In Stuart Hall’s lecture entitled “Race as Floating Signifier,” Hall discusses why race matters so much to people today, and how race works in one’s head, and the logic behind it. Hall notes that the meaning of race is constantly changing all of the time, hence the “floating signifier” aspect of the video. In the video Hall makes many valid points about race and how it has become almost a form of “human classification,” but one point that he focuses on in depth is his “politics without guarantee” theory.
One major point that Hall made with this theory is that society does not know how to conduct politics without guarantees, and that we have yet to find an ethically responsible way to conduct politics around race without the guarantee of biology. What comes out of this are so many stereotypes of people of color, such as their loud ways, their better ability in certain sports over whites, their abrasive natures, and so on. What Hall tries to convey in his lecture is how people of color have been fighting for themselves against these kinds of stereotypes throughout history, and that people need to take biology less seriously, and such stereotypes as blacks being less intelligent than whites that are not true, and need to be proven even more so, rather than being pushed aside, and instead finally be put to rest for good.
In the following video that I found, the boy discusses how one should “act black” in response to a question that somebody wrote to him and asked. The point that he tries to make in the video in my opinion is that there is no real way to “act black,” and that all of the stereotypes that exist around black people do not define them as people, just like stereotypes of white people or any other race of people do not define them or make them act in certain ways either. The thoughts that I leave you with are why do you think these stereotypes started in the first place, and what would it take for our society to completely abolish them for good and come together as one or is that impossible? And the second video is for your own enjoyment, because I believe that the lyrics really speak true to our society today, and how judgmental it has become, and how we really need to come together as one and stop the stereotypes and hate. Enjoy!
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I'm in group D, but our second person hasn't posted yet, and I need to comment before my next class, so I'm coming over to group A again. Hey guys! Anyway, I agree with this entire post. I think that especially Hall's theories on stereotypes reign true. I believe that these stereotypes need to be further proved to be untrue, highly published and widely discussed so that people can finally know they are untrue, so that society can finally put them to rest. I also do not think there is a certain way to "act black" or any other color and I think this is a very ignorant statement and a stereotype within itself. By even creating this video, the person in it is reinforcing the stereotype most people are trying to dismantle and put away for good. We should all, as a society, realize stereotypes when we see and hear them, and try to put a stop to them, even if they are meant to be "just jokes" as in the example of racial jokes that Hall uses. We all need to put these away for good, so racism can be combatted more thoroughly.
ReplyDeleteI thought Hall's "politics and guarantee" segment. I feel that I've always known that these stereotypes have just reinforced the separation of people of different races but when I watched the video Hall put it into another perspective when he brought the whole biology aspect into and it just opened up a whole new idea of how these stereotypes are reinforced and the the clip of "Just Act Black" rang so true. The pigment of your skin is the color, not your personality. It's not a secret. I wonder how so many humans have gone this long confusing their color with personality. I feel like no one questions this strange conception.
ReplyDeleteI agree with hall's ideas as well. I think stereotypes will forever be a part of interaction between cultures. Although it is sad, I think it is a natural, and sometimes subconscious, defense mechanism that human beings use to protect their own histories and cultures. It seems like, subconsciously, people can feel threatened by ways of life that differ from what they have come to understand about their own culture. This in turn creates a divide between people of different backgrounds and perpetuates the system of stereotypes that have great influence over people and their actions. If this is something that can be overcome it will certainly not be easy.
ReplyDeleteAs Sarah mentioned, Hall states that "people of color have been fighting for themselves against these kinds of stereotypes throughout history." I agree with Hall, but I do not feel like it is just an issue of race. In every culture, there are negative stereotypes. If a person wants to change the way that they are seen, they are going to have to constantly fight against those stereotypes, throughout their lives.
ReplyDeleteI think one of the more important origins of the racial classification system can be linked to people and their overwhelming need for power. As Hall recognizes, classification used to be just that, it had nothing to with red white black or brown; it was a system of order that ultimately put people in their place. Regardless, whether the reasoning is religion, anthropology, or science, there will always be some order of classification. Hall says that classification and the creation of subgroups is necessary to create meaning, and systems of power based on differences- systems of order and “matter of place” exclusion. To answer Sarah’s question, I think power was the original foundation of such systems, and ultimately the reason why racism exists. There is no inherent meaning in the color of one’s skin, other than the meaning our culture has created. As the young man in the video points out- how do you act black? Is it by living in the cultural norms of a society where one man is better than the next, because of the power one man gives away? Power is in our roots, and to answer Sarah’s other question- I just don’t know.
ReplyDeleteWatching the first video brought to my mind about what media cultivated fear against Muslims/Islamic. After the 9/11 attack as well as the many other terrorist attacks that have been exposed, America have seemed to build a stereotype of people who share physical characteristics. Because someone who's walking through the airport with similar clothing and physical features mean that person/people is a terrorist? Is this not racial discrimination as well? And yes, as much as I hate to admit, racial classification can not just disappear but why not just respect and love the person as a human being... I think it would just make life a lot easier.
ReplyDeleteI agree that the stereotypes are part of everyone's subconscious, but if feel that other aspects of society help reinforce them such as the video above. I feel that it is something of a loop that society tells people something, and it is put into their subconscious then they push forward that idea. For example, the video is showing how to act black, now these stereotypes are going to be put into people's heads and inadvertently reinforced. It is something of a cycle that so many are a part of but do not realize it. The stereotypes had to come from somewhere, I mean it is not god's divine plan to make whole groups of people act all in similar manners.
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