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AAST355: Asian Americans in Film - Coggle Diagram
AAST355: Asian Americans in Film
9/5 "The Cheat" (1915)
Villanization
Arakau branding Edith in front of a Buddhist statue (dehumanization)
Arakau's intentions are to destroy Edith and Richard's relationship
Richard is depicted as a loyal man who's purpose is to protect his wife VS Arakau is depicted as wealth and powerful with intentions to harm others
At 34:00 we see Richard going through a wooded area in order to get to Arakau's home (villains often live away from "normal" society
In the opening scene, there's juxtaposition in the introduction of characters...Arakau is introduced in very dark lightning while the Hardy's are introduced in brighter lighting
9/7 "The Toll of the Sea" (1922)
Asian women depicted as weak
Lotus Flower is settled on only being in love with Allen
Lotus Flower commits suicide after coming to the realization that Allan doesn't want her back and has moved on with his family from home
Asian characters are depicted as different
Allen's companions emphasize the fact that Lotus Flower and the other Asian characters as unique and different
At the 13:00 mark, an Asian woman is shown alone while Allen and company are chatting (creates the idea that she doesn't belong there)
9/14 "Daughter of the Dragon" (1931)
Villanization
Ling Moy threatening to disfigure Joan's face by pouring acid on it
Ling Moy ordering Ronnie to stab Joan to death
Fu Manchu is depicted as scary throughout film
Sexism
Joan and her mother are depicted as objects of affection meaning that they are only their to be partners to their male counterparts
Ling Moy's desire to be a son
"Stupid son is better than a crap daughter"
Stereotypes
White man portraying Asian character
Fu Manchu's letter (Chop suey font, dragon imagery)
Burning of incense and hitting of gong throughout film
8/31 "In Search of Asian American Cinema"
Asian American films look to just put "Asian faces and looks no further"
discussion of whether or not Asian American films need to depict an Asian American related issue
8/31 "Orientalism"
Europe's view it as their own invention
Allowing Europeans to incorporate ideas and culture from Asian countries
8/31 "Film"
Representation in itself is neutral but always used in relation to power dynamics
Development of different strategies to respond to critiques of representation in film
9/5 "The other Question- Stereotype, Discrimination, and the Discourse in Colonialism"
Discusses the unchanging nature of stereotypes and its effect on society
Fixity (way for people to think certain info about a group of people is already known and established)
Ambivalence (neutrality to racial or sexist exaggerations)
9/7 "Color-as-hue and Color-as-race: Early Technicolor, Ornamentalism, and Toll of the Sea"
Film color is a way that can exoticize Asians through Orientalism
Differences in race were displayed through setting and clothing rather than skin color
9/12 "Romance and the Yellow Peril"
Discusses how Asians are seen as an existential threat to the western world
Asian women are seen as a fantasy and should seduce the white man
Asian men are seen a threat to white women
9/14 "When Dragon Ladies Die, Do they Come Back as Butterflies"
Discusses how Anna May Wong's characters are all related to sexualization and exoticisim
In order to avoid disturbing the happiness of white characters, Anna May Wong's characters always end up dying
9/19 "My Geisha" (1962)
Stereotypes
All types of Asians look the same...at 49:40 Paul mistaken other Geishas for Yoko since their makeup and clothing were very similar
Lucy mocks Japanese language when she just speaks gibberish
Exoticism
Lucy's questioning of many aspects of the geisha (calls outfit a costume, wig instead of real hair, doesn't know what sake is, white makeup
9/19 "Made Up Asians"
Yellowface was something that evolved during the time many Asians were being excluded in America and Asian immigration was very limited
9/21 "The Hypersexuality of Race"
Asian women are often portrayed as sexual pleasures
False representation of Asian women's cultural experience (rather in context of western perspective)
Hyper sexuality is rooted in history (Chinese prostitutes)
9/26 "Recuperating Suzie Wong"
"The only Chinese women we meet are prostitutes and the fees Chinese men we encounter are asexual"
Robert despises how Susie Wong challenges her oriental image by dressing in western style
Robert prefers Suzi in her traditional clothing compared to when she dresses in western style because he likes the "exoticisim"
9/26 "The World of Suzie Wong" (1966)
White Savior
Robert sacrificing himself to save Suzie, but unwilling to let her help him
Film overlooks the fact that Robert assaults Suzie in order to continue the plot of depicting Robert as Suzie's "savior"
Americans are welcoming to other cultures
British are reluctant and ignorant to Asian culture, unlike Robert's openess
Sexualization of Asian women
Suzie makes a living through prostitution which makes her come off as submissive
9/28 "Asian American Media and Activism"
The solution to fixing the issue of representation is difficult because removing white figures can be seen as excluding them
Other forms of media are just as important for representation as are shows and movies
There is not only one correct way to represent Asian cultures in media
10/3 "Bruce Lee and the Anti-Imperialsim of Kung Fu
Multiculturalism is a static view of history and culture where as polyculturalism is more dynamic
Martial arts is polycultural
10/3 "Enter the Dragon" (1973)
First time Asian character is seen as a hero
However, Han vs Lee depicts opposite representations of the Asian male with one being villanized and the other a hero
Han chasing Lee's sister forcing her to kill herself and Han drugging the women before selling them
Lee fights Han's henchmen to avenge his sister's death
Prostitutes are mainly all Asian women in which the men visiting from the island can choose from
10/5 "Better Luck Tomorrow" (2003)
Model Minority
Breaking Asian Stereotypes
Ben, Daric, Virgil, and Han run the cheating scandal where they are selling cheat sheets to other sttudents
Acts of violence such as Steve's murder and fighting
Shoplifting at the computer store
Achieving good grades and participating in many extra curricular activities to have good applications to apply to IVY league schools
10/5 "Straightjacket Sexualities"
Claims that Ben's murder of Steve is a way to reclaim his masculinity
"These filmmakers risk their own financial security to make these products that alter the status of Asian Americans in the cinematic imagery" (132)
"Rather than simply escape their assignation of straightjacket sexuality, the characters portrayed acknowledge the impossibility of getting out of it entirely" (164)
10/12 "In the Afterglow of Regenerative Violence"
Third cinema is defined as a "political project-a democratic, participatory, socialist cinema that seeks to challenge and provoke collective consciousness of its viewers toward the revolutionary transformation of society"
10/17 "Who Killed Vincent Chin?"
Chin's death is overlooked and not taken seriously because of the fact that he was Asian
Ronald Ebens did not face any consequences even though he killed Chin and witnesses saw because he was a white man
White men despised the Asian community due to the rise of the Asia car market
Vincent Chin's own mother and other witnesses that were of color were not called to testify in court
10/19 "Detroit Blues"
Elaborates on the hatered for Asian due to Asian car industry specifically Japanese automobiles
Vincent Chin's death took a toll on all other Chinese people living in Detroit area
10/26 "Surname Viet, Given Name Nam"
Vietnamese women are expected to meet certain standards so that they are desirable and when they don't meet these then men will leave them
Documentary style film in which perspectives that were never expressed are shown particularly Asian women (similar to "History and Memory: For Akiko and Takasshige")
Asian women discuss the conflicting styles of a socialist vs capitalist government
10/31 "History on the Run"
Grandmothers can be seen as a symbol of history and also a sign that a family is struggling especially in Asian families
Walt's comments at beginning of film towards the Hmong shows how Americans felt towards Asian Americans
Clear tension between white Americans and Asians in society (reading referrnces Detroit and Vincent Chin)
10/31 "Gran Torino"
Walt shows That how to "talk like a man" but has to be polite in doing so, compared to Walt jokingly making fun of barber
Walt appears to struggle with handling culture change (new young female doctor, when Hmong move in next door)
His attitudes change over the course of the film when he gains the Hmong's respect after his sacrifice (white savior concept)
As Walt's relationship with Sue and Theo develop and strengthen over the course of the film, Walt is able to work through his trauma from the Korean War and feel like he's redeeming himself
10/17 "San Francisco International Hotel"
kalayaan translates to liberty/freedom
After hotel was destroyed, the space remained empty (eventually becoming a parking lot) as a sign that the company just wanted to get rid of Filipinos (did not relocate anyone Filipino community members specifically the elders living there)
11/2 "Saving Face"
Wil's mother is encouraged to marry someone that her father approves of, but Will tells her mother that she should look to marry someone she truly loves (filial piety)
Wil eventually finds out that her grandfather kicked her mother out of the house when she was pregnant with Will because a man that wasn't her husband impregnated her (filial piety)
Wil and Vivian both demonstrate opposite traits of femininity where Wil is a "tomboy" and Vivian is a girly girl
Vivian's transition of ballet to modern dancer symbolizes her acceptance of who she is and how she wants to express herself
11/2 "Imagining Queer Asian North American Lives"
Talks about lack of acceptance and this can be seen when Wil's mother constantly tries to set her up on dates, not accepting her sexuality
Queer Asian Americans that come out to their family often face expulsion, disownment, and other forms of harm
11/7 "Mississippi Masala"
Jay is Indian, but grew up in Uganda and is extremely attached to Ugandan culture, and eventually moves to America
Mina inherits many aspects of different cultures of where she has lived (Uganda, America, England)
Jay refuses to accept that Misssissippi was where he would be for the rest of his life, but when he goes back to Uganda he realizes his home is wherever his wife is
When Mina and Demetrius were arrested, police did not read them their Miranda rights which can be a sign of racism because neither of them are white
11/7 "At the Crossroads of Two Empires"
"Trapped in the same exploitative geography" represents the ending scene in where is shows how far Mina and Deleterious have come to be together, but regardless of where they end up, they cannot escape racism and prejudice
Jay being referred to as the "champion defender of blacks" is ironic in that he refused to allow Mina to date Demetrious
11/9 "Crazy Rich Asians"
Rachel represents the idea of multiculturalism as she is an Asian woman who grew up in white America
Idea of filial piety exists in the relationship between Eleanor and Rachel in that Eleanor is unaccepting of Rachel for Nick, because the Young family comes from wealth and Rachel comes from a single mother living in white America
Rachel and Eleanor also represent the tension between East vs West where Rachel tries to break the traditional Asian ideals through falling in love with Nick
11/9 "Multicultural Redemption: Crazy Rich Asians and the Politics of Representation"
Discusses idea of economic upward mobility and we see at beginning of film when Eleanor and Young family become the new hotel owners allowing them to move up the hierarchy of class
Discussion of how Asians are able to reach the status that white people can achieve through academics which plays with the idea of the model minority myth in which Asians are generally smarter
Lack of a representation of darker-skinned Asians, and when they do appear they are background characters that lack any significant purpose/role
11/14 "The Reluctant Fundamentalist"
Idea that all darker-skinned Asians are terrorists following the attacks of 9/11, can be seen when Changez begins growing a beard leading to changes in attitude from his co-workers
Changez represents the idea that Asians are still mistrusted in America due to their connection to their traditional culture which can ultimately challenge their loyalty to the white world
11/14 "Model Minority Terrorists"
Discusses the idea that minorities are hired as a way to show diversity within their company, but since they only care about making money, they tend to hire more white employees
Since 9/11, the association between darker-skinned Asians and terrorism will always exist in society due to the ignorance people have in just associating a certain person based on looks and religion
11/16 "Introduction to Techno-Orientalism"
techno-orientalism is the idea that Asia and Asians are hypo/hyper-technological
Development and advancement of technology in Japan and China along with cheap labor/manufacturing ha resulted in the association of Asians with technology
11/16 "Modern Boys and Mobile Girls
mobile girl is associated with the persona of a Japanese schoolgirl that is on her phone
modern boy is the persona of a young man who works to develop and advance technology in the Industrial Revolution happening in Japan
11/28 "Everything Everywhere All At Once"
Evelyn and Joy demonstrate another development of a mother-daughter relationship kind of similar to Wil and her mother in "Saving Face" in that Evelyn and Joy seem to hide things from each other ultimately forming this sort of tension between one another, but eventually resole their issues by the end of film
Tension between Gong Gong and Evelyn as he was disappointed to have a daughter, and this has a toll on Evelyn throughout her life as she feels the need to please her father, and things like marrying Waymond show her rebellious side of this relationship
Different representations of circles such as Bagel represent the idea of a lot of the characters being stuck in a loop in their lives where they continue to live the same llifestyle but want to change
11/30 "Asian American Media Representation"
Discussion of how many Asian identities are under represented in media as much focus is mainly on Eastern Asians such as Chinese, Japanese, Koreans, but overlooks other Asian cultures such as Indian, Middle Eastern, and many other communnities
Regardless of the generation, Asian Americans still continue to be viewed as outsiders to America even for true Asian Americans who were born in America from Asian parents
Media alone is a way to express indentity, however in Asian American identities, the media only explores mainly Eastern Asian identities which disassociates societies idea of an Asian American as other identities are not represented