Double Negative

The Black Image and Popular Culture

Nonfiction, Entertainment, Film, History & Criticism, Social & Cultural Studies, Social Science, Cultural Studies, African-American Studies
Cover of the book Double Negative by Racquel J. Gates, Duke University Press
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Racquel J. Gates ISBN: 9781478002239
Publisher: Duke University Press Publication: July 16, 2018
Imprint: Duke University Press Books Language: English
Author: Racquel J. Gates
ISBN: 9781478002239
Publisher: Duke University Press
Publication: July 16, 2018
Imprint: Duke University Press Books
Language: English

From the antics of Flavor Flav on Flavor of Love to the brazen behavior of the women on Love & Hip Hop, so-called negative images of African Americans are a recurrent mainstay of contemporary American media representations. In Double Negative Racquel J. Gates examines the generative potential of such images, showing how some of the most disreputable representations of black people in popular media can strategically pose questions about blackness, black culture, and American society in ways that more respectable ones cannot. Rather than falling back on claims that negative portrayals hinder black progress, Gates demonstrates how reality shows such as Basketball Wives, comedians like Katt Williams, and movies like Coming to America play on "negative" images to take up questions of assimilation and upward mobility, provide a respite from the demands of respectability, and explore subversive ideas. By using negativity as a framework to illustrate these texts' social and political work as they reverberate across black culture, Gates opens up new lines of inquiry for black cultural studies.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

From the antics of Flavor Flav on Flavor of Love to the brazen behavior of the women on Love & Hip Hop, so-called negative images of African Americans are a recurrent mainstay of contemporary American media representations. In Double Negative Racquel J. Gates examines the generative potential of such images, showing how some of the most disreputable representations of black people in popular media can strategically pose questions about blackness, black culture, and American society in ways that more respectable ones cannot. Rather than falling back on claims that negative portrayals hinder black progress, Gates demonstrates how reality shows such as Basketball Wives, comedians like Katt Williams, and movies like Coming to America play on "negative" images to take up questions of assimilation and upward mobility, provide a respite from the demands of respectability, and explore subversive ideas. By using negativity as a framework to illustrate these texts' social and political work as they reverberate across black culture, Gates opens up new lines of inquiry for black cultural studies.

More books from Duke University Press

Cover of the book Catholicism and Politics in Communist Societies by Racquel J. Gates
Cover of the book The Bolivia Reader by Racquel J. Gates
Cover of the book The Dead Letter and The Figure Eight by Racquel J. Gates
Cover of the book Owners of the Sidewalk by Racquel J. Gates
Cover of the book Ruins of Modernity by Racquel J. Gates
Cover of the book The Mayan in the Mall by Racquel J. Gates
Cover of the book Origins of Instability in Early Republican Mexico by Racquel J. Gates
Cover of the book Art for People's Sake by Racquel J. Gates
Cover of the book Mao Zedong and China in the Twentieth-Century World by Racquel J. Gates
Cover of the book Unconsolable Contemporary by Racquel J. Gates
Cover of the book Treasured Possessions by Racquel J. Gates
Cover of the book Bilingual Aesthetics by Racquel J. Gates
Cover of the book Novel Gazing by Racquel J. Gates
Cover of the book Painting Culture by Racquel J. Gates
Cover of the book Pathways to Prohibition by Racquel J. Gates
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy