (ic concern-past), combined with Daniel's own recollections (mc concern), creates a new consciousness (mc benchmark) in the boy. This ultimately culminates in Daniel fully appreciating the knowledge (rs problem) he and Derek had shared no longer holds true.

There is no happy ending to celebrate this realization (mc resolve-change). Daniel is fatally shot in the high school boys' room-an explosive action (story driver) separate and apart from the objective story (mc critical flaw-fate). Derek, cradling his dead brother's bloody body, however, understands all too well the pivotal role he has played in Daniel's senseless death: "Oh God, What'd I do? Oh God. Oh God."

In Daniel's voice-over the tragedy is underscored-as he posthumously reads the conclusion to his American History X paper:

DANIEL

So I guess this is where I tell you what I learned (rs benchmark). My conclusion, right? Well, my conclusion is: hate is baggage. Life's too short to be pissed off all the time. It's just not worth it. Derek says it's always good to end a paper with a quote. He says someone else has already said it best, so if you can't top it, steal from them and go out strong:

"We are not enemies but friends. We must not be enemies. Though passion may have strained, it must not break our bonds of affection. The mystic chords of memory(mc concern) will swell when again touched, as surely they will be by the better angels of our nature (judgment-good)."