Spike Lee's Do The Right Thin
Spike Lee's representation of the severed relations between the racial groups that co-exist in the community of Bed Sty throws the question of "what is the right thing to do" and also "is there such thing as truth," right into our faces forcing us to grapple with them. With the presentation of opposing tactics of Martin Luther King Jr.'s "non-violence," and Malcolm X's "violence in self-defense is intelligence" one must wonder, can the two ideals contribute simultaneously in the struggle toward the same goal of achieving mutual understanding without annihilating each other in the process? Lee sees this violence as the only means necessary in making everyone painfully aware of the injustices racism causes, picking up the battle where the peaceful means of attempting to understand one another fizzles out. However this violence is a result of the rigid interpretation of preconceived assumptions of a racial group without consideration to the individuals distinct identity. This community exists not on the basis of true understanding of each other but parallels the concept found in Bellow's story of a flexible societal structure. Everyone present in that community finds a way to tolerate each other in order to perpetuate their own s
"Waaaaake up!" calls Mr. Seņor Love Daddy (Samuel L. Jackson), the 24-7-365 DJ for neighborhood radio station WE-LOVE as he holds a ringing alarm clock next to his studio microphone. From an intimate close-up of Love Daddy's lips, mic and clock, the camera pulls back, through the glass front of the WE-LOVE booth and out onto the street that is the sole setting for Do the Right Thing. picture of a fairly typical urban community with a realistic mixed bag of people. The Love Daddy's reference to the "truth Ruth" made me think about William James conception of pragmatism and instrumental truth. While many might have not beleived Tawana's truth, no one's conceptualization of truth is absolute. According to James, "Truth in our ideas and beliefs. . . become true just in so far as they help us to get into satisfactory relation with other parts of our experience. . . " While everyone has their own "truth" they must use their perceptions in a prgamatic fashion where, "[one] must bring out of each word its practical cash-value, set it at work within the stream of [one's] experience. It appears less as a solution then, than as a program for more work, and more particularly as an indication of the ways in which existing realities may be changed." (James) Only through this flexible structure can we even hope to close the gaps of misunderstanding between the various racial groups. The ultimate question then becomes: "ARE WE GOING TO LIVE TOGETHER. . . TOGETHER ARE WE GOING TO LIVE??" urvival. Sal sells his pizza to make money, and is pleasant enough to the community to ensure he'll have a good day in profits. The Korean grocers run their business in the same manner as well. Mookie and Vito start to break down the racial walls that are strongly held up by the community's perception, because their situation has placed them in a position where rigid adherence to stereotypes of the other group doesn't benefit the common purpose of the job at hand. Indeed, Lee's film is remarkable for its intense examination of the pettiness of - and the ensuing tragedies because of - racial tension and the fact that it "unlike Betrayed and Mississippi Burning and Places in the Heart, is really about black people" (Wallace 20). However, the representation of women and their relationship to racism is problematic because it polarizes the sexes into their traditional spheres - men in the public (political) sphere, and women in the private (domestic) sphere. In addition, women are positioned outside of racism and therefore as morally superior to men: another traditional fallacy.
Some common words found in the essay are:
Spike Lee, Radio Raheem, Spike Lee's, Mother Sister, Da Mayor, Malcolm X's, Michelle Wallace, Mookie Mookie, School Daze, Vito Mohammed, spike lee, spike lee's, radio raheem, racial tensions, da mayor, martin luther king, luther king, school daze, martin luther, domestic sphere, love daddy, seņor love daddy, luther king malcolm, spike lee urge, daze -- lee's,
Approximate Word count = 4958
Approximate Pages = 20 (250 words per page double spaced)
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