engleski

Black Superheroes in Media and Popular Culture

The aim of this thesis was to present the role of black superheroes through comic books written in 1960s and 1970s and present-day movies and television series. Furthermore, the thesis looks at the historical context since such media are a part of popular culture. In this way, they reflect the society. Through the historical context of social justice movements and demonstrations related to black people’s rights in the U. S., the thesis examines black superheroes in comic books (Black Panther, Luke Cage and Black Lightning) and their adaptations (in movies and television shows). The foundations of the analysis are concepts developed by S. Hall and E. Said (representation and Orientalism), and stereotyping of black people throughout history. The selected black superhero characters were analysed through their physical appearance, personality, the people that surround them and the places they live in. The characters are considered based on the social contexts of the time when they appeared. For instance, in comic books, Luke Cage was represented as aggressive and muscular. Driven by vengeance, he returns to Harlem and uses his superpowers to establish peace through physical violence. However, in the television series, he is presented as a calm and collected person that thinks before he acts. He values culture and he expresses his emotions. The key result of this analysis is the apparent influence of the social context on the representation of black superheroes in popular culture. There are differences in the characters and there is a lack of stereotypical elements in the movie and television series, as opposed to the comic books published in the 1960s and 1970s. Thus, it is important to emphasise that the influence of social changes can be seen in the adaptations of the same characters that are a part of popular culture. With seemingly same characteristics, they appeared in different social circumstances, which resulted in differences in their image.

adaptation, black superheroes, comic books, Orientalism, stereotyping

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